To Be the Big Dog

"To me, even with the addition of BYU, the WCC still looks like a case of: It's the Zags' world and everybody else is just leasing space. Randy Bennett has St. Mary's peaking again (no surprise there) and will be a handful, but barring a key injury, I don't see anybody heading off the Zags as they make a run for a 12th straight conference title, one off the record 13 by UCLA from 1967-79 in the old Pac-8.

Here's the league the way I'm picking it:

1. Gonzaga (11-2, 1-0)

2. St. Mary's (13-2, 2-0)

3. Brigham Young (12-4, 1-1)"

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/pac12confidential/2017162535_a_preview_of_west_coast_conference_hoops.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;



"Even with the addition of BYU, the Zags look like the best team in the West Coast Conference once again. Gonzaga -- which has won 11 straight regular-season crowns -- will be hitting the road for a huge game against Saint Mary's on Jan. 12."

http://espn.go.com/mens-college-basketball/powerrankings/_/season/2012/week/5" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

We really need to pick them off in Provo!!



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BYU in WCC last year would have ended that run. The Zags this year got BYU at a good time and may indeed continue their championship streak, but it will end soon enough.

I think we have a very good chance against Gonzaga. We will have to hit some 3's but Davies and Hartsock are just as good as their frontcourt. Their backcourt is similar to ours-young and inconsistent.

Qman wrote:
I think we have a very good chance against Gonzaga. We will have to hit some 3's but Davies and Hartsock are just as good as their frontcourt. Their backcourt is similar to ours-young and inconsistent.

This.



Gonzaga's Achilles heal is their backcourt. Their leading scorer is a freshman PG. I've watched several Gonzaga games and Pangos is either on fire or an ice cube. In fact, I actually think the team plays better with Stockton in as PG as he runs the offense better.



Noah, Abouo, Anderson and Magnuson handled Sacre and Harris just fine last season. I have no doubt Noah, Davies, Austin and Abouo will be able to do the same. We'll need our guards to step it way up on D.



Hit Gonzaga early, take out the crowd and apply lock down D on their backcourt and we have a shot. I think we match up better against them than SMC.

"WCC GAME OF THE WEEK

Gonzaga at Saint Mary's. The winner gets claim to sit atop the conference this Thursday at 9:00 pm MT on ESPN2.

POWER RANKINGS

1. GONZAGA (13-2, 3-0 WCC) -- For conference play, the 3-0 record comes with an average win margin of 30 points per game. While St Mary's did beat BYU in conference, Gonzaga's "body of work," as they say, is supreme.

2. SAINT MARY'S (14-2, 3-0) -- The Gaels' only losses are to 13-3 Denver and 15-0 Baylor. Obviously, the win over BYU gives SMC an easy claim on the two-spot.

3. BYU (14-4, 3-1) -- The road win at Loyola Marymount was key for BYU to get confidence to win on the road in conference. Hartsock is the glue that makes BYU what it is. The road domination by the Gaels over the Cougars means that BYU isn't ready to top this list, not yet at least."

http://www.vanquishthefoe.com/2012/1/9/2694397/west-coast-walkthrough-jan-9" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

"West Coast



Separation is forming between the top three and the others that could help all of Gonzaga, Saint Mary's and BYU make the dance. And what's more fun than trying to accommodate BYU's playing restrictions in a mock bracket? Having them in a play-in game while trying to accommodate them!



SHOULD BE IN



Gonzaga (13-2, 3-0; RPI: 10, SOS: 11)

Awww yeah, it's on. Thursday night, the Zags are in Moraga for the first of what could be another three installments with the Gaels.



Saint Mary's (12-2, 3-0; RPI: 31, SOS: 100)

It's Gonzaga week for the Gaels, with first place on the line. SMC could use another quality pelt like that to add to its profile.



