This could be the year that Gonzaga finally see real competition in the WCC basketball league.
Over the past 20 years, Gonzaga has won the WCC’s automatic NCAA Tournament bid an astounding 14 times. Few teams in the country can match that sort of consistent success.
This year could be no different as head coach Mark Few enters his 18th year at the helm in Spokane. He brings along one of the most talented freshman classes in program history, along with high-major college transfers from Washington and Missouri.
That doesn’t mean the Bulldogs won’t have to fight for their automatic NCAA Tournament birth this season though. Saint Mary’s swept Gonzaga in the regular season last year and BYU hasn’t finished worse than third in the WCC after leaving the Mountain West. Both of these programs have the talent to stay near the top of the heap.
Of the other seven schools, four of them will have new coaches stalking the sidelines. Two of the programs (Pacific and Portland) have former NBA players with vast amounts of playing experience as their new head men.
While it’s hard to see the four new coaches making an impact in a league that has so little parity, anything is still possible in the world of college basketball.
The other thing to keep in mind with this conference is that while Saint Mary’s, Gonzaga and BYU are all very talented programs, the rest of the conference was not particularly good last season. There are four new coaches for a reason as the WCC was just the 16th best conference overall in terms of RPI.
Conference Awards
Coach of the Year: Randy Bennett, Saint Mary’s
Player of the Year: Alec Wintering, Portland
Freshman of the Year: Zach Collins, Gonzaga
All-WCC First Team:
Senior guard Alec Wintering, Portland
Senior guard Jared Brownridge, Santa Clara
Junior guard Nigel Williams-Goss, Gonzaga
Junior guard Emmett Naar, Saint Mary’s
Sophomore guard Nick Emery, BYU
All-WCC Second Team:
Senior guard Lamond Murray Jr., Pepperdine
Sophomore guard Josh Perkins, Gonzaga
Junior forward Calvin Hermanson, Saint Mary’s
Senior forward Kyle Davis, BYU
Senior center Przemek Karnowski, Gonzaga
Normally, a Player of the Year award will come from one of the top teams in the conference. However, Alec Wintering is the exception as he averaged 18.3 points, 4.9 assists and 3.3 rebounds per game last season for the Portland Pilots.
10. San Diego Toreros
2015-2016 record: 9-21 overall (4-14 WCC)
Head coach: Lamont Smith
Key losses: Duda Sanadze, Vasa Pusica, Jito Kok, Marcus Harris, Brandon Perry
Key returning players: Olin Carter III, Brett Bailey, Cameron Neubauer
Newcomers: Nassir Barrino, Mark Carbone, Juwan Gray, Frank Ryder, Jose Martinez
There just isn’t enough talent for the Toreros to move upward in the WCC. Just three players that averaged four points or better return for San Diego. Point guard Olin Carter III and wing Brett Bailey form a decent combination, along with stretch forward Cam Neubauer, but every other contributor from last year transferred or graduated.
This means that freshman could play an immediate role going forward. Front court guys Jose Martinez, Juwan Gray and Frank Ryder all had excellent high school careers and add immediate depth on a team with so little returning production. Nassir Barrino and Mark Carbone are also capable of doing work from the perimeter.
Of last season’s reserves that might see more time, guard Tyler Williams had high accolades coming out of Texas. He averaged just 2.5 points and 2.5 rebounds in 17.9 minutes an evening last year, but the former 3-star recruit could start if he improved over the summer. The Toreros will certainly need more points after finishing last in the WCC in total offense.
9. San Francisco Dons
2015-2016 record: 15-15 overall (8-10 WCC)
Head coach: Kyle Smith (first year)
Key losses: Devin Watson, Tim Derksen, Uche Ofoegbu, Dont’e Reynolds, Montray Clemons
Key returning players: Ronnie Boyce, Chase Foster, Nate Renfro, Matt McCarthy
Newcomers: Jordan Ratinho, three-star guard Charles Minlend Jr., Remu Raitenen, Chase Anderson, two-star center Jimbo Lull, Frankie Ferrari (transfer from Cañada [CA] College)
Kyle Smith takes over the Dons after a 25-win season with Columbia. He inherits a roster that has just their third, sixth and seventh leading scorers back. Had Devin Watson, Uche Ofoegbu and Dont’e Reynolds elected to not transfer, this team could have pushed for a top-5 finish. Without them, a fight to stay out of last place is more realistic.
