⏩ WCC: Bay Area teams face long odds in men’s and women’s conference tournaments.

Gonzaga is the top seed and BYU the second seed in both the men’s and women’s WCC tournaments, which begin Thursday at the Orleans Arena in Las Vegas.

Of the six Bay Area teams, only one — the USF women — brings much positive momentum into the event. Here’s a glance at each of those teams:

The Dons, seeded eighth, open the tourney against No. 9 San Diego on Thursday night . ... USF has lost six in a row, the past five coming after a two-week break because of coronavirus issues . ... The Dons won the lone regular-season meeting with the Toreros, a 70-62 decision Dec. 31 . ... Senior guard Jamaree Bouyea, an All-WCC selection, ranks sixth in the conference in scoring (17.5 points per game) and fifth in field-goal percentage (49.8).

Santa Clara (10-7, 4-5): The Broncos, seeded seventh, face No. 10 Portland in the second game Thursday evening. ... The Broncos endured a three-week break for virus issues from late January to mid-February . ... If there’s such a thing as an encouraging 14-point loss, the Broncos experienced it last Thursday. They led the top-ranked Zags by 10 in the first half and were down by only six with seven minutes to go before falling 89-75 in Spokane . ... Senior forward Josip Vrankic, an All-WCC selection, leads the team in scoring (15.3 ppg) and the conference in rebounding (8.7 boards per game).

St. Mary’s (13-8, 4-6): The Gaels, seeded fourth, play San Diego, USF or LMU on Saturday night . ... The Gaels also endured a nearly three-week hiatus because of virus issues from late January to mid-February . ... Typically an excellent shooting team, St. Mary’s ranks seventh in the WCC in field-goal percentage (42.5) and eighth in 3-point field-goal percentage (30.6) . ... If the Gaels win, they meet Gonzaga in a semifinal Monday night.

St. Mary’s (6-18, 4-14): The Gaels, seeded seventh, meet No. 6 Pacific on Friday afternoon . ... The Tigers won both regular-season meetings, including a 73-54 rout in Stockton on Saturday . ... Junior guard Taycee Wedin leads the Gaels in points per game (12.2) and ranks second in the WCC in 3-point field-goal percentage (39.3).

Santa Clara (13-10, 9-8): The Broncos, seeded fourth, play Pepperdine, LMU or Portland on Saturday morning . ... Junior guard Lindsey VanAllen (team-leading 12.4 points per game) and senior forward Merle Wiehl (10.7 ppg) made the All-WCC second team . ... If the Broncos win, they’ll face Gonzaga on Monday morning.

USF (14-9, 10-7): The Dons, seeded third, face the winner of the St. Mary’sPacific game Saturday afternoon . ... After a 76-52 loss to Gonzaga on Jan. 16, the Dons were 5-8, 1-6. They proceeded to win nine of their next 10 games . ... Redshirt freshman guard Ioanna Krimili, named the WCC’s Newcomer of the Year, leads the conference in scoring (18.7 ppg), 3-point field-goal percentage (46) and free-throw percentage (90.4) . ... Senior guard Lucie Hoskova, a secondteam All-WCC selection, ranks sixth in the conference in scoring (14) and third in field-goal percentage (52.2) . ... If the Dons win, they’ll meet BYU on Monday afternoon. USF beat the Cougars 86-72 on the Hilltop on Saturday.