Smith and No. 6 Gonzaga host Loyola Marymount

Loyola Marymount Lions (13-7, 3-3 WCC) at Gonzaga Bulldogs (16-3, 5-0 WCC)

Spokane, Washington; Thursday, 9 p.m. EST

BOTTOM LINE: No. 6 Gonzaga hosts the Loyola Marymount Lions after Malachi Smith scored 27 points in Gonzaga's 115-75 victory over the Portland Pilots.

The Bulldogs are 9-0 in home games. Gonzaga averages 86.9 points while outscoring opponents by 13.8 points per game.

The Lions have gone 3-3 against WCC opponents. Loyola Marymount averages 76.2 points and has outscored opponents by 5.6 points per game.

The matchup Thursday is the first meeting this season between the two teams in conference play.

TOP PERFORMERS: Nolan Hickman is averaging 8.7 points and 3.6 assists for the Bulldogs. Drew Timme is averaging 21.5 points over the last 10 games for Gonzaga.

Cameron Shelton is averaging 18.5 points, 5.9 rebounds, 4.6 assists and 2.1 steals for the Lions. Keli Leaupepe is averaging 14.3 points and 6.9 rebounds over the past 10 games for Loyola Marymount.

LAST 10 GAMES: Bulldogs: 10-0, averaging 92.9 points, 34.4 rebounds, 18.2 assists, 9.3 steals and 2.9 blocks per game while shooting 53.6% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 72.2 points per game.

Lions: 6-4, averaging 74.0 points, 32.7 rebounds, 11.4 assists, 4.9 steals and 3.1 blocks per game while shooting 46.1% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 70.8 points.

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The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.