Men: No. 5 seed BYU (17-14) vs. No. 8 seed Portland (14-18)
West Coast Conference men’s basketball tournament second round
Friday, 7 p.m. MST
Orleans Arena (Las Vegas)
TV: BYUtv
Radio: 102.7 FM, 1160 AM, BYU Radio Sirius XM 143
Previous matchup: The Cougars beat the Pilots 71-58 in Provo in the teams’ lone regular-season matchup in late December, as BYU pulled away in the second half behind a 20-point night from Gideon George.
In their last game: BYU is coming off an 87-61 victory over San Francisco in its regular-season finale that clinched the No. 5 seed in the WCC tournament for the Cougars.
Portland beat San Diego 92-74 in the first round of the WCC tournament on Thursday to advance, as the Pilots hit a school- and tournament-record 19 3-pointers in the win.
Key players: Senior guard Rudi Williams scored a team-high 21 points in the Cougars’ win over the Dons last week and dished out a team-high seven assists. Can he lead the BYU offense again?
Junior forward Tyler Robertson paced the Pilots in their opening-round win over the Toreros, as he put up 23 points, 11 rebounds, six assists and two steals while hitting 5 of 6 3-point attempts.
What’s at stake: The winner of this game will face No. 4 seed Loyola Marymount in the WCC tournament quarterfinals on Saturday.
BYU is trying to extend its season and make a run during its final appearance in the WCC Tournament.
Portland entered the postseason with a sub-.500 record and, like BYU, is trying to keep its season alive.
Women: No. 5 seed BYU (14-15) vs. No. 9 seed Pepperdine (11-18)
West Coast Conference women’s basketball tournament second round
Friday, 1 p.m. MST
Orleans Arena (Las Vegas)
TV: BYUtv, AT&T SportsNet
Previous matchups: BYU beat Pepperdine 63-52 in California in their first matchup this season, but the Waves beat the Cougars 64-63 in overtime nearly a month ago as Pepperdine went on a 9-0 run to end regulation and force OT.
In their last game: The Cougars are coming off a 61-49 loss to Portland last week in their regular-season finale, as BYU was no match for the Pilots, who finished the regular season second in the WCC standings.
Pepperdine edged Santa Clara 63-60 in the first round of the WCC tournament to advance, outscoring the Broncos 25-13 to complete the comeback after trailing most of the game.
Key players: Junior forward Lauren Gustin is a double-double machine for BYU, and in the OT loss to Pepperdine last month, she had a career-high 30 points and 16 rebounds.
Guard Marly Walls has been one of the Waves’ top scorers all season and tied for the team lead with 17 points in Pepperdine’s first-round win, while adding a team-high seven assists and four rebounds.
What’s at stake: The winner of this game will face No. 4 seed San Francisco in the WCC tournament quarterfinals on Saturday.
BYU is in its final season in the WCC and needs a win to get back to .500 under first-year coach Amber Whiting, though the Cougars are on a three-game losing streak.
Pepperdine, meanwhile, enters the game on a three-game winning streak, its longest winning streak since conference play began.