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SAN BRUNO, Calif. – With the 2020-21 basketball campaign a month away, Gonzaga University is once again the preseason favorite to win its ninth straight West Coast Conference regular season title in the annual poll of the WCC’s 10 head coaches. The Bulldogs received the maximum nine first place votes and 81 points.
 
Gonzaga is once again generating elite national buzz and will likely emerge as the preseason No. 1 team for the first time in program history in 2020-21. Last season the Zags were a lock for a No. 1 national seed in the NCAA Tournament and were ranked No. 2 nationally to close out the regular season after spending five weeks at No. 1 and 14 weeks in the top-three. Gonzaga has posted 13 straight seasons of 25 wins or more and six 30-win campaigns in the last eight years.
 
Gonzaga (31-2, 15-1 WCC) still owns the longest active string of NCAA Sweet-16 appearances with five and placed senior forward Corey Kispert and junior guard Joel Ayayi, the 2020 WCC Tournament Most Outstanding Player on the preseason All-WCC team. Head coach Mark Few, a semifinalist for the Werner Ladder Naismith Coach of the Year award is one victory shy of 600 for his stellar career.
 
Preseason All-WCC voting is restricted to returning student-athletes. Incoming freshmen and transfers are not eligible for consideration.
 
BYU (24-8, 13-3) was picked second in the preseason survey with 69 points and collected the remaining first-place vote. The Cougars closed last season on a tear, winning their last straight – including an upset win vs. No. 2 Gonzaga and vaulted to No. 15 in the National Polls. BYU was projected as a No. 6 seed in the 2020 NCAA Tournament. Senior guard Alex Barcello headlines the Cougars after averaging 9.3 points per game for one of the nation’s most efficient offenses to earn a spot on the preseason squad.
 
In the current edition (Oct. 7) of Joe Lunardi’s Bracketology, Gonzaga is a No. 1 seed in the West, while BYU is tabbed as a No. 11 seed in the West.
 
Saint Mary’s (26-8, 11-5 WCC) was third in the preseason poll with 63 points. The Gaels were projected as a No. 8 seed in the 2020 NCAA Tournament a year after making the 2019 field after upsetting Gonzaga in the WCC Tournament finals. Junior center Matthias Tass earned a spot on the preseason All-WCC team after emerging as a force on the low block, averaging 6.6 points, 3.6 rebounds and 1.3 blocks in 23.4 minutes of action as a sophomore before suffering a season-ending injury in non-conference play.
 
Pepperdine University (16-16, 8-8 WCC) was picked fourth in the survey with 57 points. One of the most electric guards in the country, senior guard Colbey Ross averaged 20.5 points and 7.2 assists per game. No returning NCAA player has more career assists than Ross with 647. Joining Ross on the preseason All-WCC team for the second straight year is junior forward Kessler Edwards, who averaged 13.6 points and 7.4 rebounds in his second season in Malibu.
 
University of San Francisco (22-12, 9-7 WCC) rounded out the top-five with 52 points. Preseason all-WCC selection Jamaree Bouyea figures to lead the way for the Dons. The senior guard had a breakthrough 2019-20 campaign, averaging 12.2 points, 3.5 assists and 1.6 steals to help USF to its fourth consecutive 20-win season.
 
Santa Clara University (20-13, 6-10 WCC) was picked sixth with 38 points. The Broncos opened the 2019-20 regular season on a 14-2 tear the program-s best start out of the gate since the 1968-69 squad went 21-0. Senior forward Josip Vrankic earned a spot on the preseason All-WCC team after averaging 12.5 points5.4 rebounds and 2.7 assists in his third season on the Mission Campus.
 
Loyola Marymount University (11-21, 4-12 WCC) was picked seventh with 33 points. The Lions welcome a new head coach in Stan Johnson and the return of preseason All-WCC selection Eli Scott, who led the Lions with 15.5 points, 6.7 rebounds and 4.3 assists in a breakthrough junior season highlighted by the first triple-double in program history.
 
University of the Pacific (23-10, 11-5 WCC) was picked eighth place with 31 votes. The Tigers posted their first 20-win season since 2010-11 as Damon Stoudamire collected WCC Coach of the Year honors. University of San Diego (9-23, 2-14) was picked ninth followed by the University of Portland (9-23, 1-15).
 
The complete preseason poll and all-conference team follows.
 
2020-21 WCC Preseason Men’s Basketball Coaches Poll

Team (First Place Vote)		Pts.
1. Gonzaga	(9)	81
2. BYU	(1)	69
3. Saint Mary’s		63
4. Pepperdine		57
5. San Francisco		52
6. Santa Clara		38
7. LMU		33
8. Pacific		31
9. San Diego		16
10. Portland		10

 
2020-21 All-WCC Preseason Men’s Basketball Team

Name	Year	Pos.	Institution
Joel Ayayi	Jr.	G	Gonzaga
Alex Barcello	Sr.	G	BYU
Jamaree Bouyea	Sr.	G	San Francisco
Kessler Edwards*	Jr.	F	Pepperdine
Corey Kispert	Sr.	F	Gonzaga
Colbey Ross*	Sr.	G	Pepperdine
Eli Scott	Sr.	G	LMU
Matthias Tass	Jr.	C	Saint Mary’s
Drew Timme	So.	F	Gonzaga
Josip Vrankic	Sr.	F	Santa Clara