It’ll be up to the team’s lone senior Ronnie Boyce to keep San Francisco relevant. The 6’3″ guard is the only player returning to averaged at least 20 minutes last year and could shoulder large parts of the young roster. He put up 11.1 points and 3.4 boards per game, but shot below 40 percent from the field.
Behind Boyce are former reserves Chase Foster, Matt McCarthy and Nate Renfro, but those three combined for just roughly 10 points a night in 2015-16. It will be interesting to see who steps up.
Of the new faces, Jordan Ratinho and Jimbo Lull could start at point guard and center, respectively. They are two of the higher-rated recruits in coach Smith’s first class. Charles Minlend Jr. will be good perimeter depth behind Boyce and Foster.
The rest of the class will likely fill in somewhere as the team finds its identity. There is some potential here, but it’s impossible to predict through a coaching transition and so much roster turnover.
8. Loyola Marymount Lions
2015-2016 record: 14-17 overall (6-12 WCC)
Head coach: Mike Dunlap
Key losses: Adom Jacko, Marin Mornar, David Humphries, Joshua Spiers
Key returning Ppayers: Brandon Brown, Steven Haney, Shamar Johnson, Munis Tutu, Petr Herman, Buay Tuach
Newcomers: Three-star guard Donald Gipson, Mattias Markusson, Stefan Jovanovic (transfer from Hawaii)
Leading scorer Adom Jacko jumped to the pro ranks, but Loyola Marymount has a deep, experienced team that can move this program in the right direction. Five regulars and several reserves have the task of improving on a 6-12 WCC record from last year.
Point guard Brandon Brown and swing man Steven Haney are the two biggest threats based on last year from the outside. Both put up double-digit scoring numbers with Brown adding nearly six assists a game. Haney didn’t do much besides score, but he shot over 35 percent from deep.
The other returning guys typically weren’t scoring threats, but they are all likely rotation pieces with another year of experience under their belts.
Donald Gipson is one of the better newcomers and will battle Buay Tuach and deep reserve Jeff McClendon at shooting guard.
Mattias Markusson is an intriguing piece at over 7’0″ tall, but the more important new face might be Hawaii transfer Stefan Jovanovic. The senior averaged nearly five points and four boards a night for the Rainbow Warriors. He doesn’t have overpowering talent, but he looks like a steady interior presence for a team that doesn’t have many established threats down low. If Loyola can develop more consistency, they look like a tough defensive team to take down.
7. Pacific Tigers
2015-2016 record: 8-20 overall (6-12 WCC)
Head coach: Damon Stoudamire (first year)
Key losses: Alec Kobre, Eric Thompson
Key returning players: Ray Bowles, T.J. Wallace, Jacob Lampkin, Tonko Vuko, Ilias Theodoru, D.J. Ursery, Maleke Haynes, David Taylor, Anthony Townes
Newcomers: Three-star guard K.J. Smith, Keshon Montague, Jack Williams (transfer from Long Beach State)
NBA veteran Damon Stoudamire inherits a roster filled with potential. The Tigers haven’t been the strongest team for a few years, but Stoudamire brings experience and integrity to try and move the program forward. Getting consistency out the slow and inefficient offense is the priority in year one.
Pacific’s talent won’t blow anyone away, but shooting guards Ray Bowles and T.J. Wallace are capable scorers. They are among the nine regular producers back from 2015-16.
In addition to their scoring, both Bowles and Wallace can pass decently with 2.3 assists per game each last season.
The rest of the rotation is a true mishmash of pieces that could benefit from more playing time. However, none scored more than seven points per game last season.
The newcomers will help a great deal towards putting Pacific back in striking position. Jack Williams was a talented recruit out of high school and is a solid body after transferring from LBSU. K.J. Smith will also compete for a starting position as the highest-rated recruit in the class and the son of former NBA champion Kenny Smith. Stoudamire is in a strong position to improve the Pacific program, but it will take some strong performances to get the Tigers to the postseason this year.
6. Santa Clara Broncos
2015-2016 record: 11-20 overall (7-11 WCC)
Head coach: Herb Sendek (first year)
Key losses: Brendyn Taylor
Key returning players: Jared Brownridge, KJ Feagin, Nate Kratch, Kai Healy, Matt Hubbard, Matt Hauser, Jarvis Pugh, Henrik Jadersten, Emmanuel Ndumanya
Newcomers: Julian Roche, Tony Lewis, Akil Douglas (trasfer from San Jose [CA] City College)
New coach Herb Sendek takes over the California program after spending nine seasons at Arizona State. He inherits a storied program that hasn’t reached the NCAA Tournament since 1996. That might not change this season, but the Broncos made a tremendous hire that could look brilliant in a year or two.
