WCC teams in Tourny- Tipping point?

[uncurselmu]

I was hesitant to create an entire thread for this but I didn't want to hijack another thread.

For the last 4 years it seems like ever season the WCC is increasing in strength. Even having just gonzaga do well bodes well for our conference, and at the same time having increased competition in the WCC increases Gonzaga's stature even if no other WCC teams make the Tourny (although having usd and st marys in the mix helped a lot)

That being said, looking at the WCC recruits for this year and next its quite apparent that beyond Gonzaga, many WCC teams are picking up recruits that are far superior to anything they were even dabbling with a couple of years ago.

I think we're reaching the tipping point where we can safely assume more than 2 teams from the WCC should make the ncaa tournament next year. What's your guess for the number of WCC teams actually in the tournament and the ones who have the clear potential to do so?

1. Gonzaga- its a pretty safe assumption. You don't dominate the WCC for over a decade and lose the top dog position.
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2. Saint Mary's*- a lot of this will depend on Patty Mills returning or not.
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3. Mixed into the teams on the cusp you have some quality squads that could all, if chips fall into place properly, make the tournament.
-LMU
-Santa Clara
-Portland

So lets hash it out. Obviously we are lmu fans for the most part, and we all assume barring extreme adversity Lmu will be in the mix (which is laughible considering we've had every unfortunate event imaginable for the last few years). where do Pepp, USF, and USD mix in?

what about the other teams in the WCC? who deserves to be in the mix, and of that third tier, beyond gonzaga and st mary's, whos on top???


My guess is 3 teams will make it. 1. gonzaga, 2. St Mary's (dont think he'll stay in the draft), 3. LMU or Santa Clara

No matter what, I think the WCC is definitely emerging as a quality conference for good.

[ldawg]

I think you are correct in that people should expect to see two WCC teams in the tourney from here on out.

[ironlions]

Gonzaga will have a ton of freshman next year. If there any was any year for another WCC team to win the conference it is next season.

[LIONS90045]

An interesting posting.
Gonzaga will be strong again, a number of their bench players last year were highly rated recruits with scout ratings in the low 90's - so these guys will perform - Steven Gray and Robert Sacre in particular. And they have that confidence factor of a team that expects to win each game. Plus lots of big game experience against a strong non-WCC schedule.
Saint Mary's with Mills will also be strong but not unbeatable.
LMU, Santa Clara and Portland will be next in line and I think LMU can keep up with both of this pair. Lack of experience may hurt the lions next year but watch out in 2 years - we'll be hard to beat.
I think we have a legitimate shot at the NCAA tourney next year - it will depend on the young players (aren't they all young) coming thru and the team gellling into Coach Good's system in the early part of the season. The team will need to gain confidence in the early part of our schedule by establishing a winning mentality. Then we will be OK. Plus no more major injuries.