USD Men's Basketball 1995-1996

WEST COAST CONFERENCE

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THE WEST COAST CONFERENCE~~~~~~~~~~~ The basketball courts of the West Coast Conference run from the eastern pine forests of the Pacific Northwest to the crowded beaches of San Diego, California. Gonzaga University, Loyola Marymount University, Pepperdine University, the University of Portland, Saint Mary's College, the University of San Diego, the University of San Francisco and Santa Clara University make up the NCAA Division I league. All are private institutions with exceptional academic and athletic traditions, and have made up the WCC for the past fourteen years. The current alignment has remained unchanged since 1979. San Francisco has won 16 men's hoops titles followed by Pepperdine (10), Santa Clara (6), Loyola Marymount (4), Saint Mary's (3), San Diego (2) and Gonzaga (2). Basketball is what got the West Coast Conference its start as the California Basketball Association back in 1952. No one suspected at the time the number of legendary players who would battle on the courts of the league in the subsequent 43 years. Former WCC players sport NBA championship rings (Bill Cartwright, San Francisco), Olympic Gold Medals (John Stockton, Gonzaga), and statues in the National Basketball Hall of Fame (Bill Russell, K.C. Jones, and Phil Woolpert, USF), Phil Smith, Dennis Johnson, Ri ck Adelman, Darwin Cook, Kurt Rambis, Tom Meschery, Bo Kimble, the late Hank Gathers, and most recently, Doug Christie spent their formative years pounding the hardwoods of the Conference. The WCC is no longer merely a basketball league, as it offers a total of 11 championships for men (baseball, basketball, cross country, golf, tennis and soccer) and women (basketball, cross country, tennis, soccer, and volleyball). Last season, the WCC sent representatives to NCAA championships in every league-sponsored sport, and has annually advanced at least one team for a national championship semifinal since 1989. Last year USO was represented at the NCAA's by men's soccer and women's tennis, while volleyball advanced to the semi-finals of the NIVC. PITCHES, DIAMONDS, COURTS AND COURSES While basketball gets most of the attention, it's not the only WCC men's sport. In fact, the conference has gained national recognition as having one of the top baseball and soccer leagues in the country. Santa Clara tied for the national soccer crown in 1989; Portland has been to six NCAA soccer tournaments; and San Diego was the 1992 national runner-up, made it to the NCAA's Sweet 16 in 1990, the second round in 1993 and first round in 1994. USF has won the soccer national championship four times. In baseball, Pepperdine won the 1992 national baseball title, and has won ten of the last twelve WCC crowns. Countless players have gone on to professional baseball careers after playing collegiately in the WCC. In tennis, the University of San Diego captured the WCC crowns in 1989 and 1990 and Pepperdine has won the past five. USD's Jose Luis Noriega became USD's first four-time NCAA All-American, and participated in the NCAA's all four years he competed (1989-92). This is the eleventh season of WCC women's sports, and the ninth with conference membership mirroring the men's league. Gonzaga, Portland and St. Mary's upgraded their programs to the Division I level just eight years ago. Gonzaga won the women's basketball title in their first Division I season. St. Mary's won it in 1989 and 1990, and Santa Clara took the title in 1991 . Santa Clara, Portland and San Francisco ended in a three-way tie in 1992. 1993 marked San Diego's first WCC crown and first year in the NCAA Tournament. Santa Clara won in 1994 while USF advanced in 1995. Portland has captured the cross– country crown in each of the last eight years. Loyola Marymount won the volleyball crown in 1994. San Diego finished 24-6 under WCC Coach of the Year Sue Snyder in 1993 and advanced to the NCAA Tournament for the first time at the NCAA Division I level. The San Diego women's tennis team has advanced to the NCAA Tournament five times in the past seven years. 1995 marks the fourth year for women's soccer as a WCC sport. NATIONAL Current WCC members have won 14 NCAA team championships, most recently the 1992 baseball crown by Pepperdine. USF has seven titles (four in soccer, two in basketball, one in tennis) followed by Pepperdine with four (three in volleyball and one in baseball), and Santa Clara (soccer) and Gonzaga (boxing) with one apiece. Pepperdine has three individual champions and Gonzaga has a trio of boxing winners. San Francisco has won individual championships in tenni s and fencing while Loyola Marymount won an individual track title. San Diego picked up a pair of Division II team tennis crowns and Pepperdine won two track awards prior to joining the WCC. Portland captured its first national title in 1986, in NAIA cross country. Saint Mary's also won the NAIA soccer championship that year. 1994-95 Final Basketball Standings School All WCC Santa Clara# 21-7 Portland 21-8 Saint Mary's 18-10 Gonzaga+ 21-9 San Diego 11-16 San Francisco 10-19 Pepperdine 8-19 Loyola Marymount 13-1 5 12-2 10-4 10-4 7-7 5-9 4-10 4-10 4-10 1994-95 All-Conference Doug Harris San Diego Gerald Brown Pepperdine Cannaan Chatman Portland Kyle Dixon Gonzaga Brent Farris Saint Mary's Marlon Garnett Santa Clara Jumoke Horton Saint Mary's *Steve Nash Santa Clara lme Oduok Loyola Marymount Curt Ranta Portland Team C G F G F G C G C F

# Won wee Regular Season + Won wee Tournament

*WCC Player of the Year

Dick Davey (San ta Clara) 'Coach of the Year' USO Honorable Mention: Sean Flannery

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