The biggest stroy of this year’s West Coast Conference Tournament is whether or not Saint Mary’s can do enough to get an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament. The Gaels finished 2nd in the WCC behind Gonzaga and were swept by the Zags this year. Losing to Gonzaga for a 3rd time would mean a long 6 days sitting at home hoping there won’t be any upsets in the big conference tournaments. The Gaels have an RPI of 45 and their best win was over San Diego State. A win over the Zags on Monday will automatically get them in and the WCC will have 2 teams dancing. Gonzaga will probably get either Loyola Marymount or San Francisco in the semifinals. Both of those teams gave the Zags their two conference loses this year. I don’t see them losing to the Lions or Dons this time around. Saint Mary’s will probably have to contend with the Pilots of Portland. Portland is a team to watch out for. They only have 4 WCC loses this year, and 3 of them were to either Gonzaga or Saint Mary’s.
Quarterfinals
Loyola Marymount vs. San Francisco
Santa Clara vs. Portland
Semifinals
Loyola Marymount vs. Gonzaga
Portland vs. Saint Mary’s
Final
Saint Mary’s vs. Gonzaga
Champion: Gonzaga
More College Basketball Free Picks
Final Regular Season Standings
|
Gonzaga |
12-2 |
25-5 |
|
Saint Mary’s |
11-3 |
24-5 |
|
Portland |
10-4 |
20-9 |
|
San Francisco |
7-7 |
12-17 |
|
Loyola Marymount |
7-7 |
16-14 |
|
San Diego |
3-11 |
10-20 |
|
Santa Clara |
3-11 |
11-20 |
|
Pepperdine |
3-11 |
7-23 |
