The Oregon State women’s basketball team went cold down the stretch but was able to hang on for a 74-72 overtime win Thursday night at Santa Clara.A.J. Marotte

The next three weeks could indicate a lot about whether the West Coast Conference will send multiple teams to the NCAA Tournament this season. The league's bigg

Washington State guard Tara Wallack scored 12 points Saturday in the Cougars' 69-61 home loss to Gonzaga. Washington State could have taken over sole possession of first place in the West Coast Conference with a win but instead are in a five-way tie atop the standings.

Oregon State sits at No. 59, behind Gonzaga (No. 10) and St. Mary's (No. 33), but ahead of Santa Clara (No. 66), Washington State (No. 75) and San Francisco (No. 77). The rest of the conference is outside the top 150.

In the first meeting of Gonzaga and Washington State since the Cougs joined the WCC, it was an intense game with a lot of respect between coaches and players.

Jan. 13—After opening with four West Coast Conference wins as heavy favorites, Gonzaga is in the midst of the résumé-enriching or résumé-ravaging portion of its conference schedule.

The ACC chunked out the schedule in this first year of national expansion, so that teams travel to play both Stanford and California in one swing. Virginia will be one of the first two teams to test its approach to the travel, a real guinea pig. Virginia Tech also jetted to the Pacific, its schedule mirroring Virginia’s.

Defending WCC champion Saint Mary’s, which is 2-0 in Quad 1 but 1-3 in Quad 2, has the second strongest resume in the conference. The Gaels are generally projected as a double-digit seed or among the first 4-8 teams on the outside looking in. Oregon State has the third highest NET (59) but is 0-4 in Quad 1.

"The timing of Marcus Freeman and Martin Luther King Jr. Day is a powerful symbol that should be viewed with cautious optimism," said Joseph Cooper, the director of the Institute for Innovative Leader

Maxwel Cornet has signed for Genoa on loan from West Ham United, the Serie A club said on Monday. Ivory Coast's Cornet, who can play as a winger and full back on the left flank, joins Genoa after being recalled from another loan at Southampton where the 28-year-old only made four appearances.

Owen Freeman, Brock Harding and Fran McCaffery pointed the finger at defensive failings after dropping back-to-back games against USC and UCLA last week. Iowa faces Minnesota's worst-in-the-conference offense next.

Oregon State junior forward Michael Rataj shares West Coast Conference Player of the Week honors this week with Santa Clara guard Tyeree Bryan. Rataj was a maj