Courtesy BYU Photo

There are five West Coast Conference teams in the men’s college basketball NET Top 100, and none of those teams are BYU.

It’s unusual for the Cougars to be on the outside looking in when WCC play begins. Yet here they are at No. 129, behind Gonzaga (12), Saint Mary’s (16), San Francisco (88), Santa Clara (96) and Loyola Marymount (99).

“We’re not spending a lot of time with the metrics because the metrics don’t like us right now,” BYU coach Mark Pope said. “That’s what happens when you lose to South Dakota and UVU. It’s just crushing. So right now, we’ve just got to get better every day. We’ve got to try and win games and if you do that, then a lot of time life will take care of itself. But we’re so far out of the metrics picture right now it’s not even that interesting to talk about.”

Maybe it’s not an interesting topic of conversation for the Cougars (10-5), who have put together a nice five-game winning streak to end the preseason. But it is worth noting that the path for BYU to the NCAA Tournament is pretty rocky right now. Path 1 would be winning the regular season or WCC Tournament titles, which seems highly unlikely with Gonzaga and Saint Mary’s head and shoulders above the rest of the league.

Pope was asked directly if he thought his team could compete for a WCC title.

“I don’t know,” Pope responded. “The reason I don’t know is I think we’re getting better. We weren’t good enough two weeks ago. Can we be good enough? In March, maybe. So that’s the challenge. Everything we do right is dependent on growth. That is our life. I think these guys have shown and willingness and ability and humility and the toughness to grow. I think we’re a much better team than we we were six weeks ago, for sure. Any given day you can be anything but I think our trend is really upwards. So that’s our mission.”

Another path would be to beat everybody in the league not named Gonzaga or Saint Mary’s, then sneak a win or two against the Bulldogs or the Gaels and make a good showing in the league tourney. That might push the Cougars’ metrics into an area where they could be considered for an at-large NCAA Tournament bid.

That is also a huge task for any team in the league.

As BYU prepares for its Thursday WCC opener on the road at Pacific, two important cogs for the mechanism are nearing readiness. Junior guard Spencer Johnson, who went out with a leg injury in the second game of the Battle 4 Atlantis on Nov. 24, is practicing full time this week after missing the past nine games. Pope said Johnson was the team’s best player on offense and defense until the injury and will likely play this week.

Also getting back onto the practice floor is junior guard Trevin Knell, who has has been absent this season due to shoulder surgery. Knell is an experienced player with one of the best 3-point strokes on the roster. He’s likely a week or so out from activation.

Pope called the process of getting Johnson and Knell back into a rotation that has been working pretty well lately “super complicated.”

“We certainly want those guys back,” Pope said. “This team has learned a little bit about how they can function together so incorporating those guys in is going to be probably pretty artistic. With Spence, the way he’s always been for me is I throw him out there, whether it’s to start the game or four minutes in or 12 minutes in and he just ends up staying out there because he just does his job so well.”

Pacific is the lowest NET ranked team in the WCC (234) but Pope and his coaching staff are preparing the Cougars for a grind in Stockton on Thursday.

“They’ve been shooting the ball unbelievably well,” Pope said. “They’re really long, longer than us and wildly athletic. They’re always super aggressive and long defensively. They’re on a hot streak and have won three games in a row with some good wins.”

Four of the top five scorers for the Tigers are transfers including Oklahoma State’s Keylan Boone (10.8 points per game) and Donovan Williams (9.1) along with Georgetown’s Tyler Beard (10.7) and Texas-San Antonio’s Jordan Ivy-Curry (10.7). Returner Luke Avdalovic (10.7) is shooting better than 60% from the 3-point line (37 of 61) and Pacific is 20th in the country overall at 39.3% from distance.

Men’s College Basketball

BYU (0-0, 10-5) at Pacific (0-0, 7-8)

Thursday, 7 p.m. MT

Spanos Center in Stockton, Calif.

TV: None

Live Stream: WCC Network

Radio: KSL 102.7 FM/1160 AM

Live stats: byucougars.com

The Word: BYU leads the overall series 16-7. … Pacific won the last meeting 76-73 last season in Stockton. … The Cougars are 7-4 vs. The Tigers at the Spanos Center. … Pacific has won three games in a row, including a 74-65 win at Lamar on Dec. 20. … The Tigers are No. 20 in the country in 3-point shooting percentage (39.3%).

West Coast Conference Power Rankings

1. Gonzaga (10-3)

NET ranking: 12

Trending: The Zags are No. 1 in the WCC in field goal percentage (50%) and points per game (82.3).

Best win: A 100-90 victory against No. 4 Alabama (No. 8 NET) on Dec. 17.

Best player: 6-10 Sr. F Drew Timme (21.3 ppg, 8.1 rpg, 63% FG)

The Word: Gonzaga hasn’t started as well as it has the past two seasons but is still an elite men’s college basketball team that is probably a lock for a high seed in the NCAA Tournament. As for league play, the Zags simply don’t lose to anybody other than Saint Mary’s or BYU. That’s allowed them to rule conference play for the past 20 years. It’s still the most talented roster in the league, by far.

2. Saint Mary’s (10-4)

NET ranking: 16

Trending: The Gaels lost three in a row to Washington, New Mexico and No. 1 Houston during the preseason.

Best win: A 68-61 win vs. San Diego State (No. 38 NET) on Dec. 10.

Best player: 6-10 Jr. C Mitchell Saxen (12.9 ppg, 8.5 rpg, 56% FG)

The Word: Saint Mary’s, per usual, won’t play its first true road game until Saturday at Santa Clara. Meanwhile, the Gaels are doing what Randy Bennett coached teams do: Suffocate opponents defensively, allowing just 57.7 points per game. Four players average double digits, including freshman home town hero Aidan Mahaney (13.6 ppg).

