14. Gonzaga (9-3)
Seeing Gonzaga in the second weekend of the NCAA Tournament is a regular occurrence and it shouldn’t be a surprise to hear that this year’s team is that talented too. The Bulldogs continue life in the WCC devoid of major opportunities so they’ve had quite the challenging slate of nonconference games, with recent losses to Kentucky and Connecticut. They did at least get back on track with relative ease this past week.
Gonzaga was back in the winning column on Wednesday night, getting a 102-72 victory over Nicholls State. Braden Huff had an efficient 25 points off the bench while Graham Ike added 20 points and Ryan Nembhard had another double-double. The Bulldogs got another solid win Saturday, winning 86-65 against Bucknell. Another grand effort from Graham Ike involved 25 points and 10 rebounds as the Bulldogs coasted again.
This wasn’t the weekend that necessarily shows it, but Gonzaga has great potential for the rest of the season. Those wins over Baylor and San Diego State haven’t been forgotten even if a few tough losses have come their way over the last month. There’s one last chance to build the resume before conference play, taking on UCLA next Saturday in what should be an awesome matchup. Do they get another important notch on their resume?