Gonzaga moves up in latest NCAA Tournament projections

Zags up to No. 8 seed in one expert’s bracket

Gonzaga seniors Ryan Nembhard (0) and Khalif Battle (99). | Kyle Terada-Imagn Images

The Gonzaga Bulldogs moved up to a No. 8 seed in one expert’s bracket on Tuesday, just ahead of their showdown with the Saint Mary’s Gaels for the West Coast Conference Tournament championship game and an automatic berth in the NCAA Tournament. 

Joe Lunardi of ESPN moved the Zags from No. 9 in the Midwest to No. 8 in the West. Jerry Palm of CBS Sports continues to slot Gonzaga in at the No. 9 seed in the East.

The second-seeded Zags (24-8) will face top-seeded Saint Mary’s (28-4) for the third time this season, at 6 p.m. Tuesday night at Orleans Arena in Las Vegas. The Gaels swept the regular-season series and beat the Zags 69-60 in last year’s WCC tourney title game.

Led by Graham Ike and Khalif Battle, Gonzaga beat San Francisco for the 33rd straight time, 85-76 in the semifinals on Monday night. Saint Mary’s, ranked No. 19 in The Associated Press Top 25, ended No. 9 seed Pepperdine’s surprising run with a 74-59 victory.

• LIVE SCORE UPDATES, HIGHLIGHTS: GONZAGA VS. SAINT MARY'S

The Zags are playing for the WCC title for the 28th straight year, and for the fourth straight time against the Gaels. Whether by the automatic bid or an at-large berth, Gonzaga will be in the NCAA Tournament for the 26th straight time. 

Battle said the Zags are enjoying the usual support from their fan base.

"It means the world. Being around the Zags' fans has been amazing. You can't even walk two steps in the hotel without somebody saying, 'Go Zags,' " Battle said. "It's a big family atmosphere. They're all invested in us winning and we just want to get the 'W' and own the trophy."

NET Rankings

The Zags remain No. 8 in the NCAA NET Rankings. The NCAA Tournament Selection Committee uses the NET Rankings as the primary sorting tool for selection and seeding for March Madness.

KenPom Ratings

Gonzaga dropped one spot to No. 9 in the KenPom.com Ratings, a predictive ranking system that uses advanced metrics to assess quality and efficiency.

BPI Rankings

Gonzaga is No. 10 in the College Basketball Power Index (BPI), which is a measure of team strength that is meant to be the best predictor of performance going forward. BPI represents how many points above or below average a team is.

MORE GONZAGA NEWS & ANALYSIS

• NCAA Tournament bound: Gonzaga beats Saint Mary’s to clinch automatic bid

• What Gonzaga's Mark Few said after WCC semifinal win vs. San Francisco

• What Gonzaga's Graham Ike, Khalif Battle said after WCC semifinal win vs. San Francisco

• Gonzaga's Michael Ajayi throws down monster dunk in WCC Tournament semifinal vs. San Francisco

• Gonzaga outlasts San Francisco, advances to WCC championship game vs. Saint Mary's: 3 takeaways

• Could Gonzaga coach be candidate for Big 12 job?

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