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MEDIA DAY PRESEASON POLL:
- Gonzaga
- Saint Mary’s
- BYU
- San Francisco (tied 3rd)
- Portland
- Santa Clara
- Pepperdine
- San Diego
- LMU
- Pacific
MEDIA DAY PRESEASON ALL-WCC TEAM:
-Rasir Bolton – SR, G – Gonzaga
-Alex Ducas – SR, F – Saint Mary’s
-Logan Johnson – SR, G – Saint Mary’s
-Keshawn Justice – SR, F – Santa Clara
-Houston Mallette – SO, G – Pepperdine
-Tyler Robertson – JR, F – Portland
-Khalil Shabazz – SR, G – San Francisco
-Julian Strawther – JR, G – Gonzaga
-Drew Timme – SR, F – Gonzaga
-Fousseyni Traore – SO, F – Gonzaga
COMMENTS FROM DAVID:
-Mark Few is clearly on the hot seat!! The Zags failed to win 30 games last year for the first time since 2015-2016, and they also failed to make it past the Sweet Sixteen for the second time in that same timespan!! Okay, in all seriousness, the Zags have lost just four conference games dating back to the 2016-2017 season. That is an average of less than one per year. They have spent far more time in the top-ten (and probably the top-five) than they have spent out of it, they are routinely a Final Four-caliber team and one of the teams that good enough to win it all, and this year will be no different. Whenever someone says the Zags underperform, I DON’T KNOW WHAT THE HELL THEY ARE TALKING ABOUT!! The last time Gonzaga failed to get past the Round of 32 was 2014. I do not know if any other programs have been to the Sweet Sixteen every year since 2015. That is remarkable! This year, they are once again the practically unanimous favorites to win the league, they will likely start off ranked in the top-five, they will most likely remain in the top-ten all year long, and they are strong on the perimeter, they rebound well, and they shoot well. They are good enough to win it all.
-Saint Mary’s is pretty far behind Gonzaga, but they are perhaps comfortably ahead of everyone else. They won 26 total games a year ago, were 12-3 in WCC play, and although they lost Tommy Kuhse (who signed with the San Antonio Spurs in August), they still have three starters back and they had some pretty good freshmen to the lineup as well. They should get really good play out of their guards this year.
-BYU is coming a season where they made the NIT, and while they still have some good pieces, they also have to replace quite a bit, and it is hard for me to believe they will improve to the point of being solidly inside the bubble come March. But…who knows??
-The Dons of San Francisco have been exciting to watch over the past few seasons, and they made the NCAA Tournament a year ago. The problem is nearly all their starters are gone, as well as head coach Todd Golden. He is being replaced by Chris Gerlufsen, who has a bit of a rebuilding job ahead of him.
-There is reason to be excited in Portland! All five starters are back, and although they lost in the WCC quarterfinals, they had won seven of their last eight prior to that. If there is a dark horse in this conference, it may be this Portland team. I am a little surprised they are only picked to finish in the middle of the league. I could see them finishing a few spots higher.
-Santa Clara is another program that has shown steady improvement in recent years. Having said that, they may be in a bit of a rebuilding mode this year. They lost a lot of key players and have just two starters back. But, they do add some key transfer players, and will look to get some contributions from them. Herb Sendek is entering his 7th year with the program, and has posted 20+ win seasons in two of the last three years, so they are getting better.
-Pepperdine won just one conference game a year ago, and although four starters are back and they should be somewhat improved with that experience, it is hard for me to see them finishing anywhere close to the middle of the league. But, they were very young last year, so while I do not expect them to contend for the top half of the league, I do think they will be noticeably better.
-Not a lot of love for San Diego despite them having three starters back and some experienced upperclassmen. I do not expect them to contend for the league title or anything, but I am a little surprised they were picked this close to the bottom.
-Both LMU and Pacific won just three league games last year, and it will likely be another long year for both of them again this year.