San Diego Toreros Basketball

The University of San Diego announced Wednesday that Lamont Smith has stepped down as its head basketball coach.

The decision comes one day after the San Francisco District Attorney's Office told USA Today's A.J. Perez charges will not be filed against Smith following his arrest at Oakland International Airport Feb. 25 on suspicion of domestic violence.

"We appreciate Coach Smith's contributions to Torero Athletics and to the men's basketball program since he joined us three years ago," the school said in a statement relayed by 10News' Ben Higgins. "Coach Smith elevated the level of competitiveness of our program, recruited an outstanding group of student-athletes, and established a strong foundation for future success."

The school added it will begin "an immediate national search" for its next head coach led by Assistant Vice President and Executive Director of Athletics Bill McGillis.

Smith, who played for the University of San Diego from 1995-99, was hired prior to the 2015-16 campaign.

The Toreros went 40-52 during his time at the helm, including 18-13 this past season.

The idea of players and coaches being involved in a point shaving scandal is unfortunately nothing new when it comes to college athletics, but the allegations against two former University of San Diego basketball players and one former coach is rather unique.

On Wednesday, Michael McKnight of SI.com published his report on the alleged scandal, which contains evidence and anecdotes compiled throughout the course of an eight-month investigation. The complete narrative tells the story of an alleged point shaving scandal that is both fascinating and highly suspect.

At the heart of the report are three key figures: former Toreros guard Brandon Johnson, former guard Brandon Dowdy, and ex-assistant coach T.J. Brown. The three of them are among 10 people who were charged with "conspiracy to commit sports bribery, conduct an illegal gambling business, and distribute marijuana" in April of 2011.

They have each plead not guilty.

Johnson is accused of accepting a bribe to change the outcome of a given game, and both he and Dowdy have been accused of soliciting others to change the outcome of a given game. Brown has been cast as the "bridge" between the players and a small group of local gamblers.

The story goes that Brown allegedly met and developed a relationship with a bookie named Steve Goria at a nightclub where Brown managed the security force. Goria eventually introduced him to a gambler friend, and the two got to talking. 

However, this gambler was actually an informant who was working for the FBI because he was looking to reduce a prison sentence. The informant supposedly pushed Brown to put him in touch with USD players so he could merely talk to them about affecting the outcome of a game.

Brown and Dowdy supposedly discussed approaching another USD player about the idea, and the indictment in the case claims that Johnson took it on himself to discuss the idea with that same player, now known to be Ken Rancifer.

Brown and Rancifer met with Goria and a sports bettor named Richard Garmo, but the meeting ended when it became apparent that Garmo didn't think he could rely on Rancifer.

That's the whole story.

SI.com approached a Las Vegas sports betting expert named R.J. Bell and asked him to analyze the games USD played within the time window referenced by the indictment. He found no evidence of any kind of point shaving scandal except for one game against St. Mary's on February 18, 2010. Enough people bet on St. Mary's to make USD even more of an underdog, but St. Mary's still ended up winning and covering.

Johnson, USD's all-time leading scorer, scored 15 points in that game, including nine in the final minutes.

Long story short, the only real evidence the prosecution has that there was a point-shaving scandal at USD is the meeting between Brown, Rancifer, Goria and Garmo, a reality that is not lost on Garmo.

"You're telling an 18-year-old kid to show up to get $5,000. That's how this whole thing started. If that kid doesn't show up to get that money, you and me aren't having this conversation," Garmo told SI.com.

It turns out that this whole thing was kicked off when Goria was arrested in 2008 with over $100,000 cash in his car, and the police determined that he was on his way to make a big marijuana purchase. The ball got rolling when they found out he was fond of sports betting, and things snowballed.

The informant in the case came later, and his credibility is very much in question thanks to his various brushes with the law.

Here's how Brown's attorney characterized the case:

They were investigating a marijuana case, stumbled upon some illegal Internet sports betting, then came across some exaggerated claims of an ability to fix basketball games. The government got over-excited and filed charges without conducting a sufficient investigation.

Because this alleged scandal involves greedy players, a sleazy coach and a cast of sleazy characters who love their gambling, it's really no different from the other point shaving scandals that have come and gone throughout the history of college athletes.

