Gonzaga Basketball: Zags are on the NCAA bubble

Gonzaga basketball has made 17 straight trips to the NCAA Tournament, but the Bulldogs find themselves squarely on the bubble this year.

Once upon a time, a small Roman Catholic school from the Pacific Northwest captured the hearts and minds of a nation while making an unexpected run to the NCAA Tournament’s Elite Eight.

Soon thereafter, the school’s celebrated young coach made a mad dash to scandal-ridden Minnesota, leaving the program in the hands of another exuberant up-and-comer named Mark Few.

The rest, as they say, is history.

Before long, the Gonzaga Bulldogs were making yearly runs to the NCAAs. The West Coast Conference became a one-team show as Few’s teams cut through the opposition like a warmed knife through butter. To top it off, Gonzaga continued to make noise at the Big Dance, logging 17 consecutive appearances while recording 14 first round wins at the season’s ultimate event.

Yet as the 2015-16 campaign begins its drive towards March, things are not as peachy as usual in Spokane.

Gonzaga was thought to be a top-10 squad entering the campaign and expectations were high for a Bulldogs squad boasting size, depth and experience.

A funny thing happened along the way however.

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In a campaign full of upsets and parity, the Bulldogs fell prey to surprising Texas A&M. Then came defeats against Arizona and UCLA followed by losses to BYU and St. Mary’s. Gonzaga’s most recent loss, a 69-60 decision to SMU on Feb. 13, leaves the Bulldogs sitting at 19-6 overall with four regular season games remaining.

Losses to the likes of Arizona and UCLA don’t normally add up to bubble trouble for college basketball teams. But dropping contests to the Cougars and Gaels, two teams currently sitting outside NCAA Tournament selection criteria, tend to encourage such outcomes. Considering the Bulldogs’ best win is over a Connecticut team with its own selection concerns, it’s little surprise Gonzaga finds itself facing similar circumstances.

The Bulldogs’ RPI rating is 59. They also have a strength of schedule of 120 and two losses in WCC play. Add it all up and Gonzaga finds itself sitting squarely on a fragile bubble that was almost unthinkable a few months ago.

All is certainly not lost for Few and company. They’re still on track to claim their 16^th regular season conference crown since 1999. And if they can take care of St. Mary’s at home on Feb. 20, they’ll head to the conference tournament as a favorite to make an 18^th straight trip to the NCAAs.

Feb 6, 2016; Malibu, CA, USA; Gonzaga Bulldogs forward Kyle Wiltjer (33) dribbles the ball during the second half against the Pepperdine Waves at Firestone Fieldhouse. The Gonzaga Bulldogs won 69-66. Mandatory Credit: Kelvin Kuo-USA TODAY Sports /

Nevertheless, the Bulldogs are riding a dangerous wave. A loss in Las Vegas would all but end any hopes of making it back to the Big Dance. And it would end a stretch of success few schools can match.

Gonzaga’s 17 straight NCAA appearances is surpassed by only Kansas (26), Duke (20) and Michigan State (18). That’s some pretty heady company for a school once mostly known for being the matriculation point of NBA Hall of Famer John Stockton.

In other words, the pressure is on for Few and his team.

Fortunately, the Bulldogs are still the most complete team in the WCC.

Duke transfer Kyle Wiltjer is the league’s best player, averaging 21.1 points per game. On top of that, the Bulldogs have a budding star in Domantas Sabonis who is putting up 17.5 points and 11.7 rebounds per outing.

The loss of mammoth Polish center Przemek Karnowski to a back injury has been a concern, but Sabonis and 7-foot-1 center Ryan Edwards have done a solid job plugging the middle.

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With that said, the Bulldogs are in hardly a shoo-in to make another trip to the NCAAs. And that itself is a surprise in a season full of surprises.