Just two weeks after receiving the schools first ever No. 1 overall ranking, the Gonzaga Bulldogs have earned their first ever No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament. Gonzaga (31-2) won the West Coast Conference regular season and conference championships and will open tournament play Thursday in Salt Lake City against Southern.
The Bulldogs are no stranger to the NCAA Tournament, but their No. 1 seed is still being questioned by many casual observers because of their soft schedule. So what do you need to know about this years rare “Nobody Believes In Us” No. 1 seed?
1. This marks the 15th consecutive year Gonzaga has made the NCAA tournament, but the Bulldogs have only made it past opening weekend once since 2009 and to the regional final once. That would be in 1999 against eventual champion Connecticut. They are the 5th No. 1 seed in tournament history to come from outside of the power-six conferences in the last 15 years — Cincinnati (2002), St. Joseph’s (2004), Memphis (2006), and Memphis (2008). Only the 2008 Memphis team made the Final Four.
2. One thing Gonzaga is not short of is size. Its frontcourt is bolstered by Player of the Year and a likely first round draft pick Kelly Olynyk. Olynyk is a true seven-footer who averages 17.5 points per game, and as a former small forward, can run the floor like no other big in the country. The big Canadian has proven he can play with the best of them. Olynyk had 20 points in only 19 minutes in a win against Kansas State and finished with 21 points and nine rebounds in a victory against Oklahoma State at Stillwater.
3. While Olynyk is Gonzaga’s best player, it is their balance and efficiency where they hurt you most. The Bulldogs are the nations third best shooting team at 50.4 percent, and are 12th overall in points at 77.6. The frontcourt gets the attention, but don’t ignore Mark Few’s excellent backcourt made up of Kevin Pangos and Gary Bell Jr. Together, a well-balanced attack has the Bulldogs rated as the third best team in the nation in terms of adjusted offensive efficiency according to KenPom.com.
4. The Bulldogs enter the tournament with the fields best record at 31-2, with one of those losses coming all the way back on December 8 against then No. 13 Illinois — a 7th seed in the East Regional — and a one point loss at then No. 13 Butler on a miracle shot at the buzzer by Roosevelt Jones after an improbable steal. It’s been awhile since these guys have lost.
5. But it’s also been awhile since they’ve played. Gonzaga rapped up the WCC Tournament all the way back on Monday night against St. Mary’s, defeating the Gaels 65-61. When the ‘Zags tipoff in Salt Lake City on Thursday it will have been 10 days since their last game.
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