What makes this one different is the reality that there was never any evidence out on the basketball court that the players alleged to be involved had ulterior motives. This will therefore come down to he said-he said, with the accused on one side and a handful of misfits on the other.

Because of that, it's possible that this is one point shaving scandal that will go away as quickly as it came.

I have previously mentioned my love of sports conspiracies, but there is one scandal that is not getting nearly enough press—especially when compared with all of the other NCAA embarrassments with which we have been inundated lately. 

On April 8, a federal grand jury indicted 10 individuals, including former University of San Diego assistant basketball coach Thaddeus Brown and two former players, Brandon Johnson and Brandon Dowdy, for conspiracy to commit sports bribery, conduct an illegal sports gambling business and to distribute marijuana. 

If convicted, they face up to five years in prison and $250,000 in fines. While the extent of the point-shaving scandal is still unknown, the investigation is ongoing.  But there is little doubt that this story should be getting more attention.  Brandon Johnson, who became San Diego’s all-time leading scorer in men’s hoops on Feb. 13, 2010, finds himself the focus of “Operation Hook Shot,” the FBI’s nickname for its investigation.

According to the indictment, Johnson allegedly “influenced the outcome of a USD basketball game for a monetary bribe” that same month, as well as on other occasions.

He now plays for the Dakota Wizards in the NBA Development League, where he averaged 6.1 points last season. The indictment does not provide details of which games were fixed or how they were fixed, but it is clear that some shady shenanigans were going on.

The conspiracy began because the three “primary” defendants—Steve Goria, Paul Thweni and Richard Garmo—were all having severe financial problems and saw this as a quick fix (no pun intended). 

It was then discovered in January 2008 by Border Patrol agents in San Clemente, Calif.

During a routine checkpoint, they found a suitcase stuffed with $104,900 in cash and a bag of weed in Goria’s car. 

Through wiretaps, the authorities not only discovered a drug trafficking operation, but an intricate web of illegal sports betting.  Johnson was still involved with this mess as recently as January 2011, when he solicited an unknown member of the current USD team to fix a game. 

And this got me thinking about cheating in sports. It seems that there are four main types of cheating scandals: academic, financial, performance enhancing drug use and intentional game altering.

We hear constantly about Cam Newton and Daddy’s quest for a few hundo thou; we hear about Marvin Austin’s Twitter adventures and about tutors writing papers; we hear about failed drug tests and jersey selling and illegal benefits that no one really cares about. 

So why don’t we hear more about this—actually changing the outcome of games for personal profit? Is it because USD is not in the ACC or SEC? It seems so much dirtier than the other forms of cheating. In every other instance, the players were being selfish and stupid, sure. 

But on the playing field, they were still giving their all and trying to be the best athletes they could be.  This game fixing scandal is so much worse. 

I really don’t give a damn if you are secretly driving a BMW or drinking bottles of Dom on the weekends. I do care, however, if the games I am watching (and their outcomes) are a sham.

The University of San Diego Toreros ran into the locker room at halftime, trailing 31-28, expecting a somewhat typical but assertive lecture from head coach Bill Grier. But Grier allowed an individual to precede him in an effort to corral his troops.

One can call it a “pep talk,” as did senior Geno Pomare.  Or you can label it a “rear-end chewing” in the same way as Grier saw it. Either way, the halftime discourse of injured point guard Brandon Johnson had its impact as play resumed in the second half.

Playing with greater intensity and resolve, San Diego (16-15) held Loyola Marymount (3-27) to 10 points for the first 16 minutes of the second half, went ahead by as many as 11 points, and prevailed 62-56 at the Orleans Arena in the opener of the West Coast Conference Tournament.

As play transpired in the first half, shades of a Feb. 12 loss in Los Angeles—the Lions' first conference win—seemed to be reappearing.

“We were sloppy (11 turnovers), not aggressive, and the effort wasn't there,” Grier said of last night's first 20 minutes.

San Diego also failed to contain freshman Kevin Young, exploding for 16 first half points, including four dunks. 

