Gonzaga holds steady in updated Bracketology ahead of crucial Santa Clara matchup

Gonzaga's matchup against Santa Clara on Saturday will be for first place in the WCC

Gonzaga Bulldogs head coach Mark Few. | Photo by Erik Smith

Mark Few and the Gonzaga Bulldogs have long been projected to play their first two NCAA Tournament games at the Moda Center in Portland, OR. That remains the case, according to ESPN Bracketologist Joe Lunardi, although the once within reach No. 2 seed is no longer in the picture.

Lunardi's latest projection was released on Friday, featuring the Zags as the No. 4 seed in the West Region, where they would square off against one of the very few teams geographically closer to Portland - the Portland State Vikings, who are the projected automatic qualifier out of the Big Sky Conference.

The Vikings are 17-6 overall and 11-1 in conference play, rattling off four straight after a narrow home loss to Montana. PSU has not made the big dance since 2009 under head coach Ken Bone, who served as a Gonzaga special assistant in 2016-17 after six years as the head coach at Washington State.

Should Gonzaga advance, they could face an old foe in John Calipari and No. 5 seed Arkansas Razorbacks, who are 18-6 overall and 8-3 in SEC play. The Hogs are led by superstar freshman Darius Acuff and have a top 10 offense in the country, although Few has had quite a bit of success against coach Cal in his career.

Once again, the Zags could end up in one of the most anticipated matchups in college basketball if they make the Sweet 16: a showdown with No. 1 Arizona and longtime assistant coach Tommy Lloyd. The Wildcats took their first loss of the season on Monday at Kansas, but remain the best team in the sport as Lloyd looks to break through with a deep run in March.

Arizona Wildcats head coach Tommy Lloyd. | Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images

Lunardi's latest projections have three WCC teams in the field of 68, with Saint Mary's moving up to a No. 9 seed in the Midwest region and drawing a matchup against No. 8 Villanova in Buffalo, with a potential date against No. 1 Michigan in the round of 32.

Meanwhile, Santa Clara is still the projected automatic qualifier out of the WCC, since they are in first place in the standings, and Lunardi gave them a No. 11 seed in the East Region and a first-round matchup against No. 6 North Carolina in Greenville.

Other Zag opponents projected to make the big dance include Michigan (1 seed), Alabama (4), Kentucky (7), and UCLA (10), which is among the last four byes with a big chance to bolster their resume this Saturday against the Wolverines.

Gonzaga has a big chance of their own this weekend, heading to the Leavey Center to take on Santa Clara in a battle for first place in the WCC. The game will tip at 7:30 PM PT on ESPN.