Gonzaga Bulldogs
West Coast Conference (26-7, 15-3)
Last season Gonzaga finally lived up to their expectations during the NCAA Tournament instead of winning a game or two and bowing out gracefully when they run into a good team. The Elite Eight appearance led to high expectations heading into this season, but the Bulldogs have failed to reach those expectations. However, there really are not any bad losses on the resume even though the Bulldogs did lose at home more than usual.
Big Wins: 11/25 vs Washington (80-64), 11/27 vs Connecticut (73-70), 2/27 at BYU (71-68)
Bad Losses: 12/12 UCLA (66-71), 1/14 BYU (68-69), 2/20 St. Mary’s (58-63)
Coach: Mark Few
Why They Can Surprise:
With Kyle Wiltjer and Domantas Sabonis, Gonzaga has one of the most dominating frontlines in the country. Wiltjer averages 20.7 points and 6.5 rebounds and is a big 6-10 forward who can knock down a ton of three-pointers. He has been nearly impossible to defend because of his size and shooting ability and plenty of teams have found that out the hard way. Sabonis is the more traditional big man and has absolutely dominated in the paint. The 6-10 sophomore is averaging 17.4 points and an impressive 11.6 rebounds. With Sabonis shooting 61.7 percent from the floor and Wiltjer shooting 49.0 percent from the floor and 42.4 percent from long range, this is again one of the best shooting teams in the country. It helps having Josh Perkins hitting consistently from long range and Eric McClellan driving effectively to the basket.
Why They Can Disappoint:
The frontcourt duo of Wiltjer and Sabonis may be great, but Gonzaga lost 7-1 center Przemek Karnowski with a back injury just six games into the season. Karnowski averaged 10.9 points and 5.8 rebounds last year and was well on his way to a big senior season. Heading into the year, Coach Mark Few had the problem of splitting minutes between his three big men. Now he has to squeeze as much as he can out of Wiltjer and Sabonis. Kyle Dranginis has been asked to take on more of a frontcourt role as times. At 6-5 and 205 pounds, Gonzaga could have been in a worse situation. Bryan Alberts and Silas Melson are big guards too, but it is Dranginis who can help out the most on the glass and he will need to do a lot should Wiltjer or Sabonis get into foul trouble.
Probable Starters:
Eric McClellan, Senior, Guard, 10.6 ppg, 1.9 apg
Josh Perkins, Freshman, Guard, 10.3 ppg, 4.0 apg
Kyle Dranginis, Senior, Guard, 6.5 ppg, 3.2 apg, 4.3 rpg
Kyle Wiltjer, Senior, Forward, 20.7 ppg, 6.5 rpg
Domantas Sabonis, Sophomore, Forward, 17.4 ppg, 11.6 rpg
Key Roleplayers:
Bryan Alberts, Freshman, Guard, 2.8 ppg
Silas Melson, Sophomore, Guard, 6.8 ppg
By the Numbers:
Scoring Offense: 79.3 (41st in nation, 2nd in conference)
Scoring Defense: 65.4 (34, 2)
Field-Goal Percentage: 48.3 (19, 2)
Field-Goal Defense: 39.6 (21, 1)
Three-Point Field Goals Per Game: 7.7 (102, 5)
Three-Point Field-Goal Percentage: 37.4 (50, 3)
Free-Throw Percentage: 75.2 (19, 1)
Rebound Margin: 7.6 (19, 1)
Assists Per Game: 14.1 (123, 5)
Turnovers Per Game: 11.3 (52, 3)
Recent Postseason Appearances:
2015 NCAA Second Round win over North Dakota State
2015 NCAA Third Round win over Iowa
2015 NCAA Regional Semifinal win over UCLA
2015 NCAA Regional Final loss to Duke
2014 NCAA Second Round win over Oklahoma State
2014 NCAA Third Round loss to Arizona
2013 NCAA Second Round win over Southern
2013 NCAA Third Round loss to Wichita State
2012 NCAA Second Round win over West Virginia
2012 NCAA Third Round loss to Ohio State
2011 NCAA Round of 64 win over St. Johns
2011 NCAA Round of 32 loss to BYU
2010 NCAA Round of 64 win over Florida State
2010 NCAA Round of 32 loss to Syracuse
2009 NCAA Round of 64 win over Akron
2009 NCAA Round of 32 win over Western Kentucky
2009 NCAA Regional Semifinal loss to North Carolina
*all team stats through 3/6