IN THE MIX



BYU (12-4, 3-1; RPI: 39, SOS: 58)

The Cougars are lurking in the weeds and have a very soft schedule up until their nonconference game at Virginia Tech on Jan. 25. The three-game stretch against the Hokies and then home to SMC and Gonzaga likely will decide the Cougars' at-large chances."



http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2012/writers/andy_glockner/01/09/Bubble.Watch/1.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

http://www.sltrib.com/sltrib/sports/53273109-77/west-college-game-rankings.html.csp" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;



"College Basketball: Tribune Power Rankings — the West



1. UNLV (16-2)

2. Gonzaga (13-2)

Riding an eight-game winning streak, the Bulldogs feature an improving defense that has held seven of those last eight opponents to 61 points or less and allowed fewer three-pointers than earlier in the season.

3. St. Mary’s (15-2)

The Gaels have won five in a row heading into their showdown with Gonzaga, hoping to remain the only unbeaten team in the WCC and seize control of the league championship race.

4. Cal (13-4)

5. BYU (14-4)"

WCC has 3 of the top 5? Wow.

Gunk wrote:

I think we have a very good chance against Gonzaga. We will have to hit some 3's but Davies and Hartsock are just as good as their frontcourt. Their backcourt is similar to ours-young and inconsistent.

This.



Gonzaga's Achilles heal is their backcourt. Their leading scorer is a freshman PG. I've watched several Gonzaga games and Pangos is either on fire or an ice cube. In fact, I actually think the team plays better with Stockton in as PG as he runs the offense better.



Noah, Abouo, Anderson and Magnuson handled Sacre and Harris just fine last season. I have no doubt Noah, Davies, Austin and Abouo will be able to do the same. We'll need our guards to step it way up on D.



Hit Gonzaga early, take out the crowd and apply lock down D on their backcourt and we have a shot. I think we match up better against them than SMC.

Actually our backcourt may not be quite as weak as you are hoping.



From the list of Top 25 Freshman via ESPN, Pangos is rated in the top 5.



4. Kevin Pangos, Gonzaga Bulldogs

See No. 7. Pangos can be usefully summarized in broad strokes as Trey Burke, but much more accurate. Way back in November, "the book" on Pangos was to force him to put the ball on the floor, but when opponents realized this excellent perimeter shooter was also making 55 percent of his 2s, that book had to be thrown away. Pangos was a three-star prospect coming out of high school in Canada, and his slightly built 6-1 frame won't land him on any all-airport teams, goodness knows. But to this point in the season, he's been the best freshman point guard in the country.



Go!! Zags!!!

Can't wait to play you up there. What is the best way to get tickets?

Power Rankings



"Saint Mary's (15-2, 4-0 WCC)-is the first WCC team to play four games. The Gaels have overpowered both BYU and San Francisco at home. Stephen Holt, a dangerous defender at 6'4" with quick hands, also leads the WCC with 34 steals on the season.



Gonzaga (13-2, 3-0)-has cruised at home against Portland (90-51), Pepperdine (73-45) and Santa Clara (82-60). The Zags have been on the road only twice this season, an 82-75 loss to Illinois in Champaign and a 72-65 win over Xavier in Cincinnati. The all-freshman backcourt of Kevin Pangos (14.2 PPG, 3.53 APG) and Gary Bell, Jr. (9.2 PGG, 1.47 APG) continues to hold up well for the Zags.



BYU (14-4, 3-1)-continues to shake off the effect of its league-opening loss to Saint Mary's, with three straight convincing wins over San Diego (88-52) at home, a shaky 73-65 win over Loyola in Los Angeles and a thorough rout of San Francisco (81-56) in its last home outing. The Cougars are something of a work in progress, with transfer guard Matt Carlino still adjusting to his teammates after eight games (13.9 PPG/4.9 APG) and junior forward Stephen Rogers working his way back into the lineup after a knee injury."



http://rushthecourt.net/2012/01/12/checking-in-on-the-wcc-28/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;