Gonzaga slides in polls after splitting in California

by Zach Bell on Feb 22, 2010 10:29 AM PST

I've been pleasantly and unpleasantly surprised this season in regards to the AP and Coaches Poll. Some weeks I think we are far too high and some weeks I think we have been slighted a bit by some of the voters. Chalk this week up to being very pleasantly surprised by how the voters turned out. After losing to their second 200+ RPI team this season, Gonzaga remains well entrenched in this week's top 25 sitting at 18th in the AP and 15th in the Coaches.

Each poll saw Gonzaga take a significant slide as they dropped five spots in the AP and six spots in the Coaches but all in all, I'm very happy with this turnout. While Loyola Marymount is undoubtedly heading in the right direction as a program, Gonzaga's loss to them was a huge disappointment for a team with so much to play for. They looked uninspired throughout and shot the ball miserably. There are going to be plenty of teams behind the Zags this week that seriously question how they can possible behind this team. For instance, Pittsburgh being behind GU in the Coaches Poll seems to be insanity at this point after the Panthers win over Villanova.

This is not to say that Gonzaga doesn't have a very nice resume. Wins over Wisconsin and Illinois continue to look promising as does their dominance over top teams in the conference. Winning the Maui Invitational is also a huge resume booster and you have to think the committee will be impressed with how Gonzaga has played against quality teams this season (aside from Duke).

The non-BCS presence is strong in this week's polls and that is something we are always happy about. New Mexico, BYU, Butler, Gonzaga, Temple, Richmond, Northern Iowa, and UTEP are all represented in one or both polls. If you asked me (and since you read this site, you do) those first five teams are all capable of making a Sweet 16 run at least. I've yet to see Richmond play but Northern Iowa and UTEP are both very dangerous as well.

This Gonzaga team definitely has plenty of work to do if we are going to seriously consider a deep tournament run but these kind of rankings and what we are seeing from bracketologists is very positive. Playing in Spokane has been the goal since Maui and it is still very attainable.

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ZACH B writes that ...

… “Playing in Spokane has been the goal since Maui and it is still very attainable”

I agree with Zach as long as they don’t stub even their little toe. Maybe they could get into the tournament but I doubt they would be playing in Spokane.

No room for error now.

Lets keep our fingers crossed!

by Teacher56 on Feb 22, 2010 11:35 AM PST reply actions

Gonzaga is a lock for the March Madness tournament

even if we lose the final three and 1st round of the WCC tourney, of course that means we would be a 9th seed at best.
We know Bouldin & Co. will not allow that to happen!
We will defeat Santa Clara for the WCC regular season title-10th in a row 9tying them w/ UNLV & Cinnci- if I recall.
We will defeat San Francisco to avenge the road loss a few weeks ago.
We will defeat bakersfield as that is senior night and you know Bouldin & Foster will play hard as hell, and their teammates will for them as well.
So therefore the 4,5, or 6th seed all comes down to how the Bulldogs play in the WCC turny & how much the committee will penalize/reward the bulldogs for losing or winning the turny.

The committee at least for the major confernces does not put much credence in the tournament at least as far as the regular season champion is concerned. I’m not so sure they will apply the same standard for Gonzaga.

FYI- LT is cut by the Chargers, the Raiders will win the AFC West next year

neither LMU or USF are 200+ in the *RPI rankings anymore, in fact LMU’s record is pretty impressive I could see Zach’s preseason analysis coming into fruition, my prediction is that LMU wins the tourny

*does the committee use the RPI posted on yahoo or espn’s insider RPI as I do not think they are the same/

FYI

by rnpljnsn on Feb 22, 2010 1:31 PM PST reply actions

your prediction

I really like LMU this year, I think they are a great team when everyone is healthy….but I disagree with your prediction.

My prediction is LMU vs. GU in WCC tourney championship game. GU avenges loss and wins it all.

by AlwaysaZag on Feb 22, 2010 8:12 PM PST up reply actions

WCC title game in tourney

That will be hard for LMU to even have that matchup. Right now unless LMU wins out and Portland loses out in conference play, Gonzaga would play LMU in the semifinals as the 1-4 game while St.Mary’s would play Portland in the 2-3 semifinal game.

by zaghawks on Feb 22, 2010 11:11 PM PST up reply actions

Let the Madness begin!

Maybe I’m being naïve, but I’m really not too concerned about where we play and who we play in the NCAA Tournament. Gonzaga has built a reputation of playing anyone /anywhere and I think they’ve done pretty well with that philosophy. I believe if we win out from here, including winning the WCC Tournament, we will get a good seeding in a good location. But, regardless, we still got to play well against good teams, and all the teams in the NCAA will be good! If we play with the defensive tenacity we’ve seen numerous times during the season, I think we can beat anybody! Playing in a neutral court is just an extra benefit for us, IMO, as it’s a lot easier than beating a team on their home court. So let’s line up those other teams and get to it! I sincerely believe all Zag fans are in for a real treat this NCAA Tournament! I’m looking forward to putting on my Gonzaga apparel in March and cheering our team to victory!

by Zag Man on Feb 22, 2010 4:11 PM PST reply actions