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Jared Brownridge leads an experienced Broncos team as one of the most electric scorers in the West Coast Conference. The 6’3″ gunner put up nearly 21 points an evening last year and has a chance to end his career as the most productive player in Santa Clara history. The top seven scorers from last year’s team will try and carry SCU into the postseason.
The newcomers don’t have to do too much with so much returning firepower, but Julian Roche stands at 6’11” and was one of the most highly rated players in New Hampshire. The Bronco front court isn’t the most productive unit, so I could see Roche making an impact at some point.
Sendek is one of the most experience coaches in America and I wouldn’t be surprised if he gets solid results. But the team needs more consistency in the scoring department beyond Brownridge to get to the CBI or CIT.
5. Portland Pilots
2015-2016 record: 12-20 overall (6-12 WCC)
Head coach: Terry Porter (first year)
Key losses: Bryce Pressley, Jason Todd
Key returning players: Alec Wintering, D’Marques Tyson, Jarel Marshall, Gabe Taylor, Jazz Johnson, Ray Barreno, Phillipp Hartwich
Newcomers: Andre Ferguson, Malcolm Porter, Alec Monson, Chier Maker, Joseph Smoyer
Former Portland Trailblazer All-Star Terry Porter takes over for a Pilots squad that hasn’t finished better than sixth in WCC play since the 2010-2011 season. The road to respectability could be a long one, but I believe Porter will get tons of patience from the administration.
Portland is in a good spot to make a run at a CIT or NIT bid with five of their top six scorers back. Alec Wintering is my personal favorite to win WCC POY with his experience in the league. The senior guard averaged over 18 points and almost five assists a game last season while shooting 44 percent from the field.
He has a solid supporting cast, with six guys who saw double-digit minutes last season back for another year.
As far as youth and depth are concerned, there is perhaps no piece more intriguing than Chier Maker. The 6’7″ wing doesn’t appear to have tons of hype going into his college career, but he is the cousin of NBA first-round pick Thon Maker. At worse, Portland is a team that could press for a spot in the upper half of the league standings.
4. Pepperdine Waves
2015-2016 record: 18-14 overall (10-8 WCC)
Head coach: Marty Wilson
Key losses: Stacy Davis, Jett Raines, Shawn Olden, A.J. Lapray, A.J. John
Key returning players: Lamond Murray Jr., Jeremy Major, Kameron Edwards, Amadi Udenyi
Newcomers: Chris Reyes (transfer from Utah), Elijah Lee, three-star guard Knox Hellums, Kaijae Yee-Stephens, three-star forward Craig LeCesne, three-star forward Nolan Taylor
Pepperdine has so much potential that it’s hard to imagine that they’ve never gotten above fourth in the WCC under coach Marty Wilson.
That could change soon though. Of the middle-tier teams, the Waves have one of the most experienced groups back.
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Lamond Murray Jr. scored over 16 points a night last season and point guard Jeremy Major is poised to finish his career as the leading assist man in Pepperdine history. Amadi Udenyi is also extremely steady with the ball, but has never provided much in the way of scoring during his years in Malibu.
Those three, along with wing Kameron Edwards, could be the majority of the team’s scoring power.
Returning bench play is almost non-existent, but Chris Reyes has potential after starting his career at Utah. Reyes averaged 4.3 points and 3.7 rebounds per game as a freshman in 2014-2015.
Knox Hellums, Craig LeCesne and Nolan Taylor all had fairly good rankings from different recruiting services and could all be important depth for the Waves. However, they are still just freshmen. Even through a mild transition, I like this team to finish no worse than a third straight CBI appearance.
3. BYU Cougars
2015-2016 record: 26-11 overall (13-5 WCC)
Head coach: Dave Rose
Key losses: Kyle Collinsworth, Chase Fischer, Zac Seljaas, Nate Austin
Key returning players: Nick Emery, Kyle Davis, Corbin Kaufusi, Jamal Aytes
Newcomers: Four-star guard T.J. Haws, Steven Beo, Colby Leifson, three-star forward Yoeli Childs, three-star center Payton Dastrup, Eric Mika (completed LDS mission), L.J. Rose (transfer from Houston), Elijah Bryant (transfer from Elon)
BYU dominated the Mountain West for years, but hasn’t won any trophies since moving to the WCC in 2011-2012. On top of that, the Cougars lost what might have been the program’s best player ever in Kyle Collinsworth.