“We knew we weren't playing hard enough, and after (Johnson) talked to us, we came out with a little more fire,” Pomare said.

6'11" center Roberto Mafra, who scored 10 of his 14 points in the second half, made his first start alongside the 6'11" Pomare (14 points, 8 rebounds). Both were integral parts of limiting Young to just four points in the second half.

“I've been telling the team, this time of year it's not about how pretty you play, it's all about advancing,” Grier said. “Because you lose and you're done.”

The Toreros advance to today's quarterfinals and a 6:00 pm matchup with Santa Clara. The teams split the regular season meetings with each winning on the other's home court.

The last time Gonzaga stepped foot inside Jenny Craig Pavilion, they exited amid a flurry of court-rushing Torero faithful in last years’ thrilling West Coast Conference championship.

The Bulldogs returned hungry Saturday in seek of an unprecedented third 14-0 West Coast Conference title.

Fresh off avenging an earlier loss with a 66-60 victory over Portland Thursday, San Diego traded shots with No. 17 Gonzaga early on, but Torero fans were held in their seats this time around as the Bulldogs proved to be too deep and too much in a 58-47 defeat.

A USD victory or a Portland win at Santa Clara would have secured the No. 4 seed and first round bye in the WCC Tournament in Las Vegas this weekend.  But Santa Clara slipped past Portland 65-63 in overtime, setting up a Friday night match-up for the Toreros against Loyola Marymount (3-27, 2-12 WCC). 

The Zags—who clinched the No. 1 tournament seed and a bye into the semifinal round with a victory at LMU Feb 19—completed their third sweep of the WCC in the past six seasons.

With momentum building and a 15-10 advantage midway through the first half for San Diego (15-15, 6-8 WCC), the pendulum quickly swung once Jeremy Pargo, the 2008 WCC Player of the Year, converted two consecutive steals at half court into buckets at the other end.  The thefts led to a 10-0 run for the Zags from which the Toreros would never recover.

“That’s a dang good team,” San Diego coach Bill Grier said. “You have to play darn near perfect to beat them.”

Grier would know after serving as an assistant coach at Gonzaga for 16 years, including the final eight seasons as a top assistant, before taking over the Toreros' job last season.

The Zags (23-5, 14-0 WCC) held USD to 18 points in the first half and the Toreros' shooting percentages for the game were 37.2 overall (16-for-43), 31.3 from three-point range (5-for-16) and 66.7 (10-for-15) from the free-throw line

“There’s a reason why they are the No. 1 defensive field-goal-percentage team in the country,” Grier said.  “They are so long and when they start switching we can’t get clean looks making it very tough to score.”

“A big point in that game,” Grier said, “was when Pargo got back-to-back steals.  It really changed the momentum and we just weren’t able to steer the ship back in our direction offensively.”

The USD faithful gave their farewell to Gyno Pomare, the all-time leader in points and rebounds, with a standing ovation as he exited the floor before the end of regulation for the last time.   

“I couldn’t have asked for a better scenario other than winning,” Pomare said of his last home game. “I’ve spent a lot of years here at USD, I’m going to miss it.”

Pomare and junior guard De’Jon Jackson, the only Toreros in double figures, had 12 points apiece.  Four Zags reached double figures, led by junior guard Matt Bouldins’ 15. 

Jackson, who also had six rebounds and five assists, continues to shoulder the load for San Diego in the absence of guards Brandon Johnson (injury) and Trumaine Johnson (transfer). 

“We stayed close to them until they got a couple of turnovers and got on a roll,” Jackson said. “Usually Gonzaga scores into the 70s, but we held them to 58, so I think if we knock down shots and don't make turnovers that give them dunks and layups, we've got a chance to beat them.”

It would take two WCC tournament wins for USD to get another shot at Gonzaga.  But it was not a lost week for the Toreros, by any means, as Thursday’s victory over second place Portland (18-11, 9-5 WCC) gives them considerable momentum as they head to Las Vegas.

Jackson, who made the move over to the point guard spot just four games ago, turned in another solid effort, tossing in 13 points to along with a game-high six assists and only one turnover in 35 minutes of action. 

