Color Scheme

Subscribe now
Gonzaga Basketball

Gonzaga drops a couple of notches in latest NCAA Tournament projections

Gonzaga guard Ryan Nembhard dives for a loose ball against UConn while Zags head coach Mark Few looks on last Friday at Climate Pledge Arena in Seattle. (By Tyler Tjomsland/The Spokesman-Review)
By Jim Meehan jimm@spokesman.com(509) 459-5585

Two losses in a six-day span in Seattle have resulted in Gonzaga dropping at least a couple of spots on the seed line, according to the latest round of NCAA Tournament bracket projections.

Seeding is always important in March Madness, but it carries additional meaning this year with the Arena set to host first- and second-round games. The Zags’ chances of staying in Spokane obviously improve if they earn a higher seeding. The selection committee attempts to keep higher seeds closer to home.

The Zags (8-3) are a No. 5 seed with a first-round game against No. 12 Indiana at the Arena in a West Region first-round game, according to ESPN’s Joe Lunardi’s projections.

Arizona, led by former Gonzaga assistant Tommy Lloyd, is the top seed in the West with Houston at No. 2 and Creighton at No. 3.

The Gonzaga-Indiana winner would face the winner between No. 4 BYU and No. 13 UC Irvine. The Zags and Cougars played at least twice a year for 12 seasons in the West Coast Conference before BYU joined the Big 12 this season.

Gonzaga was as high as a No. 2 seed in Lunardi’s bracket prior to falling to Washington 78-73 and UConn 76-63.

Mike DeCourcy’s first bracket for Fox Sports has Gonzaga as a No. 6 seed facing No. 11 Nebraska in the West Region. The bracket doesn’t list sites for opening games.

DeCourcy’s top-five West seeds are Arizona, Oklahoma, Clemson, Ohio State and Texas A&M.

Jerry Palm of CBS Sports projects sixth-seeded Gonzaga meeting No. 11 Providence in Pittsburgh in an East Region first-round contest. The winner would match up against No. 3 North Carolina or No. 14 Purdue Fort Wayne.

Palm lists UConn as the East’s top seed, followed by Tennessee, UNC, Oklahoma and Florida Atlantic.

Gonzaga has nonconference games remaining against San Diego State on Dec. 29 and Kentucky on Feb. 10. San Diego State is projected as a No. 6 seed (Palm), No. 7 (Lunardi) and No. 8 (DeCourcy). Kentucky comes in at No. 4 (DeCourcy), No. 5 (Lunardi) and No. 8 (Palm).

Teams are permitted to play in their hometown if the school isn’t serving as the host – the University of Idaho is the host institution at the Arena – and if they haven’t played at least three times in the facility during the season. Gonzaga’s only game at the Arena will be Jan. 4 against Pepperdine.

Gonzaga has never played in Spokane on the opening weekend of March Madness. The 2020 Zags (31-2) were widely projected as No. 1 seed expected to open the NCAA Tournament at the Arena, but the tournament was canceled due to the COVID pandemic two days after Gonzaga won the WCC Tournament in Las Vegas.