Bracketology 2024: Purdue, Villanova, and BYU among Feast Week winners

10. Santa Clara Broncos

The Broncos had lost all five starters from a team that won 23 games and finished 3rd in the WCC. They did land a few good pieces out of the transfer portal but no one knew what to expect with them at the start of this season. Things started well, getting a nice true road win over Stanford, though, after an 0-3 run in the Battle 4 Atlantis, that win may not look as glamorous.

Santa Clara had a chance to get at least one more resume builder this past week in the Emerald Coast Classic. Their first opponent was Oregon, a Pac-12 team that missed the NCAA Tournament last year but was loaded with talent on paper, though a few were injured for the game.

The Broncos took advantage, getting the 88-82 neutral site win. Arizona transfer Adama Bal has his best game yet, going for a career-high 25 points. Big man Christoph Tilly chipped in with 18 points, seven rebounds, and four assists. It’s a roster that has shown early that they’re just as, if not better than last year’s group.

With the early struggles of Saint Mary’s, the Broncos could be the second-best team in the WCC behind Gonzaga. And historically, that’s good enough for another at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament. They did lose to Ohio State to get its first loss of the year but that’s not an issue. More importantly, Santa Clara now has two wins against the Pac-12 and no bad losses at all.