Jackson also completed the task of limiting Pilots point guard T.J. Campbell, averaging 11.4 points and 5 assists, to six points and three assists.

“Coach told me this is my time to take over the team. This is a big part of my life, I live for it and I'm enjoying it,” Jackson said.

“I'm real comfortable right now handling the ball and finding my teammates when they get open. That's what me and Coach have been talking about a lot – taking care of the ball and playing as a team.”

Playing one of its more efficient halves of the season, USD opened as much as a 12-point lead in the first 12 minutes of the game and went to the halftime break with a 31-24 advantage.

Sophomore guard Matt Dorr led the Toreros in scoring with 17 points and provided the necessary perimeter shooting to keep the Pilots defense honest.  Dorr hit his first three shots, two of them three-pointers, as USD built its first-half cushion.

Another Dorr three-pointer and his 6-for-6 shooting from the free throw line in the second half helped turn back Portland after the Pilots (18-10, 9-4) had tied things up in the first six minutes of the second half.

“Starting with the way we played in our loss to St. Mary’s (65-61), we have taken a more mature approach which has built some confidence and it has shown in our past few games as we head to Las Vegas,” Grier said. 

San Diego now faces the gauntly task of winning four games in four nights in the conference tournament to successfully defend their WCC Tournament title. 

Entering tournament play last season, the Toreros were not given a fighting chance.  Yet, they find themselves in familiar territory again this year.

“Everyone in our locker room wants to play right now but we have to wait,” Jackson said. “We all still want to take the conference tournament and everybody’s’ still believing.”

Can history repeat itself for the San Diego Toreros?

Only time will tell.

San Diego (14-14, 5-7 WCC) took their first step in duplicating last year's run to the NCAA Tournament, bouncing back from Thursday’s 65-61 loss at Saint Mary’s with an ESPNU BracketBusters victory over the University of Pacific (14-11) 66-60.

The Toreros caught fire from beyond the three-point arc and ended a four-game losing streak by outrebounding an opponent for the first time since Jan. 17, a stretch of eight games that produced seven losses. 

Led by sophomore guard Devin Ginty, the Toreros hit 9-of-15 three-pointers.  Ginty went 4-for-5 from behind the arc, converting his first four, with a season-high 12 points. 

“It was great to see us finally step up,” Ginty said of the perimeter shooting. “It has been frustrating the last few games. I know myself and the other guys have been getting in the gym every day and working hard on our (three-point) strokes, but the shots haven't been falling. 

"It’s a bit of a relief when shots start to fall, and I thought we played very well as a team tonight.”

Six first-half Toreros’ three-pointers led San Diego to a 34-24 advantage at halftime.  The Tigers crept back to within one point with 9:53 remaining, but two more Ginty three-pointers expanded the 44-43 lead to 52-45, and San Diego never looked back.  

“It was great to see our guys step up with some confidence and knock them down,” said USD Coach Bill Grier. “They were the same shots we've had in a lot of games that haven't been falling.”

Gyno Pomare scored a game-high 16 points; De'Jon Jackson added 14 and Matt Dorr (11 points, 2-for-2 on three-pointers) also hit double figures in scoring.

After sitting out the first 12 games of the season for a violation of team rules, the Toreros were without the services of Trumaine Johnson, suspended indefinitely for an unspecified violation of team rules.

Johnson, averaging 11.6 points, was held out of practice all week, did not travel to St. Mary’s Thursday, and was absent on the USD bench Saturday.

One player that did make the trip to Moraga to take on St. Mary’s (22-5, 8-4 WCC) was Geno Pomare, evidently up for the head-to-head challenge with Gaels’ 6-foot-11 center Omar Samhan. 

Pomare finished with a game-high 25 points and eight rebounds, but Samhan’s 20 points and 10 rebounds propelled the Gales’ to a 65-61 victory.

San Diego trailed by as many as nine in the second half but climbed within two with 25 seconds remaining after a Chris Lewis three-pointer.  But Mickey McConnell hit both free-throws to put Saint Mary’s up by four.

The Toreros now face their toughest stretch of the season, squaring off against the top two teams in the West Coast Conference, Portland and Gonzaga. 

