Luck of the Zags: Gonzaga ‘super shocked’ with No. 5 seed, will open 25th straight NCAA Tournament against No. 12 McNeese State

Perhaps hoping it could bring some good fortune for him and his teammates, junior forward Ben Gregg wore a green St. Patrick’s Day necklace over a white Gonzaga warmup shirt to the team’s Selection Sunday viewing party Sunday afternoon.

“Luck of the Irish,” Gregg said.

More like, luck of the Zags.

Over the last 25 years, Gonzaga’s run the gamut of Selection Sunday emotions, probably feeling they’ve been underseeded on some occasions while overachieving other years.

Sunday’s reveal came with another surprise, in the best way possible for Gonzaga.

From a club room at McCarthey Athletic Center, the Bulldogs waited roughly 30 minutes to learn they’d be a No. 5 seed opening the 2024 NCAA Tournament against No. 12 McNeese State at the Delta Center in Salt Lake City.

The Bulldogs (25-7) and Cowboys (30-3) will tip off Thursday at 4:25 p.m. Pacific on CBS. It’ll mark Gonzaga’s 25th straight appearance in the Big Dance – the second-longest streak in the nation after Michigan State. The Bulldogs haven’t missed the Sweet 16 in 10 seasons.

“It’s always good this time of year to get surprised,” junior guard Nolan Hickman said. “We were expecting something much lower – well I was, I’m not sure about all the rest of the guys. It’s always dope seeing a higher seed coming up next to your name.”

“I was super shocked we got the 5,” junior forward Graham Ike said. “I was expecting like a 7 or something. But yeah, love where we’re at, love how our bracket’s looking.”

“I think that’s where we should be,” junior point guard Ryan Nembhard added. “A lot of people were saying stuff about where they thought we were going to be and obviously they didn’t really know. I think we’re deserving of that 5 seed.”

Regardless of how the Bulldogs felt about their landing spot, the majority of bracketologists assumed Gonzaga would earn a No. 6 or No. 7 seed.

Bracket Matrix, which compiles data from more than 90 projections, gave GU an average seed of 6.98, citing eight outlets that tabbed the Zags as a No. 8 seed and just one projecting them at No. 5.

“When your name pops up, it’s a great feeling,” Gregg said. “There’s not a lot of pressure on us. The whole CBS crew I think picked McNeese to beat us, which is nothing new for us this year. Once again, come in with another chip on our shoulder and that’s kind of what we’ve been facing the whole year.”

Although Gonzaga opens as a six-point favorite, according to BetOnline.ag, McNeese State, one of just three teams in the nation with at least 30 wins, was a trendy pick on Sunday’s CBS show.

“I like McNeese in that game because of their speed,” analyst Clark Kellogg said. “Shahada Wells is a real problem in that backcourt spot.”

Kellogg wasn’t alone there.

“This is the part of the show where I light myself on fire,” Seth Davis said. “Because I’ve got McNeese over Gonzaga.”

Gonzaga players, who’ve accumulated a filing cabinet’s worth of bulletin board material since being picked second in the preseason West Coast Conference poll, weren’t necessarily bothered when the CBS panelists offered their takes on Thursday’s matchup.

“I thought that was cool,” Ike said. “Everybody has their opinion, say what you want to say but we know what we’re capable of what we want to do. That’s just fuel to the fire. Cool, you think we’re going to lose? All right.”

The Cowboys lost one regular -season game in the Southland Conference and picked up a few marquee nonconference wins against VCU and Michigan. They enter the NCAAs on an 11-game win streak after beating Nicholls State in the Southland Tournament title game.

Gonzaga comes into the tournament coming off a 69-60 loss to Saint Mary’s on Tuesday in the WCC championship game. The Bulldogs weren’t assured of a tournament berth earlier in the season, losing four of eight games during one stretch in December and January, but GU polished up its NCAA resume with three late Quad 1 wins at Kentucky, San Francisco and Saint Mary’s.

“Everybody has a tendency to take it for granted,” Gonzaga coach Mark Few said. “I get people running up to me, ‘Just can’t wait for March Madness.’ They’re telling me that in July. I’m like, you’ve got to earn your way into that. You don’t just get it.

“Obviously there were times this year where it didn’t seem like it might happen. Hopefully that was a good way to get us back level and set and really, really appreciate moments like this.”