The Cougars are preparing to play their first conference game as a member of the West Coast Conference.

Featuring eleven schools, the WCC has been historically dominated by Gonzaga, who have won 20 of the last 25 WCC titles. However, the conference looks historically strong this year and features many competitive squads, with newcomers Washington State and Oregon State joining the fray.

In 2024, Saint Mary’s beat Gonzaga twice, including an upset win in the WCC championship game, which helped the Gaels punch their ticket to the NCAA tournament. The Gaels bring back a similarly strong team into 2025, and will hope to pull it off again.

“We know last year doesn’t mean anything now,” center Mitchell Saxon told CBS sports. “We’re not trying to get good so we can beat Gonzaga, we’re trying to get good so we can be as good as we can be.”

Gonzaga, however, is not going to be easy to beat. They are projected to be a three-seed in the NCAA tournament and were ranked No. 14 in the latest AP Poll.

Meanwhile, Santa Clara and San Francisco both return strong rosters from 2024. Santa Clara is bringing back five of their top six scorers and are poised to challenge for a top seed in the WCC tournament.

“We have a lot of stability and I think that’s an advantage,” Coach Herb Sendek told CBS sports. “But even with perfect continuity, you’re never the same team. Each of these guys has continued to evolve and improve.”

Meanwhile Oregon State and WSU both bring strong teams into the mix as well. WSU finished their non-conference slate 10-3 with four wins over top-100 opponents, while Oregon State impressed at the Diamond Head classic in Honolulu, where they reached the finals on Christmas Day and lost to Nebraska.

The Beavers have a deep roster full of international stars and are led by an experienced coach in Wayne Tinkle.

“A big part of our program is we say don’t alienate one another because of your differences, embrace each other through those differences,” Tinkle told CBS sports.

The WCC historically has been a one or two-bid conference. However, with the amount of depth in the league, it could potentially steal a third bid to the NCAA tournament depending on how things go.

Here are the current KenPom and Net rankings of the WCC teams:

Gonzaga: No. 6 (KP), No. 5 (NET)

Saint Mary’s: No. 45 (KP), No. 56 (NET)

San Francisco: No. 61 (KP), No. 59 (NET)

Oregon State: No. 65 (KP), No. 51 (NET)

Santa Clara: No. 73 (KP), No, 76 (NET)

Washington State: No. 79 (KP), No. 68 (NET)

Loyola Marymount: No. 147 (KP), No. 161 (NET)

Pepperdine: No. 208 (KP), No. 205 (NET)

Pacific: No. 291 (KP), No. 301 (NET)

San Diego: No. 301 (KP), No. 329 (NET)

Portland: No. 319 (KP), No. 335 (NET)