Despite the lack of expectations, Dave Rose’s team will still be among the league leaders again this season.
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Expect returning players Kyle Davis and Nick Emery to lead right out of the gate. Both averaged double digits last season and were efficient from the field. Point guard and small forward are perfectly settled in their hands.
Unfortunately, not much else comes back from last season. As a result, BYU will rely on a combination of transfers, freshman and returned missionaries.
Of the seven new faces in Provo, five should make an impact this year. Forward Eric Mika returns from his LDS mission and could slide right into the front court at either power forward or center.
L.J. Rose and Elijah Bryant are also key perimeter pieces after transferring from their previous programs. Freshman T.J. Haws, Yoeli Childs and Payton Dastrup all have high marks entering college and will contribute in their own ways.
BYU is still dangerous. However, it is more realistic to expect an NIT bid than a trip to the Big Dance.
2. Saint Mary’s Gaels
2015-2016 record: 29-6 overall (15-3 WCC)
Head coach: Randy Bennett
Key losses: None
Key returning players: Emmett Naar, Dane Pineau, Calvin Hermanson, Joe Rahon, Evan Fitzner, Jock Landale, Kyle Clark, Stefan Gonzalez
Newcomers: Three-star guard Jordan Ford, three-star forward Elijah Thomas, Jock Perry
The Saint Mary’s Gaels have 99 percent of their scoring back for another run at the Big Dance. Saint Mary’s was one of the most efficient units nationally as they finished 17th in adjusted offense. The next step is getting Gonzaga to relinquish its hold on the WCC’s automatic bid.
The back court duo of Emmett Naar and Joe Rahon is one of the best around. The two combined for nearly 25 points an evening, along with over five assists each. Kyle Clark and Calvin Hermanson are both very solid from the wing and the front court combination of Evan Fitzner, Jock Landale and Dane Pineau might be the best bunch in the WCC.
Backup guard Stefan Gonzalez only played 10 minutes an evening as a freshman, but still managed to nail over 51 percent of his attempts from long distance.
With such talent coming back, the freshman class won’t be asked to do much. Despite that, perimeter players, Jordan Ford and Elijah Thomas, are both capable of playing right away based on their incoming rankings, and Jock Perry (one of seven Australians on the roster) has the size at 7’1″ to battle up front.
Getting past the Zags has been nearly impossible for years, but Saint Mary’s has all the tools to knock them off. Also, expect the Gaels to be a top-25 team for the majority of the season.
1. Gonzaga Bulldogs
2015-2016 record: 25-8 overall (15-3 WCC), Sweet 16 appearance
Head coach: Mark Few
Key losses: Kyle Wiltjer, Domantas Sabonis, Eric McClellan, Kyle Dranginis
Key returning players: Josh Perkins, Przemek Karnowski, Silas Melson, Ryan Edwards, Bryan Alberts
Newcomers: Four-star guard Zach Norvell Jr., three-star forward Killian Tillie, Rai Hachimura, four-star center Zach Collins, Nigel Williams-Goss (transfer from Washington), Jordan Mathews (transfer from Cal), Johnathan Williams (transfer from Missouri), Jeremy Jones (transfer from Rice)
Despite Saint Mary’s strong attack, the Spokane-based program is still the top dog in this WCC basketball preview. Head coach Mark Few has stayed away from more high-profile jobs to turn Gonzaga into much more than a typical mid-major.
Gonzaga has their typical combination of experienced depth and promising newcomers. Josh Perkins, Silas Melson, and Przemek Karnowski (who is finally healthy) have been important pieces over the past few seasons, along with role players Bryan Alberts and Ryan Edwards.
Joining them is one of the best recruiting classes in the nation. McDonald’s All-American Zach Collins and high-major transfers Nigel Williams-Goss, Johnathan Williams and Jordan Mathews are members of the Bulldogs, while Zach Norvell Jr., Killian Tillie and Rai Hacimura could also make an impact in year one.
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There is simply an overwhelming level of talent in Spokane that has the Bulldogs thinking about another long postseason run. Could they make their first Final Four ever?