Gonzaga picked to win WCC one more time before move to Pac-12

Mark Few's team was voted first place in the WCC preseason coaches poll

Gonzaga men's basketball team. | Photo by Erik Smith

Mark Few and the Gonzaga Bulldogs have long dominated the West Coast Conference, although in the past two seasons, the regular-season crown has belonged to the Gaels of Saint Mary's.

The WCC coaches don't believe that will be the case in Gonzaga's final year in the league, however, with the Zags picked first in the conference preseason coaches poll. Gonzaga earned nine of the 12 available first-place votes, with Saint Mary's capturing two and San Francisco grabbing the other.

After the top three, the rest of the poll was as follows: Santa Clara, Oregon State, Washington State, LMU, newcomer Seattle, San Diego, Pacific, Pepperdine, and Portland.

The WCC also released its preseason first team, featuring ten players, including Gonzaga big men Graham Ike and Braden Huff. Joining the two frontcourt stars is a trio of Gaels in Mikey Lewis, Harry Wessels, and Paulius Murauskas, Ryan Beasley and Tyrone Riley IV from San Francisco, Elijah Mahi and Thierry Darlan from Santa Clara, and Pacific's Elias Ralph.

Notably, only one new player in the WCC was included on the first team in Darlan, who signed with Santa Clara recently out of the G League to much fanfare.

Gonzaga has won either the regular season or conference tournament in 12 of the past 13 years, but it has not been as easy these past two seasons. Saint Mary's won the regular season and conference tournament in 2023-24, and won the regular season again in 2024-25 before Gonzaga beat them in the conference championship game.

March 12, 2024; Las Vegas, NV, USA; Gonzaga Bulldogs forward Graham Ike (13) shoots the basketball against Saint Mary's Gaels center Mitchell Saxen (11). | Kyle Terada-Imagn Images

This year's team will heavily rely on the frontcourt duo of Ike and Huff, who are two of just four returning rotation players from coach Few's team last year — alongside Ismaila Diagne and Emmanuel Innocenti.

The two bigs will start together, a matchup challenge for opposing teams defensively, with both players capable of scoring around the rim and stepping out to the three-point line.

Gonzaga's season will be determined by how the new look backcourt looks, especially with the news that Tyon Grant-Foster's eligibility waiver has been repeatedly denied by the NCAA, forcing a lawsuit and a preliminary injunction hearing, which the NCAA is now attempting to move to federal court.

Gonzaga men's basketball team. | Photo by Erik Smith

However, while the Zags don't have as much continuity as usual, they do have quite a few guys who were on the roster last year — including redshirt transfers Braeden Smith and Jalen Warley, as well as wing Steele Venters, who has missed the past two seasons with a torn ACL and then an Achilles injury.

With plenty of talent on the roster — including freshmen Mario Saint-Supery and Davis Fogle — Gonzaga is well-equipped to win the WCC one final time before moving to the new look Pac-12 starting in 2026-27.

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