3. San Francisco (11-4)

NET ranking: 88

Trending: The Dons opened the season by winning their first six games.

Best win: A 97-60 victory vs. No. 25 Arizona State (No. 34 NET) on Dec. 21.

Best player: 6-0 Gr. G Khalil Shabazz (14.7 ppg, 5.9 rpg, 3.8 apg)

The Word: Chris Gerlufsen is in his first year replacing Todd Golden, who left after three seasons with the Dons for Florida. Shabazz is a dynamic scorer and playmaker for USF, who is also getting good minutes from Washington State transfer guard Tyrell Roberts (14.5 ppg). The Dons have some size inside with 7-foot-2 Volodymyr Markovestskyy and 7-1 Saba Gigiberia. The blowout of Arizona State has raised some eyebrows as the Dons open WCC play.

4. Santa Clara (12-3)

NET ranking: 96

Trending: The Broncos have won nine of their past ten games.

Best win: A 73-58 victory against Boise State (No. 59 NET) on Dec. 22.

Best player: 6-5 So. G Brandon Podziemski (18.3 ppg, 8.7 rpg, 3.2 apg)

The Word: Podziemski, an Illinois transfer, has been a revelation for the Broncos. He scored 34 points in a win vs. Georgia Southern, 30 in a victory vs. Eastern Washington and 29 in a win against Cal-Irvine. Carlos Stewart (14.7), Keshawn Justice (12.3) and Tennessee State grad transfer Carlos Marshall Jr. (10.0) also average double figures.

5. Loyola Marymount (10-4)

NET ranking: 99

Trending: The Lions have won eight of their past 10 games.

Best win: A 77-75 OT victory against Wake Forest (No. 87 NET) on Nov. 20 at the Jamaica Classic.

Best player: 6-2 Gr. G Cam Shelton (18.9 ppg, 5.9 rpg)

The Word: Shelton or Keli Leaupepe (14.4 ppg, 7.1 rpg) have led the Lions in scoring in 12 of the team’s 14 games. As those two players go, so goes LMU. The Lions are also playing well defensively, third in the WCC in points allowed per game (69.7) and second in 3-point percentage defense (30%).

6. BYU (10-5)

NET ranking: 129

Trending: The Cougars have won five straight games since back-to-back losses to South Dakota and Utah Valley in early December.

Best win: An 83-80 victory against No. 21 Creighton (No. 34 NET) in Las Vegas on Dec. 10.

Best player: 6-6 So. F Fousseyni Traore (13.1 ppg, 8.4 rpg, 60% FG)

The Word: The emergence of Coastal Carolina transfer guard Rudi Williams (13.7 ppg) off the bench has been a big part of the Cougars five-game winning streak. Mark Pope has been going nine deep into his roster and getting junior guards Spencer Johnson and Trevin Knell back from injury will give BYU even more depth in league play. The Cougars’ ferocious offensive rebounding (12.7 per game) has given them much needed extra chances.

7. Portland (8-7)

NET ranking: 141

Trending: The Pilots have lost three of their past four games.

Best win: An 83-71 victory against Villanova (No. 98 NET) on Nov. 25 at the Phil Knight Invitational.

Best player: 6-6 Jr. G/F Tyler Robertson (15.3 ppg, 5.6 rpg, 6.1 apg)

The Word: Portland put up an impressive showing at the Phil Knight Invitational, beating Villanova and giving North Carolina and Michigan State all they could handle. But the Pilots have also lost three of their past four with losses to North Dakota State, Oregon and UC Riverside. Robertson does it all for Portland from his guard spot and scored 32 points in a win against Portland State on Nov. 11.

8. Pepperdine (7-7)

NET ranking: 143

Trending: The Waves are 3-6 in their past nine games.

Best win: A 64-55 victory against UC Irvine (No. 83 NET) on Nov. 19.

Best player: 6-7 So. F Maxwell Lewis (19.4 ppg, 5.9 rpg, 42.9% 3-point)

The Word: Lewis has stepped to the front on the Waves young roster and has averaged 23.5 points per game in the past four outings. Pepperdine also still has dynamic guards Houston Mallette (13.4 ppg) and Mike Mitchell Jr. (10.9). If 6-9 Jan Zidek, who averaged 13.3 points per game last season, can step up and start scoring better than his 6.5 average in 2022, the Waves could give teams trouble.

9. San Diego (7-7)

NET ranking: 184

Trending: The Toreros are 2-4 in their past six games.

Best win: A 79-73 victory against Florida Gulf Coast (No. 78 NET) on Nov. 9.

Best player: 6-7 Gr. G Eric Williams Jr. (15.4 ppg, 10.5 rpg, 40% 3-pointer)

The Word: Williams, an Oregon transfer, is a pure scorer and put up 43 points in a Nov. 17 overtime loss to Utah State. San Diego has three other capable offensive threats in Jase Townsend (15.2), Marcellus Earlington (14.7) and Weber State transfer Sigu Sisoho Jawara (13.3). Problem is that the Toreros give up a bunch of points as well, last in the WCC in that category (75.5).

10. Pacific (7-8)

NET ranking: 234

Trending: After a 2-5 start, the Tigers have won four of their past five games.

Best win: A 59-58 win against San Jose State (No. 125 NET) on Dec. 17.

Best player: 6-5 Sr. G Luke Avdalovic (10.7 ppg, 60% 3-pointers)

The Word: Now in his second season, Leonard Perry has collected a roster of athletic transfers who will play hard on both ends. Four of the top five scorers for Perry are recent transfers, with Avdalovic leading a very good 3-point shooting club (39%). The Tigers are last in the WCC in assists per game (11.3).

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