SOUTH SAN FRANCISCO, Calif. – The Portland Pilots were picked to finish third in the annual WCC Women's Basketball Preseason Poll, receiving two first place votes. Maisie Burnham and Emme Shearer both earned a spot on the All-WCC Preseason Team.
This is the second year in a row the Pilots have been picked to finish at least in the top three of the conference. The Gonzaga Bulldogs and Washington State Cougars were picked to finish first and second at 92 and 91 points respectively. Portland placed right after in third at 84 points, followed by the Oregon State Beavers and Pacific Tigers in fourth and fifth at 77 and 63 points.
The San Francisco Dons and the Santa Clara Broncos slotted in at sixth and seventh in the poll, with the Dons earning 53 points and the Broncos 43 points. The Saint Mary's Gaels, San Diego Toreros and LMU Lions rounded out the top 10 while the Pepperdine Waves placed last.
Burnham makes the team after averaging 11.9 points. 4.2 rebounds and 1.4 steals per game for Portland, ranking second on the team in points. Burnham was an All-WCC Second Team selection for the Pilots and was also the first Pilot since 1996 to make the All-WCC Tournament Team two years in a row after helping guide the Pilots to their second straight WCC Tournament Championship. She scored 21 points with eight rebounds as well in the Pilots' NCAA Tournament first-round game against the Kansas State Wildcats. She became the 31
st Pilot to cross the 1,000-point threshold as well for their career.
Shearer, meanwhile, earned All-WCC First Team honors for the Pilots after averaging a team-leading 12.1 points per game and 2.2 steals per game. She also eclipsed the 1000-point threshold for Portland, and her 74 total steals marked the first time since the 2019-20 season a Pilot has reached that threshold. Shearer was the only player in the conference to reach at least 375 points and 65 steals.
See below for the full poll results as well as the preseason team.
2024-25 WCC Women's Basketball Preseason Poll
| Place |
Team |
First Place |
Points |
| 1. |
Gonzaga |
5 |
92 |
| 2. |
Washington State |
2 |
91 |
| 3. |
Portland |
2 |
84 |
| 4. |
Oregon State |
2 |
77 |
| 5. |
Pacific |
|
63 |
| 6. |
San Francisco |
|
53 |
| 7. |
Santa Clara |
|
43 |
| 8. |
Saint Mary's |
|
39 |
| 9. |
San Diego |
|
28 |
| 10. |
LMU |
|
20 |
| 11. |
Pepperdine |
|
15 |
| 2024-25 All-WCC Women's Basketball Preseason Team |
| Name |
Yr. |
Pos. |
School |
| Maisie Burnham |
Sr. |
G |
Portland |
| Debora dos Santos |
Sr. |
F |
San Francisco |
| Yvonne Ejim |
5th |
F |
Gonzaga |
| Maud Huijbens |
Gr. |
F |
Gonzaga |
| Anaya James |
Sr. |
G |
Pacific |
| AJ Marotte |
Sr. |
G |
Oregon State |
| Olivia Pollerd |
Sr. |
F |
Santa Clara |
| Emme Shearer |
Sr. |
G |
Portland |
| Eleonora Villa |
So. |
G |
Washington State |
| Tara Wallack |
Sr. |
G |
Washington State |
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