Where Gonzaga stands in NCAA Tournament projections

Mark Few and the Gonzaga Bulldogs have not yet played a single game in March, but the madness has already arrived.

Multiple losses by teams projected in the No. 3/4 seed range over the last week helped the Zags stay in the conversation as a top-three seed in the NCAA Tournament, with Selection Sunday just nine days away.

At this point, most prognosticators believe Gonzaga will land as either a No. 3 or No. 4 seed, with the performance of teams like Kansas, Texas Tech, Nebraska, and Alabama in their respective conference tournaments a prominent factor.

Of course, Gonzaga has to take care of their own business, with a WCC semifinal game scheduled for Monday, March 9, against one of Oregon State, San Francisco, Washington State, Portland, or Pepperdine. A win there likely pits Gonzaga against either Saint Mary's or Santa Clara, giving them a Quad 1 opportunity in the WCC championship.

Below is a look at where a handful of prominent bracketologists are seeding Gonzaga as of Friday:

Joe Lunardi, ESPN: 3 Seed

Lunardi dropped Gonzaga to a No. 4 seed following the loss to Saint Mary's in the WCC regular season finale, but the Zags moved back up to a No. 3 in place of Kansas after the Jayhawks got blown out on the road at Arizona State.

Lunardi has the Zags lining up in the West Region in Portland, OR, against No. 14 seed UC-Irvine, the projected winner of the Big West. The No. 6 vs No. 11 matchup features Wisconsin and Texas, potentially pitting Gonzaga against former Arizona head coach and longtime foe Sean Miller, or a high-scoring Badgers club that includes former Portland star Austin Rapp.

Rocco Miller, Bracketeer: 3 Seed

Miller, like Lunardi, has Gonzaga lined up as the No. 3 seed in the West Region, playing at the Moda Center in Portland. Also like Lunardi, Miller has Gonzaga squaring off against UC-Irvine in the first round. The Anteaters are tied with Hawaii atop the Big West standings, with one final regular-season game against UC Davis on Saturday.

Iowa State, Nebraska, and Purdue join Gonzaga as the No. 3 seeds, while Texas Tech, Alabama, Virginia, and Kansas are on the 4-seed line.

The No. 6 vs. No. 11 game in Miller's bracket pits Pat Kelsey's high-scoring Louisville squad against Ohio State and superstar guard Bruce Thornton.

CBS Sports: 3 Seed

The folks at CBS have jumped on the trend, also lining Gonzaga up as the No. 3 seed in the West Region...and also pitting them against No. 14 seed UC-Irvine.

CBS lists Gonzaga as the last No. 3 seed, behind Iowa State, Virginia, and Purdue, while Alabama, Nebraska, Texas Tech, and Kansas are the No. 4 seeds.

The No. 6 vs. No. 11 matchup is between Miami and Missouri. Miami has been a revelation under first-year head coach Jai Lucas, sitting 24-6 overall and 13-4 in the ACC ahead of Saturday's finale against Louisville.

Missouri fell onto the bubble after losing at Oklahoma on Tuesday, and will look to boost its resume with a home game against No. 20 Arkansas on Saturday.

James Fletcher, On3: 3 Seed

Another bracket, another projection with Gonzaga as the No. 3 seed in the West Region in Portland. And while this bracket also lines the Zags up with the projected automatic qualifier out of the Big West, Fletcher has Hawaii as the team in the field of 68.

Iowa State, Nebraska, and Purdue join Gonzaga on the 3-line, with Virginia, Alabama, Texas Tech, and Kansas as the No. 4 seeds.

The other half of Gonzaga's pod features BYU (No. 6) vs. Miami OH (No. 11), either pitting the Zags against a longtime WCC foe in BYU - featuring an incredibly exciting NBA draft prospect in AJ Dybantsa - or the Redhawks of Miami OH, who became the first team since Gonzaga in 2020-21 to start a season 30-0.

Mike DeCourcy, FOX Sports: 4 Seed

DeCourcy doesn't project specific matchups; instead, he just lists where he has each team seeded. His update from Thursday, March 5, has Gonzaga as a No. 4 seed alongside Virginia, Texas Tech, and Kansas. The No. 3 seeds are Iowa State, Alabama, Purdue, and Nebraska.

Alabama, in particular, is a tough argument over Gonzaga, and not just because the Zags beat the Crimson Tide on a neutral floor, 95-85, back in November. Gonzaga is also higher in the NET (6 to 18) and KenPom (11 to 18), although 'Bama has a slight advantage in wins above the bubble, coming in 10th compared to 12th for GU.

Alabama also has a much stronger overall strength of schedule, ranking No. 3 in the country compared to No. 98 for Gonzaga.

Still, Gonzaga is 11-2 in Quad 1 and Quad 2 games combined, compared to 15-8 for Alabama. The Zags do have the glaring Quad 3 loss to Portland, but all things considered, it looks like Gonzaga has the stronger resume - and most other bracketologists agree.

With most conferences finishing their regular season this weekend and getting into conference tournaments next week, there is still plenty of movement to come before Selection Sunday. While a No. 3 or No. 4 seed feels likely for Gonzaga, outcomes outside of that are still on the table - after all, it's called March Madness for a reason.