Late Tuesday night marks the fourth consecutive year that Gonzaga is set to face Saint Mary’s in the championship game of the West Coast Conference (WCC) Tournament.

At this stage, this matchup has transformed into a tradition. Interestingly, despite Saint Mary’s having won the outright WCC regular-season title by three games, defeating Gonzaga twice this regular season, and being seeded higher in Jerry Palm’s latest projected bracket, the Gaels are recognized as 3.5-point underdogs. This reflects Gonzaga’s impressive computer metrics despite their less-than-stellar record.

Current standings show Gonzaga with a ranking of 8 in the NET and 9 at BartTorvik.com, even with a 24-8 record featuring only three Q1 wins. This situation stems partly from their eight losses, which average only 5.1 points and never exceeding eight points, showcasing zero double-digit losses and 21 double-digit wins. Nevertheless, they lack victories against teams that are likely to receive at-large bids for the NCAA Tournament (only Baylor qualifies). This is indicative of how they hold a top 10 ranking in predictive metrics while potentially landing a double-digit seed in the upcoming NCAA Tournament.

For reference, despite session discrepancies, barring surprises, Gonzaga is expected to receive their lowest seed since being an 11 seed in 2016. Meanwhile, according to the latest CBS Sports Top 25 And 1 rankings, Saint Mary’s is positioned at No. 18 with an outstanding overall record of 28-4 and an 18-1 performance against WCC rivals.