LAS VEGAS — San Diego women's basketball is headed to Las Vegas this week with postseason aspirations, opening the 2026 Credit Union 1 WCC Basketball Championship against Saint Mary's on Thursday at Orleans Arena. Tipoff is set for 2:30 p.m. in a first-round matchup between the No. 11-seeded Toreros (10-21, 4-14 WCC) and the No. 10-seeded Gaels (15-16, 6-12 WCC). The game will be streamed live on ESPN+, with a live audio stream available on USDToreros.com and live statistics on StatBroadcast.

USD'S RECENT RECORD IN THE POSTSEASON
• The Toreros enter this year's WCC Championship having gone 4-6 in tournament play since the 2019-20 season.

• San Diego's most memorable recent run came in 2019-20, when the No. 2-seeded Toreros earned a triple bye directly into the semifinals, defeated Pepperdine 59-44, and advanced all the way to the WCC Championship game before falling to Portland in a heartbreaking 64-63 overtime loss.

ALL-TIME SERIES AGAINST SAINT MARY'S
• The Toreros are 23-48 against the Gaels all-time. This will be the second matchup between the teams this season.

• The Toreros and Gaels most recently squared off in a hard-fought battle on January 4, 2026, when San Diego fell to Saint Mary's 57-49 in a tough contest at the Jenny Craig Pavilion.

• San Diego and Saint Mary's have met four times in the WCC Tournament dating back to 2004, with the recent postseason series deadlocked at 2-2. The latest tournament meeting between the two teams came on March 7, 2014, when the Toreros fell to the Gaels in a heartbreaking 60-58 finish — a one-possession game that came down to the final seconds.

LAST TIME OUT: TOREROS WIN ON SENIOR DAY
• San Diego closed out its regular season with a split over the final weekend, falling to Oregon State on Feb. 26 before rebounding with a comeback win over Pacific on Feb. 28 at Jenny Craig Pavilion.

• Against the Beavers (83-49), USD was outscored 26-12 in the opening quarter and never recovered, dropping to 9-21 on the year. Olivia Owens led the Toreros with 13 points and seven rebounds, while Hallie Rhodes and Kylie Ray each added eight points.

• Two days later, the Toreros closed out the home slate in style, rallying past Pacific 64-59 behind a dominant fourth quarter. Trailing 49-45 entering the final frame, USD outscored the Tigers 19-10 to seal the win. Rhodes led all scorers with 18 points on 7-of-16 shooting, including 3-of-4 from three, while Owens posted 17 points and 10 rebounds. Jessica

• Ajayi added 14 points off the bench. USD finished the regular season 10-21 overall, 4-14 in WCC play.

RAY AND OWENS EARN ALL-WCC HONORS
• The West Coast Conference announced its 2025-2026 women's basketball end-of-year awards on Tuesday (March 3), and the San Diego Toreros were represented by a pair of standouts.

• Sophomore guard Kylie Ray earned All-WCC Second Team recognition, while freshman guard Olivia Owens was named to the All-WCC Freshman Team. All awards were determined solely by a vote of the league's 12 head coaches.

KYLIE RAY | All-WCC Second Team
• Ray was the engine of the San Diego offense all season long, finishing fifth in the WCC in scoring at 16.0 points per game across 25 contests.

• The La Crescenta, California native shot 89.9 percent from the free throw line, a mark that led the entire conference, while distributing 70 assists on the season.

• The sophomore guard posted multiple standout performances in conference play, including a 26-point effort against LMU on January 24 and a 24-point, nine-rebound, three-assist outing against San Francisco on January 2. She also poured in 29 points against Pacific on December 30.

• Ray shot 37.1 percent from the field and 31.9 percent from three-point range while averaging 5.2 rebounds and 1.4 steals per game on the season.

• In 17 WCC games, she elevated her production to 17.1 points, 5.1 rebounds and 2.9 assists per game, shooting 88.7 percent from the free throw line. The All-WCC Second Team honor is the first conference award of her collegiate career.

OLIVIA OWENS | All-WCC Freshman Team
• One of six freshmen recognized on the All-WCC Freshman Team, Owens made an immediate impact for the Toreros in her debut college season.

• The Columbus, Ohio native led USD with 48 steals and a 1.6 steals-per-game mark that ranked among the conference leaders, while also pacing the Toreros with 75 assists on the year.

• Owens posted some of her best performances when the Toreros needed her most, including a season-high 31 points against Washington State on February 5 and an 11-rebounds, five-steals performance against Pepperdine on January 10.

• The freshman guard averaged 11.4 points per game on the season and raised that mark to 12.6 points, 6.6 rebounds and 1.5 steals per game in 17 WCC contests. Her 5.67 rebounds per game ranked 10th in the WCC.

PLAYERS TO WATCH
Eva Ruse | F | So. | North Vancouver, B.C.
• The 6-foot-2 sophomore has quietly become one of San Diego's most reliable frontcourt pieces, averaging 5.4 points and 5.6 rebounds per game while ranking 11th in the WCC in rebounding in conference play (6.3 rpg).

• Ruse had arguably her best game of the season against Seattle U on Feb. 7, finishing with 20 points and 18 rebounds, and has scored in double figures on four occasions this season.

Hallie Rhodes | G | Sr. | Keller, Texas
• Rhodes brings veteran leadership and scoring punch to San Diego's postseason run, averaging 10.6 points per game on the season — second on the team — while serving as one of two Toreros with prior WCC Tournament experience after transferring from Morehead State.

• The Finance major has been at her best in big moments, posting 18 points against Pacific in the regular-season finale and going for 24 against San Francisco in conference play. In WCC games,

• Rhodes has shot 30.3 percent from three on 33 attempts, giving San Diego a capable perimeter threat alongside Ray.

Jayden Rhodes | G | Sr. | Keller, Texas
• The elder of the Rhodes twins, Jayden has provided San Diego with a reliable scoring option off the bench and in a complementary starting role throughout the season, averaging 3.0 points per game while shooting 40.3 percent from the field.

• She got off to a blistering start to her Torero career, pouring in 22 points on 9-of-13 shooting in the season opener against Bethesda, and has been at her best from three-point range, converting 35.9 percent of her attempts in conference play.

Jessica Ajayi | G | Fr. | Kent, Wash.
• The freshman guard from Kentwood High School saved some of her best basketball for the end of the regular season, erupting for a career-high 14 points on 5-of-9 shooting against Pacific in the finale while adding four rebounds and two steals in nearly 30 minutes.

• Ajayi had previously posted eight points against Seattle U in February and has shown a knack for timely shot-making, connecting on two of her six three-point attempts against Pacific to help fuel San Diego's fourth-quarter surge.