By Jeff Faraudo
#WCChoops columnist | ARCHIVES
 
UCU WCC TOURNAMENT CENTRAL | MEN’S BRACKET | WOMEN’S BRACKET
 
Kentucky in 2015 was the most recent team to reach the NCAA tournament without a blemish on its record. That’s the next target in front of top-seeded Gonzaga entering this week’s University Credit Union West Coast Conference Tournament.
 
Unbeaten and ranked No. 1 in the country, the Zags (24-0) begin play at the Orleans Arena in Las Vegas in the semifinals on Monday night. The tournament gets under way Thursday with first-round games.
 
If Gonzaga can win twice more it will replicate the efforts of the Kentucky squad that featured Karl-Anthony Towns, Devin Booker and Willie Cauley-Stein and arrived at Selection Sunday with a 34-0 record.
 
“It would be a heck of an accomplishment,” Gonzaga coach Mark Few said. “It’s hard to be the frontrunner and lead the mile all four laps. Everybody’s gunning for you.”
 
Kentucky ultimately lost to Wisconsin in the national semifinals. Gonzaga has work to do before reaching that point in its season, but star senior Corey Kispert has no worries about the Zags being ready to face whatever their WCC rivals send their way.
 
“I don’t think there’s any concern about that at all,” he said. “We’ve proven that if we play our best against any team in the conference we’ll beat ‘em. Vegas is going to look different this year but I’m very confident in our guys.”
 
Here is a rundown of each WCC squad headed to Vegas, in order of their tournament seeding, based on Ken Pomeroy’s adjusted winning percentage formula:
 
1. GONZAGA (24-0, 15-0)
The skinny: By the time the top-ranked Zags, now nine-time defending regular-season champs, take the court for Monday’s semifinal, it will have been 378 days since they most recently lost a game. This team is loaded with four first-team All-WCC selections — Corey Kispert, Drew Timme, Jalen Suggs and Joel Ayayi. Kispert was the league’s Player of the Year and Suggs was voted Newcomer of the Year. Don’t look past Andrew Nembhard, who was a second-team all-conference choice and was named Sixth Man of the Year.
Who’s hot: Timme, the sophomore forward, has been on another plane recently, averaging 19.8 points on 72.5-percent field-goal accuracy over the past 11 games. He has missed just 29 shot attempts since Jan. 16.
Key stat: The Zags are the nation’s scariest offensive team. They lead the NCAA in scoring (92.9 points), margin of victory (plus-23.5) and field-goal percentage (55.3).
Title chances: Gonzaga has won every WCC game by double digits and prevailed by an average margin of 24 points. Never say never, but these Zags are overwhelming favorites.
 
2. BYU (19-5, 10-3)
The skinny: The Cougars have played well late in both seasons under coach Mark Pope, with a combined 13-1 record in the month of February. The Cougars’ NCAA resume is solid: They are among 14 teams nationally with at least eight Quad 1/2 victories and no Quad 3/4 defeats.
Who’s hot: Senior guard Alex Barcello, a first-team All-WCC pick, has definitely found his shooting eye the past seven games, converting 50 percent from the 3-point arc and nearly 58 percent overall while producing 17.4 points and 4.9 assists per game.
Key stat: The Cougars have balance and depth. Sophomore Trevin Knell came off the bench to score a career-high 15 points on Saturday against Saint Mary’s, making him the eighth different player to lead BYU in scoring in a game this season. Seven different players have achieved that over the past eight games, including second-team All-WCC selections Brandon Averette and Matt Haarms (who also was Defensive Player of the Year).
Title chances: BYU, with size and depth, may be the only WCC team with any chance to upset Gonzaga. The Cougars first would have to figure out a way to get out of the starting blocks more quickly after falling behind 16-2 and 15-2 in regular-season losses to the Zags.
 
3. PEPPERDINE (11-11, 7-6)
The skinny: The Waves climbed past Saint Mary’s to the No. 3 seed with their win at San Diego, allowing them to avoid facing Gonzaga in a potential semifinal matchup. They’d be more comfortable taking on BYU, whom they defeated back in January in their only meeting this season.
Who’s hot: Senior point guard Colbey Ross, who arrives in Vegas with career totals of 2,158 points and 812 assists, is averaging 23.0 points and 6.8 assists the past four outings, shooting 60 percent from the field and better than 47 percent from deep. And Ross — who was joined on the All-WCC first team by junior forward Kessler Edwards — loves Orleans Arena: He’s averaged 21.4 points and 5.6 assists in eight career WCC tournament games, punctuated by last year’s 43-point eruption in a quarterfinal overtime loss to Saint Mary’s.
Key stat: The Waves’ issues often are on defense, and while they remain a subpar rebounding team (minus-1.45) they are quite adept at defending the 3-point shot. Opponents are making a WCC-worst 27.4 percent from deep against Pepperdine, which has allowed just two of its past 12 foes to convert even 30 percent.
Title chances: Presuming the road to the WCC crown goes through Gonzaga, this is a heavy lift for Pepperdine. The Waves have lost 41 in a row to the Zags since beating them back in 2002.
 
4. SAINT MARY’S (13-8, 4-6)
The skinny: Saint Mary’s continues to control tempo and play tough defense but Randy Bennett’s Gaels don’t have enough offensive firepower to get over the top against elite opponents. They haven’t scored 70 points in a game since Dec. 15.
Who’s hot: Junior guard Logan Johnson, named to the All-WCC second team, has scored at a 16.3 clip the past six games, reached double figures in eight straight and has inched past Tommy Kuhse as the team’s top scorer at 12.8 per game.
Key stat: Typically among the nation’s top 3-point shooting teams, the Gaels are converting just 30.6 percent from the arc this season. That ranks them 298th nationally. Their top three scorers have combined to make just 26 percent.
Title chances: The Gaels have advanced to face Gonzaga in the WCC championship game four of the past five seasons (winning in 2019), but they’d run into the Zags in the semifinals this time.
 
