Gonzaga's projected lineup and rotation ahead of NCAA Tournament first round

Mark Few and the Gonzaga Bulldogs have dealt with significant adversity this season, including multiple injuries to the frontcourt, but managed to come out of it all with a 30-3 record and a No. 3 seed in the NCAA Tournament, setting up a first-round matchup with No. 14 Kennesaw State on Thursday at the Moda Center in Portland, OR.

The Zags have not lost a first-round game in the Big Dance since 2008, when, as a No. 7 seed, they fell to No. 10 Davidson and future Hall of Famer Steph Curry. In order to avoid that fate this year, Gonzaga will have to get by a hot Kennesaw State program that rattled off three straight wins in the Conference USA Tournament to secure an improbable automatic bid - just the second in school history.

The biggest hit to Gonzaga throughout the season happened back in mid-January when Braden Huff injured his left knee in practice ahead of the team's Jan. 15 matchup at Washington State. The 6'10 big man - who was averaging 17.8 points and shooting 66.2% from the floor - has not made it back on the floor, with Few recently confirming he will remain out this week while he continues his rehab.

The injury altered Gonzaga's starting lineup and rotation, which had undergone additional changes since then due to performance and team needs.

Below is a look at how the Zags are projected to line up on Thursday night against the Owls:

Center: Graham Ike

Ike racked up the accolades this season, earning WCC Player of the Year and AP Third Team All-American honors, along with his second WCC Tournament MVP. He is also a finalist for the Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Award as the nation's top center, and for good reason.

The big man tossed Gonzaga on his back following the Huff injury, averaging 19.7 points, 8.2 rebounds, and 2.4 assists in 29 games while shooting 61.9% on twos and 34.8% from three.

Ike is the biggest reason Gonzaga will win or lose this game, and his steady presence down the stretch helped the Zags earn a share of the conference regular season title and the league's automatic bid.

Power Forward: Jalen Warley

Gonzaga Bulldogs guard Jalen Warley. | Photo by Lane Mathews

Warley stepped into Huff's spot in the starting lineup, giving Gonzaga a near unfathomable amount of versatility on both ends of the floor.

The 6'7 wing can defend 1-5, is a plus rebounder for his size, and also has the playmaking and ball-handling skills of a point guard - which is a nightmare for opposing coaches.

Warley is also banged up, however, dealing with a quad contusion suffered back on Feb. 4 in Gonzaga's loss at Portland. He ultimately sat out the final two regular-season games but returned to play 39 minutes across Gonzaga's two WCC Tournament games, with Few recently reiterating the senior is recovering well and should be at or near 100% on Thursday.

Warley is averaging 6.8 points, 4.5 rebounds, 1.9 assists, and 1.5 steals in 21.4 minutes per game, while shooting 56.7% from the field - third on the team behind Huff and Ike.

Small Forward: Emmanuel Innocenti

Gonzaga Bulldogs forward Emmanuel Innocenti. | Photo by Lane Mathews

Gonzaga's rugged on-ball defender, Innocenti, morphed into a crucial piece of the puzzle thanks to his physicality and lateral mobility on the perimeter.

While his stats (5.8 points, 3.7 rebounds, 1.7 assists, 1.0 steals) don't exactly pop off the page, Innocenti does all the little things for this club: diving after loose balls, grabbing key offensive rebounds, but mostly smothering the opposing team's best player every minute he is on the floor.

Shooting Guard: Adam Miller

Gonzaga Bulldogs guard Adam Miller. | Photo by Lane Mathews

Miller is at his fourth school, coming to Gonzaga via Illinois, LSU, and Arizona State. While the 6'3 senior has not settled into the role as a long-range shotmaker many had hoped - shooting just 30.7% from three - he has found other ways to contribute.

Miller works hard defensively, gets out well in transition, almost never turns the ball over, and lately has found an offensive niche getting into the lane and tossing up a little 10-15 foot floater. All told, he's averaging 7.6 points in 19.9 minutes per game, as one of five players on this team who have appeared in all 33 games.

Point Guard: Mario Saint-Supery

Gonzaga Bulldogs guard Mario Saint-Supery. | Photo by Lane Mathews

Saint-Supery joined the team late in the offseason after representing his home country of Spain at EuroBasket, but once he got his bearings under him, he became a key cog for the Zags.

The 6'3 19-year-old spent a lot of the season backing up Braeden Smith, but recently re-entered the starting lineup thanks to his hot outside shooting, improved ability to get downhill and finish at the rim, and overall facilitation skills.

Saint-Supery is fourth on the team at 8.6 points per game, along with 3.6 assists and 1.4 steals in 22.5 minutes - all while shooting a blistering 43.4% from three on 3.2 attempts per game.

Bench: Tyon Grant-Foster, Davis Fogle, Braeden Smith

Gonzaga Bulldogs guard Tyon Grant-Foster. | Photo by Lane Mathews

Grant-Foster has only started six of the team's 33 games, but the senior wing is third on the team in both points (11.2) and rebounds (5.0) while leading the team in blocks at 1.1. His ability to defend the perimeter, snag rebounds, and get to the free-throw line will be critical on Thursday.

Fogle is Gonzaga's best story of the season. The 6'7 freshman made a name for himself early in the year by putting up gaudy scoring numbers in the second half of blowouts, but needed to improve defensively and as a passer before Few would trust him in the lineup. He worked diligently to do so and earned more reps once Huff went down in January. In just 16.2 minutes per game, Fogle is averaging 8.4 points, while shooting 57.5% on twos and 37.1% from three.

Smith started 18 games this year for Gonzaga, recently ceding the role to Saint-Supery. But the redshirt junior is still a big piece of Gonzaga's rotation thanks to his fast-paced play and excellent distribution skills. The Seattle native is averaging 5.4 points and 3.8 assists in 17.8 minutes per game.

Deep Bench: Steele Venters, Ismaila Diagne

Gonzaga Bulldogs Noah Haaland (left), Steele Venters (center) and Ismaila Diagne (right). | Photo by Lane Mathews

Venters started 10 games for Gonzaga this year, but fell gradually down the pecking order until he was out of the lineup completely, having only appeared in one game since Feb. 11.

Diagne also picked up more playing time once Huff went down, but his foul issues and inexperience have him limited to emergency depth for right now.

Gonzaga will take this core of talent with them to Portland to take on Kennesaw State on Thursday, March 19, at 7:00 PM PT. The game will be broadcast on TBS.