If anyone took fliers on any other team making the West Coast Conference tournament finals than the St. Mary’s Gaels or Gonzaga Bulldogs, they didn’t stay up late taking in much west coast action throughout the regular season. To the surprise of nobody, the two top ranked seeds will square off in the championship game on Tuesday night with the Gaels looking to avoid getting owned by the Zags for the third straight time.
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Since dropping that 74-64 decision to the Zags at home back on February 11, the Gaels have been a wrecking crew chewing and spitting out all that’s gotten in their way. They closed out the regular season with dominant wins against Loyola Marymount, BYU, Pepperdine and Santa Clara. Only the game against the Broncos wasn’t covered. Randy Bennett’s kids then cruised to the WCC tourney finals like many expected after picking apart both Portland and BYU. They logged 81 points in each game and allowed an average of 54 to win and cover its only two games played on a neutral court to date.
The Zags haven’t looked like the team that ripped through its first 29 games unblemished here in Las Vegas. It struggled in its quarterfinal matchup with Pacific over the first 20 minutes only taking a 2 point lead with it into the break. Gonzaga then went on one of its patented second half runs to throttle the Tigers 82-50 and cover the 28 points in the process. The good times ended there for Zags backers who saw the tourney’s No. 1 ranked team struggle throughout against No. 4 Santa Clara in the semis. The Broncos easily covered the 23 point spread in a 77-68 defeat that was a bit too close for comfort for Mark Few and his staff. The Bulldogs enter tonight’s tilt 6-0 and 4-2 against the spread on neutral courts.
Matchup to Watch
These teams possess the No. 27 and No. 3 ranked defensive efficiencies per the current Pomeroy Ratings. That translated for Gonzaga in both of their regular season wins by limiting St. Mary’s to sub 41.0 percent shooting percentages. It didn’t for St. Mary’s however who allowed the Zags to put forth 64.7 percent and 55.3 percentages with the former coming at home and the latter on the road. Whether it was Przemek Karnowski ripping them apart down low or Jordan Mathews lighting them up from beyond the arc, the Gaels top notch defense just didn’t translate against the Zags.
Player to Watch
Jock Landale – The Aussie seven footer has played a large role in the Gael’s success all season long. He’s posted double doubles in both tourney games, and logged double digit rebounding totals in four of his last six games. He was the team’s lone standout in the 10 point home loss to the Zags with 24 points and 8 rebounds, but he’ll still need to amp his game up a couple notches in this one for the Gaels to put an end to their three game losing streak to the Bulldogs. Karnowski was only whistled for a total of five personal fouls in the two games. If he can find a way to prevent him from clogging the lane this time around, he’ll have a better chance of doing just that.
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The Gonzaga Bulldogs have now reached the WCC tourney finals in 20 straight seasons. Let that sink in for a moment. How old were you when the streak first began. Yeah, you feel old… don’t you? It didn’t matter where these teams ran up against one another in the regular season. Gonzaga was the superior team every step of the way, and I don’t foresee that changing tonight regardless of how unimpressive the team’s looked in its two games played in Sin City.
Bottom line, St. Mary’s just can’t match up with the athleticism Mark Few’s kids bring to the table. Even with the Gaels pretty much playing even on the glass and in the turnover department, the Bulldogs cruised to a pair of easy wins. Just like it’s done each of the last two times these rivals squared off in the championship game, look for the Zags to win it and continue being the thorn in the side of the Gael’s program.
College Basketball Odds: Gonzaga 77, St. Mary’s 60
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