Gonzaga (10-3) at Saint Mary's (7-5)

Gonzaga plays such a tough non-conference schedule, it could view the start of league play as a relief. That might not be a wise idea this weekend.

The eighth-ranked Bulldogs (10-3) travel to the site of one of their two conference losses last season when they face Saint Mary’s on Saturday in the West Coast Conference opener for both teams.

The Gaels upset then-No. 11 Gonzaga 89-81 at McKeon Pavilion one year ago Sunday, on Jan. 8, 2005. It was their first win over a ranked opponent since 1974.

Saint Mary’s didn’t wait so long to get another, beating then-No. 20 Nevada 89-80 on New Year’s Eve. The Gaels (7-5) followed that upset with a 65-57 victory on Tuesday at TCU, giving them six wins in their last seven games.

“They are really starting to play,” Gonzaga coach Mark Few said.

Few is very happy with how his team has fared, reaching 10 wins while playing a nonconference schedule that included games against five ranked opponents.

“It’s the greatest non-league run we’ve ever had,” Few said. “That’s where we’ve been, who we’ve played and how we’ve played.”

Gonzaga’s three losses were to No. 2 Connecticut by two points, at No. 10 Washington by four points and at No. 4 Memphis by 11. The Bulldogs have beaten No. 7 Michigan State and No. 14 Maryland.

“We were disappointed with the losses, but all three were on the road,” said forward Adam Morrison, who leads the nation in scoring with 27.8 points per game. “They all came down to the final possession, except for Memphis.

“I’d grade it an `A-minus,’ `B-plus.’ If we make a few more plays, we have an undefeated season, maybe one loss.”

Few said Morrison has seen just about every defensive strategy opponents can devise this season.

“He’s seen the whole gamut,” Few said. “Different people are going to send their best guy out on him.

“We’ve seen triangle-and-2s, box-and-1s. He’s seen it all.”

The Bulldogs return to the court for the first time since defeating Saint Joseph’s 102-94 at home last Saturday. Morrison scored 25 points and had no second-half field goals, but J.P. Batista led the way with a career-high 32 points and 15 rebounds.

“If they can throw the ball 2 feet to J.P. Batista, we’re going to do that all night,” Few said.

Morrison, Batista (19.7 ppg) and point guard Derek Raivio (12.9) account for more than 75 percent of the offense for Gonzaga, which averages 79 points per contest.

Senior forward Daniel Kickert led Saint Mary’s with 20 points in Tuesday’s victory over TCU. Kickert has scored 20 points or more six times this season, and he had 27 against Gonzaga on March 7, 2005 in the WCC tournament.

Even with last season’s upset win, the Gaels have lost 19 of the last 20 meetings with the Bulldogs. Gonzaga leads the all-time series 41-21.