Busting Brackets
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Gonzaga Basketball: 3 things on Bulldogs 2019-20 Christmas wishlist

By Bryan Mauro

SPOKANE, WASHINGTON - DECEMBER 18: Players warm up on the court as the student fan section fills prior to the game between the North Carolina Tar Heels and the Gonzaga Bulldogs at McCarthey Athletic Center on December 18, 2019 in Spokane, Washington. (Photo by William Mancebo/Getty Images)
SPOKANE, WASHINGTON - DECEMBER 18: Players warm up on the court as the student fan section fills prior to the game between the North Carolina Tar Heels and the Gonzaga Bulldogs at McCarthey Athletic Center on December 18, 2019 in Spokane, Washington. (Photo by William Mancebo/Getty Images) /
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TUCSON, ARIZONA – DECEMBER 14: Filip Petrusev #3 and Killian Tillie #33 of the Gonzaga Bulldogs (Photo by Jennifer Stewart/Getty Images)
TUCSON, ARIZONA – DECEMBER 14: Filip Petrusev #3 and Killian Tillie #33 of the Gonzaga Bulldogs (Photo by Jennifer Stewart/Getty Images) /

Respect

Gonzaga is the most disrespected team in the country. They are not disrespected by the National Media but the disrespect by fanbases across the country is unbelievable. It is honestly unwarranted, it begs the question of what more does Gonzaga have to do to earn respect?  Let me start by saying I get the argument of they play in a weaker conference and they rack up all their wins against inferior competition. The argument has also been proven untrue many times over the last 15 years.

Under Mark Few, Gonzaga has been one of the most dominant programs in the country, and not just in the West Coast Conference. The Bulldogs have not missed the NCAA tournament in 21 years. For the last 20 seasons coach, Few has been the leader and in those 20 years, he has built Gonzaga into one of the premier programs in college basketball. The Bulldogs have made six Sweet 16’s, three Elite Eights and one National Final.

Gonzaga has outperformed their NCAA tournament seed line by an average of .137 rounds, as compared to the rest of the members of the tournament on that seed line. That is wonderful, especially for a team that never beats anyone and is overrated every single year.

Even if Gonzaga has been overrated in the past, this year they are absolutely ranked exactly where they belong. They have played like the best team in the country for most of the year. They already hold wins over Oregon in the Battle 4 Atlantis tournament, defeated Washington, Arizona, and North Carolina. Those teams were all ranked in the top 25 either at the time of the game or at one point this season. The schedule sets up for Gonzaga to potentially enter March undefeated. It is not easy to go undefeated no matter what conference you play in. If it were it would happen every year.

Going undefeated is hard and if Gonzaga does it they absolutely require the respect of the nation including the fans. Just because they have never won a National Championship doesn’t mean they have never done anything. That fact has been disputed several times. The Bulldogs have become one of the most prestigious programs in the entire country. They should be treated as such.