“We need to do everything we can, battle and compete, to win these next two games so we have some momentum heading into the conference tournament,” said Grier.   

San Diego, currently tied for fifth place with Pepperdine in the WCC, is one game back of Santa Clara for the coveted fourth place finish.  A top-four finish would give the Toreros a first-round bye in the WCC tournament, March 6-9 in Las Vegas. 

“I'm always optimistic (about his team's chances),” Grier said. “But I'm also realistic that this is the toughest stretch of the league that we've got coming up right now.”

There is a point in a season—unless the opponent has one win—where a loss can prove to be beneficial.  If another defeat follows, dropping six out seven West Coast Conference games—case in point—there certainly is no such thing as a good loss.

The San Diego Toreros (13-13, 5-6 WCC) handed Loyola Marymount (2-24, 1-9 WCC) their first conference win in Los Angeles Thursday (65-57), as the Lions simply outplayed an unfocused San Diego squad.  Dating back to last season, it was only the second win in the last 32 contests for the Lions.

“They just played so much harder than we did from the start,” coach Bill Grier said. “I thought our effort over 40 minutes was really poor. I was worried about us coming out with the approach that we did, and I just couldn't shake them out of it.”

San Diego got a 14-point, 11-rebound performance from Rob Jones, his third double-double of the season, including nine of those boards on the offensive end.  But sophomore guard Vernon Teel paced the Lions’ offensive attack, tallying 21 points, nine rebounds, and eight assists.  Teel missed the Jan. 17 contest, which San Diego won 70-59. 

“Vernon Teel definitely makes them a different team than they were when we played them in San Diego,” Jones said. 

Jones was not opposed to the idea of taking a one-win team lightly. 

“We came out thinking we could just cruise, and even though we got the lead a couple of times, we couldn't put them away.”

LMU opened with a 20-11 lead in the first 10 minutes of the game, but the Toreros rallied to go ahead 29-28 before heading into halftime trailing 30-29.  The Toreros took their only lead of the second half, 38-37, with 15:05 to play behind a Devin Ginty three-pointer. 

Offensive production woes continue to plague the Toreros, as they shot just 36.2 percent from the field, including 4-of-21 from three-point range (19 percent) and 11-of-19 from the free throw line (57.9 percent).

Since sixth-place Pepperdine defeated Santa Clara, San Diego remained in a tie for fourth place with the Broncos, as they looked to rebound at Pepperdine (8-18, 5-5 WCC) Saturday.  A much-needed victory would keep the Toreros on pace for a top-four finish in the WCC and a first-round bye in the WCC conference tournament. 

San Diego came out firing from tip-off, as the Waves were at low tide, and opened up a 19-8 advantage.  Guard Danny Brown made the third start of his USD career in place of Trumaine Johnson and provided a big lift during the opening stretch, converting back-to-back three-pointers. 

Forward Geno Pomare was magnificent early on, scoring eight points in the opening seven minutes.  But Pomare’s picture and last name would be found on the back of a milk carton for the remainder of the game, as Pomare finished with those eight points and got just four minutes of run in the second half.  Johnson sat alongside Pomare, tallying just three minutes of court time in the second half. 

“I'm going to play guys who are going to play hard and compete,” Grier said. “(Pomare), for whatever reason, hasn't been. He's going to have other opportunities, but he's got to show that he really wants to play hard and be the kind of player that he has been.”

Missed shots and turnovers were the theme for San Diego for the remainder of the first half, as Pepperdine went on a 16-4 run to close heading into the break leading 30-28.

San Diego could not penetrate the swarming Waves’ zone defense and trailed for the majority of the second half.  With 2:20 remaining, the Toreros appeared all but through before putting on a stifling full-court press.  The press, led by Rob Jones (13 points, seven rebounds), troubled the Waves, as they got the ball past half court just once for the remainder of the game.

Trailing 54-52 with 16 seconds remaining, the Toreros got yet another steal, and with a chance to take the lead, De’Jon Jackson found an open Danny Brown in the corner, who came up long on a three-point attempt. 

Freshman guard Keion Bell, who got better as the night went on, turned in a quality effort, leading the Waves with 18 points, 10 rebounds, five steals, and four assists.

