WEST COAST CONFERENCE MEDIA DAY PRESEASON POLL:
- Santa Clara
- Saint Mary’s
- San Francisco
- Seattle U
- Pacific
- LMU
- Pepperdine
- San Diego
- Portland
- Denver
MEDIA DAY PRESEASON ALL WCC TEAM:
-Joshua Dent – JR, G – Saint Mary’s
-Jake Ensminger – SR, G – Santa Clara
-Sash Gavalyugov – JR, G – Santa Clara
-Will Heimbrodt – SR, F – Seattle U
-Carson Johnson – JR, G – Denver
-Petar Majstorovic – JR, F – Pepperdine
-Will McClendon – SR, G – Pepperdine
-Ndewedo Newbury – SR, F – San Francisco
-All Wright – JR, G – LMU
-Junseok Yeo – SR, F – Seattle U
.
COMMENTS FROM DAVID:
-With Gonzaga gone, the WCC just does not feel like the WCC anymore. We at HoopsHD still look at it as a multi-bid league and not an Under the Radar league (for now), and with teams like Santa Clara and Saint Mary’s it should still put teams inside the bubble, but it is not the same.
-Santa Clara had a fantastic year last year with 26 wins and appeared to have Kentucky beat in the Round of 64, but a beyond half-court shot at the buzzer tied it and the Broncos lost in OT (www.youtube.com/watch?v=mB3iWzEXtY8). The problem is that just one starter is back from that team, so the cohesiveness that helped them a year ago may be an issue this year with so many new players. The players they have returning were largely role players a year ago. David Castillo comes in from Kansas State and should help them out. I cannot question the coaching, as I love the job Herb Sendek has done with this team, but I question their roster. I actually question a lot of things. I have more questions than answers when it comes to this team.
-Saint Mary’s has been one of the better teams in the conference. They were clearly Gonzaga’s biggest rival and have been regulars in the NCAA Tournament for the last couple of decades. This year things will be much different. Randy Bennett has moved on as have most of their key players from a year ago. Mickey McConnell takes over as head coach and Joshua Dent returns to run the point. Myles Che comes north from UC Irvine where he had a very solid year and Darius Bivins looks to be a very talented freshman (and is the only McDonald’s All-American to commit to a mid-major program). They do have a few pieces, but will they take a huge step back from what we are used to seeing from them?
-San Francisco won just 17 games last year after a solid run of 20+ win seasons and may be taking another step back with all five starters being gone from a year ago. Some of the new players look impressive as they put up solid numbers internationally or at the JUCO level, but can they come together and win in the WCC?
-Seattle U is picked 4th. I am unsure if that is low enough to be considered a dark horse, but I really like this Seattle team this year. They won 21 games a season ago and while they kind of fell apart in the middle of conference play, they looked pretty solid down the stretch. Will Heimbrodt and Junseok Yeo are both back and they make up what should be a formidable frontcourt. Jaden Bailes, who is admittedly just a freshman, looks like he will be a talented guard. Coach Chris Victor has done a good job with this program and I think this could be a breakout year for them…so Seattle is my pick to win the league!
-Pacific is having to rebuild their roster after all five starters from last year moved on. Jason Edwards comes in from Providence after averaging 16ppg last year, so he is a huge addition, but he will need some help if Pacific is going to contend in the league this year.
-LMU’s All Wright, who transferred in from Xavier, was named to the preseason all-conference team. I do not know if that is due to his unique name or because he is expected to be a major impact player. He averaged 7.5ppg last year, which was kind of meh, but he will have the opportunity to step into a bigger role this year. Jasai Miles (Indiana) and Mazi Mosley (LSU) are among the transfers who saw very limited minutes at bigger programs and are likely looking for more playing time. We will see if they can step up this year.
-Pepperdine won just nine games a year ago and with all five starters moving on it is easy to understand why they are being voted to finish this poorly. Having said that, I really like some of their players. Will McClendon was a key contritbutor and double-digit scorer for a good North Texas team, Jahari Williamson was a solid player for Kent State, Petar Majstorovic was a really good player for Long Beach State, and Youri Fritz is a good /rebounder from Northeastern. You never know how so many new players will be able to play together, but I think Pepperdine’s talent is much better than what the voters are giving them credit for. I think they can finish in the top half of the league. Maybe close to the top of the league. Like the Wave this year!
-JR Blount takes over a San Diego team that won just 5 WCC games a year ago and lost all their starters. They did get two solid players out of the portal in Davion Hill from Ball State and Marqui Worthy Jr. from UC Riverside, so that is at least a somewhat-solid nucleus to where we may see some improvement this year.
-Portland dealt with injuries last year, so just being able to stay healthy should lead to at least a few more wins. Riley Parker is a player to watch: he averaged over 13ppg last year and is a very good outside shooter. Portland does appear to have a solid frontcourt. Jaxon Olvera comes in from Louisiana where he also averaged over 13ppg and was a fairly solid rebounder, so the Pilots do have some pieces to work with.
-Denver joins the conference after regularly struggling in the Summit League, and chances are they will continue to struggle in the WCC. They do have an outstanding player in Carson Johnson, who may be one of the best players in the conference. The question is: can the rest of the roster give him enough help for this team to be successful?