5. LOYOLA MARYMOUNT (12-8, 7-5)
The skinny: First-year coach Stan Johnson’s Lions finished the abridged WCC schedule with the program’s first winning conference record since 2012. LMU won four of five in mid-February, including road wins over Santa Clara, USF and Pepperdine.
Who’s hot: Senior forward Eli Scott is contributing 21.3 points. 6.2 rebounds and 3.5 assists over the past six games. He was rewarded for being one of the league’s most versatile and productive players with a first-team All-WCC selection.
Key stat: The Lions lead the WCC in rebounding margin at plus-7.7 per game. They have won the battle of the boards the past 10 straight games, including against Gonzaga (30-19) on Saturday night.
Title chances: To move through the bracket, LMU needs honorable mention All-WCC forward Keli Leaupepeto be at his best. He finished strong a year ago when he averaged 17.0 points over the final six games, and had 23 points and 10 rebounds in a WCC tournament win over San Diego.
 
6. PACIFIC (9-8, 6-7)
The skinny: After having 17 games postponed or canceled by COVID-19, the Tigers played seven times in February and won four of them, including a 76-69 victory over USF on Saturday, when all five starters scored in double digits.
Who’s hot: Senior guard Broc Finstuen has scored double digits in seven straight games, averaging 13.6 points over that stretch. 
Key stat: The Tigers are not built for big comebacks via the 3-point shot. They rank 329th nationally with just 5.1 made 3-pointers made per game.
Title chances: Pacific is seeking its first win at the WCC tournament after three consecutive first-round exits. They’ll need a boost from honorable mention All-WCC selection Jeremiah Bailey, who has scored double figures five times in the past seven games (including outings of 21 and 28 points), but was held to two and zero points in the other two.
 
7. SANTA CLARA (10-7, 4-5)
The skinny: The Broncos had 16 games either postponed or canceled due to various COVID-19 issues, making it virtually impossible to find any rhythm. They have played just four times since Jan. 23, winning once. 
Who’s hot: Senior forward Josip Vrankic, who sometimes seems to fly under the radar, has flourished the past three games, averaging 21.7 points and 11.7 rebounds. Honored as a first-team All-WCC pick, he has scored 24 points or more five times this season, including three times over the past five outings. He also has seven double-doubles.
Key stat: The Broncos defend capably, but putting the ball in the basket has been a challenge. They rank eighth in the WCC in free throw accuracy (67.4 percent), ninth in field-goal percentage (41.9) and 10th from 3-point range (29.8). 
Title chances: It’s been 25 years since the Broncos’ most recent trip to the NCAA tournament, and that team had Steve Nash playing point guard. Nash is busy these days coaching the Brooklyn Nets.
 
8. USF (10-13, 4-9)
The skinny: The Dons have dropped six in a row and barely resemble the team that upset then-No. 4 Virginia back on Nov. 27. Guards Jamaree Bouyea (17.5 points) and Khalil Shabazz (15.6) were named first- and second-team All-WCC selections, respectively. While they are explosive, the Dons’ inside game is lacking at both ends of the floor. 
Who’s hot: Sophomore guard Julian Rishwain, a transfer from Boston College, was averaging 6.5 points per game before scoring 25 at BYU and 20 at Pacific in the Dons’ past two games. 
Key stat: The Dons have attempted far more 3-point shots (702) than any team in the WCC, but they’ve also missed more (464). They live and die from perimeter, and lately that has not been a winning equation. USF is shooting 29.9 percent from 3-point range the past 10 games.
Title chances: USF has fallen down and cannot seem to get up. Without a victory since Jan. 21, the Dons seem likely to finish with their first losing record since 2015.
 
9. SAN DIEGO (3-10, 2-7)
The skinny: So much for trying to generate late-season momentum — the Toreros are 1-4 with seven cancellations since Jan. 23. In the lone victory, Joey Calcaterra, an honorable mention All-WCC choice, scored a career-best 23 points against Santa Clara.
Who’s hot: Senior forward Yauhen Massalski may not have another game the equal to his 30-point performance on Saturday against Pepperdine, but the native of Minsk, Belarus, is shooting 74 percent (23 for 34) the past three games. 
Key stat: The Toreros may be happy the WCC tournament is not being played in San Diego. They are 3-5 on the road this season, but 0-5 in home games.
Title chances: USD would have to win five straight games to complete this unlikely title run. The Toreros won three in a row to reach the semifinals of the 2019 event, and those were their first wins at the WCC tournament since 2013.
 
10. PORTLAND (6-14, 0-11)
The skinny: It’s been another rough season for the Pilots. Coach Terry Porter was let go early last month after an 0-8 start in WCC play and things haven’t gotten any better. But at least they’re here after a report late last week that said the Pilots were pausing their program due to COVID. Turned out to be a false alarm.
Who’s hot: Not the Pilots’ defense, which ranks last in the WCC, allowing 82.7 points game and has surrendered an average of 90 points over the past four outings.
Key stat: Senior guard Ahmed Ali is third in the WCC in scoring at 18.0 per game, but the honorable mention All-WCC pick has missed four games due to injury. When he’s there, the Pilots score 69.6 per game; without him, it drops to 57.5.
Title chances: Portland has won just once in its past 52 games against WCC opponents. And the status of Ali, who has nagging foot and Achilles issues, is uncertain.