Returning southbound on Interstate 5 winless was certainly not what San Diego envisioned heading into this road trip.  The remainder of conference play toughens for San Diego, as their next three matchups are against the top three WCC teams—St. Mary’s, Portland, and Gonzaga—plus a BracketBuster non-conference matchup against Pacific University (14-9).

Despite a disappointing 64-62 loss in overtime to Santa Clara Thursday, San Diego saw their four-game skid come to a halt Saturday, defeating the University of San Francisco 73-63.

The Toreros (12-11, 5-4 WCC) controlled the first half of play against Santa Clara (12-13, 4-4 WCC), as the Broncos had more turnovers (11) than shots (seven) or points (six) with eight minutes remaining.  The Toreros had a 19-6 advantage before Santa Clara cut the lead to 25-20 at halftime.

“We did a good job defensively and took advantage of some good opportunities in the first half,” said USD coach Bill Grier.  “We looked fatigued in the second half and lost our rhythm defensively, but as bleak as it looked we stayed in it.”

San Diego managed to hold the Broncos’ 6'11", 260-pound senior center John Bryant in check in the first half, limiting the nation's leader in total rebounds (343) to five points and four rebounds.  The second half would be an entire different story. 

Bryant became a force in the second half, especially after senior forward Geno Pomare was whistled for two quick fouls five minutes in. Bryant finished with 23 points to go along with 20 rebounds and three blocks, marking his nation's-best sixth 20+ rebound game of the season. 

San Diego appeared finished after Kevin Foster made it a two-possession game with 41.6 seconds remaining, draining a three-pointer in the left corner on a designed play out of a timeout.  Pomare then cut the lead to two on a putback off a Matt Dorr miss with 24.6 seconds remaining.

After James Rahon made the second effort of a double bonus trip, extending the lead to three, Santa Clara fouled to put Trumaine Johnson on the free throw line, a place that would later put a damper on a career night for the sophomore point guard.  After Johnson cut the lead to one by making the first but then missing the second attempt, he put back a Pomare miss with two seconds remaining, sending the game into overtime.

With his team trailing 63-62, Johnson stepped to the line with 5.7 seconds remaining in overtime having already tied a career high with 22 points.  With a chance to take the lead or at least tie the game, Johnson left two attempts short as the Toreros lost their fourth straight West Coast Conference battle. 

Johnson was the Toreros’ driving force all evening.  Santa Clara struggled to find an answer to stop Johnson, who readily used his quickness to penetrate the Broncos defense and get to the rim.           

“I can’t tell you what happened,” Johnson said of the missed free throws.  “I wasn’t tired, that’s not why I missed them.  I wasn’t rattled, that’s not why I missed them.  I’ve just got to work on my stroke.  I’ve been in that situation many times.” Johnson finished 4-8 from the free throw line.

Pomare, USD’s all-time leading scorer, finished with eight points and 10 rebounds, giving him 1,600 career points; he remains the program's all-time Division I rebounds leader, now with 829 career boards. 

“I give our guys a ton of credit for fighting and battling the way they did, but I feel bad for them,” Grier said after the game. “Our confidence is really shaken badly right now.  No question this group can get on a roll if we get our confidence back.”

The Toreros would make strides towards getting that confidence back in their next matchup against the University of San Francisco (9-15, 1-8 WCC). 

The Toreros' starting lineup featured two new faces, juniors Chris Lewis and Roberto Mafra, replacing the team's first and third leading scores, Pomare and sophomore Rob Jones, benched for a “violation of team rules,” Grier said.   

Pomare and Jones were inserted 3:38 into the game.  Pomare finished with 16 points in 18 minutes, while Jones was held scoreless, logging just seven minutes.  “I thought Gyno handled it well and Rob didn't,” Grier said. “(Jones) wasn't a very good teammate on the bench tonight.”  Grier said the discipline will not go past this game. 

Mafra (12 points, five rebounds) provided a big lift for San Diego and was an integral part of the Toreros' 18-2 run midway through the first half.  The 6'9" native of Brazil said he was informed only minutes before tip-off that he would be making the fourth start of his USD career. 

