CLICK HERE For All of Hoops HD’s Continued and Extensive Preseason Content
WEST COAST CONFERENCE MEDIA DAY PRESEASON POLL:
- Gonzaga
- Saint Mary’s
- Santa Clara
- San Francisco
- Washington State
- LMU
- Oregon State
- Portland (tied 8th)
- San Diego (tied 8th)
- Pacific
- Pepperdine
MEDIA DAY PRESEASON ALL-WCC TEAM:
-Michael Ajayi – SR, G – Gonzaga
-Adama-Alpha Bal – SR, G – Santa Clara
-Cedric Coward – SR, G – Washington State
-Nolan Hickman – SR, G – Gonzaga
-Graham Ike – SR, F – Gonzaga
-Augustas Marciulionis – SR, G – Saint Mary’s
-Ryan Nembhard – SR, G – Gonzaga
-Jevon Porter – JR, F – LMU
-Mitchell Saxen – SR, C – Saint Mary’s
-Carlos Stewart – SR, G – Santa Clara
-Marcus Williams – SR, G – San Francisco
.
COMMENTS FROM DAVID:
-So here is an incredible stat. Gonzaga has made it to the Sweet Sixteen or further in every NCAA Tournament they have played in since 2014. In 2020, when we did not have an NCAA Tournament, they would have likely been a #1 seed. That is amazing. Maybe someone else has accomplished that, but if so I cannot think of who. This year, they are once again expected to be among the ten best teams in the nation, and will likely again earn a protected seed. In an era where teams cannot seem to retain their talent, four starters are back from last year’s Sweet Sixteen team. Graham Ike is still on the roster, after being a standout player at Wyoming for a couple of years. The Zags are stacked. Again. And they look like they have the kind of team that can make it to the Final Four. Again. The only knock on Gonzaga is that they have never won it all, but they are still one of the most accomplished programs of the last decade and by all accounts that success will continue.
-Saint Mary’s is picked to finish 2nd, and while it is likely a very distant second, the Gaels still have a fairly strong roster. They are tasked with replacing Aidan Mahaney (who transferred to Connecticut), and that is a setback, but two other starters are back who averaged double-figures a season ago and I still think they have what it takes to safely make it back to the NCAA Tournament.
-Coach Herb Sendek has won 20 or more games in each of the last three seasons for Santa Clara, but they cannot seem to break through to where they are a regular participant in either the NCAA or NIT Tournaments. Expectations are somewhat high this year as three starters are back from last year’s team, including Adama-Alpha Bal who averaged over 14ppg a season ago. Some other solid D-1 and JUCO transfers also join the roster, so Santa Clara should easily be in the top half of the standings. The question is do they have enough pieces to make the NCAAs?
-San Francisco also returns three starters from a team that won more than 20 games, and also have high expectations this year. Chris Gerlufsen enters his 3rd year as head coach, and he has Marcus Williams/Malik Thomas making up a talented and experienced backcourt. They also add what appear to be some high-level freshmen to the roster, so the Dons look to be heading toward another really solid season.
-Washington State had a great year last year with 25 total wins and a trip to the Round of 32 in the NCAA Tournament. The problem is that virtually everything has changed…including their conference. This is their first year in the WCC, David Riley’s first year as head coach, and they will need to replace their entire starting lineup from a year ago. Cedric Coward, Dane Erikstrup, and Ethan Price all transfer in from Eastern Washington, and all were key players for them a year ago, but they will have to perform at a much higher level to have success in WCC.
-LMU won just 12 total games last year, and while they were not bad in the first half of conference play, they were pretty weak down the stretch. With just two starters back, it could be a rough year for the Lions this year. They were able to score last year as all five starters averaged double figures, but their defense was somewhat lacking.
-Since an unexpected (and almost unprecedented) run to the Elite Eight in 2021, Oregon State has been…well…awful. They did win 13 games last year, which was a bit of an improvement, but they have just one starter back and will have to overhaul their roster. Coach Wayne Tinkle has proven he can win, and they do add some solid transfers from UTR schools who should be able to contribute, and there are a lot of teams in this league that I think they can compete against. Having said all that, I do not see them finishing near the top and think the middle of the standings is their ceiling.
-It is hard to get too excited about a Portland team that lost over 20 games last year and has just two starters back, but they do have a couple guys on the roster who were double-digit scorers a year ago who should be able to contribute this year.
-Like a lot of teams, San Diego is tasked with rebuilding after just one starter is returning from last year’s team. They were a respectable 18-15 last year, but given how they are tasked with rebuilding expectations are rather low this year. They do add a couple of guys who were standout JUCO players, so if they can contribute we may see them finish a little further up from the bottom than where they are being picked to finish.
-Pacific won just six games last year and will replace their entire roster this year. Dave Smart takes over as head coach and he has his work cut out for him. They were one of the worst teams in all of D-1 last year, and while they do have some solid JUCO standouts that should step in and contribute and make the team a little better, I still do not see them finishing anywhere near the top.
-Pepperdine is also having to replace all five starters and just does not seem to have much of anything in the way of strong personnel this year. It will likely be a long year for the Waves. Ed Schilling takes over as head coach, and he has his work cut out for him.
