SPOKANE, Wash. — The Gonzaga Bulldogs (21-7, 12-3) are still alive in the race for the West Coast Conference men’s basketball title — barely.

The Zags trail Saint Mary’s (24-4, 14-1) by two games with three to play, which means they have to beat the Gaels Saturday night, then get some help. Crazier things have happened, but ultimately the Bulldogs are focused on improving their NCAA Tournament seed over the next three weeks.

Gonzaga enters the weekend ranked No. 10 in the NCAA NET Rankings and projected to be a No. 9 seed in March Madness. A win over the Gaels — followed by wins over Santa Clara and San Francisco next week — would significantly boost their postseason resume.

Follow our live updates from McCarthey Athletic Center in Spokane as the Zags try to even the season series with Saint Mary’s and stay in the WCC title hunt.

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HALFTIME STATS: SMC 41, GONZAGA 31

With a Senior Night starting lineup that included Joe Few, the Zags fell behind 8-0 in the first two minutes and couldn’t claw their way back. Saint Mary’s led by as many as 12 points in the first half. SMC big man Mitchell Saxen leads all scorers with 11 points and the Gaels are dominating the boards 20-13.

Ryan Nembhard leads Gonzaga with 7 points and 4 assists, and Nolan Hickman has 7 points, 1 steal and 1 block. Braden Huff, Graham Ike and Khalif Battle all have 4 points apiece. The Zags are 14-of-32 from the field and 2-of-9 from downtown.

The officials are letting them play, which benefits SMC. Only eight fouls were called in the first half and Gonzaga only shot one free throw.

FIRST HALF UPDATES

Saint Mary’s 41, Gonzaga 31, halftime: Ryan Nembhard misses a short jumper just before the buzzer and the Gaels lead by double digits at the break.

Saint Mary’s 36, Gonzaga 27, 4:00 left: Braden Huff scores back-to-back buckets to cut the lead to five, but SMC answers right back with a Paulius Murauskas jumper and two free throws from Jordan Ross. The Zags have trailed the entire half, but this game is being played at their pace. Saint Mary’s averages 74.8 points per game, while Gonzaga is second in the nation at 87.8. Also, Khalif Battle had another huge dunk.

Saint Mary’s 32, Gonzaga 23, 6:23 left: Nolan Hickman and Ben Gregg miss back-to-back 3-pointers and Mikey Lewis drills one on a great pass from Augustas Marciulionis to give the Gaels a 9-point lead. Timeout Mark Few. The Zags are 2-of-9 from downtown, and SMC is 3-of-6.

Saint Mary’s 22, Gonzaga 17, 11:17 left: Game on. The Zags have dug themselves out of an 11-0 hole with full-court pressure, a half-court zone and Ben Gregg snagging offensive rebounds. Ryan Nembhard and Nolan Hickman have 5 points apiece for Gonzaga, and Mitchell Saxen leads Saint Mary’s with 9.

Saint Mary’s 18, Gonzaga 12, 13:45 left: Offensive rebounds will get you to heaven — and Ben Gregg just snagged one and kicked out to Nolan Hickman for a huge 3-pointer.

Paulius Murauskas foul trouble: SMC’s versatile big man — via the Arizona Wildcats — picks up his second foul and heads to the bench with 14:16 left.

Saint Mary’s 15, Gonzaga 7, 15:26 left: The Gaels are pounding Gonzaga in the paint, led by Mitchell Saxen’s 7 points. Saint Mary’s has 12 of its 15 points in the paint.

Saint Mary’s 9, Gonzaga 0, 17:50 left: The Gaels go to work in the paint, getting 5 quick points from Mitchell Saxen to jump out to an early lead. Joe Few started and played the first 2:10 of the game.

We’re underway in Spokane. Tipoff was 5:08 p.m. Mark Few is starting his seniors on Senior Night — including his son Joe Few.

PREGAME UPDATES

They brought in the big guns for this game. Kipp Kissinger, one of the best officials in college basketball, is the lead official. Kissinger will be working the Final Four this season.

The Senior Night festivities have concluded and The Kennel is going crazy, as usual. Tipoff is about 10 minutes away.

After camping out for tickets during the week, Gonzaga’s student section arrived early and is ready to go. Tipoff is scheduled for just after 5 p.m. PT on ESPN2

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