“It made me a little bit nervous, but I tried to be more confident in myself and just go strong to the boards and play hard,” Mafra said.

Another bright spot in the winning effort for San Diego was sophomore Matt Dorr, the lone Torero to start all 24 games this season.  Dorr finished with 13 points and five rebounds, including 3-5 from three-point range. 

“Tonight I was trying to focus on taking better shots, and that’s what coach Grier has been telling me,” said Dorr.  “We’ve got to shoot the ball well from outside so they have to defend us and we can get the ball to Roberto and Gyno inside.  Teams have been fronting them really hard and making it tough to get the ball in there.”

Coach Grier got a combined 33 points from his three-guard rotation of Dorr (13), De’Jon Jackson (11), and Johnson (nine). 

“It was good to come out and play with some energy tonight,” stated Grier. “I was really worried about how we were going to be mentally coming off a tough loss to Santa Clara.”

San Diego remained dreadful from the free throw line, converting just 16-32 attempts, including missing seven on their last eight to close the game.  Apart from free throw shooting, Grier would also like to see his players improve on the glass: “I would like to see some better rebounding from our guards.  I think with Mafra and Gyno being such good rebounders, our guards get caught looking.”

USF got 22 points and 12 rebounds from junior forward Dior Lowhorn, the WCC’s leading scorer with 19.9 ppg. 

The Toreros are on the road this week with two WCC matchups.  San Diego heads to Loyola Marymount (1-22, 0-7 WCC) Thursday at 7 p.m. and then plays at Pepperdine (5-18, 2-5 WCC) Saturday at 5:30 p.m.

March 2009 should once again provide much excitement for the West Coast Conference, with Gonzaga, Saint Mary’s and San Diego all vying for the NCAA Tournament next season.

It seems very odd for a small conference to be getting multiple bids, let alone three, but the WCC has proven that it can contend with the best of them.  All three conference representatives had some very impressive wins last year.

Gonzaga held wins over Western Kentucky, Connecticut, and Saint Mary’s.  San Diego defeated Saint Mary’s twice, beat Kentucky at Rupp Arena, and Gonzaga.  Saint Mary’s recorded wins against Oregon, San Diego State, Gonzaga, and Drake.

Gonzaga has been a tournament automatic for the past 11 years, and this does not look like it will change.  The biggest factor for the Bulldogs' success next season was senior Jeremy Pargo returning to Gonzaga for his final season.  The WCC Player of the Year averaged over 14 points and five assists per game.

The Bulldogs return everybody from last season except for David Pendergraft.  Sophomore Austin Daye, who many believe to be a future NBA lottery pick, was in the running for WCC Freshman of the Year and shot over 50 percent from the field in his first year in Spokane.

Saint Mary’s lost two key role players to graduation in seniors Todd Golden and Tron Smith, but they will return four of the starting five that won 25 games last season.

The Gaels’ squad is highlighted by the possible Olympian, Patty Mills.  The WCC Freshman of the Year led the Gaels in scoring, assists, and steals.

Moraga has become a second home to Australians, as the Gaels will run four Aussies with rumors of a fifth on the way.  Seniors Carlin Hughes and Lucas Walker played pivotal roles for the Gaels’ run to the NCAA Tournament.

Indiana transfer junior Ben Allen will provide a larger inside presence and offensive firepower, both of which Saint Mary’s lacked last season.

San Diego returns their entire roster, and the theme of the WCC powers is stellar point guards.  Senior point guard Brandon Johnson helped lead the Toreros to their first WCC Championship since 2003.  Johnson also led the charge to the NCAA Tournament upset of fourth-seeded Connecticut.

The return of center Gyno Pomare is also huge for San Diego.  He was an All-WCC First Team member, along with Johnson.  Other key components for San Diego are Rob Jones and De’jon Jackson.

With the Missouri Valley Conference having a down season and conferences like the Pac-10 losing a great deal of talent to the NBA Draft, this opens the opportunity for the WCC to break through and get multiple bids to the NCAA Tournament.

Gonzaga is in most preseason top-25 rankings, with Saint Mary’s and San Diego also getting consideration.