LAS VEGAS – Earning a bye to the third round of the Credit Union 1 West Coast Conference Men's Basketball Championship, sixth-seeded Pacific will play the winner of seventh-seeded Seattle and 11th-seeded on Saturday at 8:30 p.m. at Orleans Arena.
 
Pacific (17-14, 8-10 WCC) finished in the top half of the league standings and tied for fifth-place. It's the highest finish for the Tigers since 2019-20 when they tied for third and earned the No. 4 seed.
 
The Tigers have reached the third round for the first time since 2019-20 when they made it to the quarterfinals. Pacific is going for its first conference tournament win since 2022-23 when it topped Pepperdine 84-71 in the first round.
 
Senior Elias Ralph was named to the All-Conference First-Team. He leads the team in both scoring (16.5 ppg) and rebounding (6.8 rpg) and has 19 double-doubles in two seasons. Ralph ranks top-five in the WCC in scoring, rebounding, field goal percentage, free throw percentage and minutes. In two seasons at Pacific, Ralph has tallied 1,001 points.
 
In two seasons at Pacific, Ralph has tallied 1,001 points, becoming the first two-year player in school history to score 1,000 points. The last time a Tiger scored 1,000 points over any two seasons was Dell Demps (1988-92) who tallied 526 points in 1990-91 and 500 in 1991-92.
 
Senior TJ Wainwright was tabbed to as an All-Conference Honorable Mention. He averaged 13.2 points per game and shot .394 from long range, including .424 in conference. Wainwright shoots a team-best .918 from the free throw line. He scored at least 20 points five times including a season-high 27 in a win at Pepperdine.
 
Ralph became the first All-Conference First-Team honoree at Pacific since Jahlil Tripp in 2019-20 and just the second-ever since the institution rejoined the league in 2013-14. The last time the Tigers had at least two student-athletes recognized in WCC postseason awards was 2017-18 When Tripp was on the Second-Team and Roberto Gallinat and Miles Reynolds were Honorable Mentions.
 
Senior Jaden Clayton broke the school record for assists in a season with 195. It topped Lamar Washington's mark of 190 set last season. Clayton ranks top-20 in the country in assists with 6.3 per game. He's scored 1,001 career points in four Division I seasons.
 
In conference games, senior Justin Rochelin averaged 11.4 points and 6.9 rebounds per game while shooting .460 from three-point range.
 
Pacific won its only meeting against Seattle (19-12, 8-10 WCC) 56-54 at home. The Tigers were up by 15 at the intermission and 10 with 4:42 left before Seattle made a furious comeback attempt. The Redhawks trailed by two and had the ball on the final possession when Pacific forced a contested two-point jumper and pulled down a defensive rebound as time expired. Wainwright led the Tigers with 15 points, seven rebounds and three steals.
 
The Tigers split a pair of meetings with San Diego (12-20, 5-13 WCC), each winning at home. The last was a 77-70 victory in the Spanos Center where Pacific erased a 17-point deficit with 17:13 remaining. The Tigers are 18-15 all-time against the Toreros, and Pacific could potentially be looking to avenge an 81-77 defeat to San Diego in the conference tournament last season.
 
Saturday's game can be watched on ESPN+ with Roxy Bernstein and Dan Dickau. It can be heard live for free on Fox Sports AM 1280 with Zack Bayrouty as the voice of the Tigers.
 
The winner of Saturday's game will advance to the quarterfinals Sunday at 8:30 p.m. against third-seeded Santa Clara.
 
NOTES
- The Tigers are 2-0 on a neutral court. They won their Multi-Team Event (MTE) in Daytona Beach, Florida with double-figure victories over Stony Brook 86-58 and Jacksonville 68-53 in the GEICO Sunshine Slam Ocean Bracket. Ralph was named MVP of the bracket.
 
- Pacific doubled its conference win total from last year and is one away from doubling its overall win total. The Tigers have surpassed their overall win total by eight games and conference win total by four games from last season. It's the second year in a row under head coach Dave Smart that the Tigers have increased their win total from the year prior.
 
- The Tigers have more overall and conference wins than the last two years combined.
 
- Pacific clinched its first winning season since 2019-20 and third since rejoining the league in 2013-14.
 
- In the current NCAA NET Rankings, Pacific is No. 116 out of 365, fourth-highest in the WCC. Since the NCAA NET Rankings came out in 2019-20, Pacific's highest ever finish was No. 110 in 2019-20.
 
- The Tigers outrebounded 16 of 18 opponents in conference. Pacific ranks 11th in the nation in rebounding margin with a +8.9 mark.
 
- The Tigers were 11-3 at home this season. Pacific is 820-465 all-time at home and 357-232 in the Alex G. Spanos Center.
 
- The Tigers are 13-0 under Dave Smart in two seasons when holding the opposition to under 60 points and 10-0 (5-0 WCC) this year.
 
- Pacific honored six student-athletes on Senior Day last weekend. It included KC Ibekwe, Isaac Jack, Clayton, Ralph, Rochelin and Wainwright.
 
- Four different Tigers have recorded a double-double in a game this year including Jack, Wainwright, Rochelin and Ralph.
 
- Pacific has only used two starting lineups this season. Clayton and junior Kajus Kublickas have flipped at the point guard position.
 
- Pacific posted season sweeps over Oregon State and Pepperdine. In the victory at Pepperdine, the Tigers tallied their largest margin of victory of 33 points since rejoining the league in 2013-14. The last time Pacific won a conference road game by 33 was Jan. 22, 2011 against UC Davis on the road as a member of the Big West.
 
Tigers Tickets
Tickets for upcoming events can be purchased through the PacificTigers.com tickets tab, or by calling the Box Office at 209-946-2474.  Groups of 10 or more are eligible for a group discount and exclusive fan experiences.
 
Stay Social
For all the latest on Pacific Men's Basketball, be sure to follow the team on X (@PacificMensBB), Instagram (@PacificMensBB) and "like" the team's official Facebook page (Pacific Men's Basketball).
 
#PacificProud