Don't Forget About Us!

With the last week of the regular season upon us I want to look back at some early season games. Remember that Butler team that came to Spokane 5-6 and left 5-7? They've made quite a turn around. Northern Iowa was Saint Mary's best win until the BYU game, now they're just a win. These games aren't forgotten by the selection committee, and what the teams have done since matter, to the committee and for your bracket. I've taken a look at the early season games for each WCC team that have taken on a new meaning now that most of the season has played out.

Gonzaga
The Zags had their easiest out of conference schedule in ages this season. They played only two true road games before WCC play began. Finally big time opponents are willing to come to Spokane. The first to visit was Notre Dame on November 30th.

•  Notre Dame 53, Gonzaga 73. The Irish had just lost their leader, preseason all-Big East forward Tim Abromaitis to a season ending ACL tear. On top of that they had two losses and 5 wins but they hadn't beaten anybody of note. The Irish struggled for the next month, going 3-2 with both losses coming at home. Then they beat #22 Pittsburgh by 13 on December 27th to kick off their Big East season. Since then they've beaten four ranked opponents, including handing then #1 Syracuse their first and only loss. They've also only lost three times, two of which were on the road and two were ranked opponents. The Irish are currently on a nine game winning streak.
• Gonzaga 75, Illinois 82. This was Gonzaga's first road game of the year. Illinois has a big arena that intimidated the inexperienced Zag backcourt. It looked like a reasonable loss. The Illini have pulled out wins at home over the then #5 Ohio State Buckeyes and #10 Michigan State Spartans. Other than that though they've gone 8-12 since the Gonzaga game, and are in the middle of a 6 game losing skid. Formerly a top 25 team, the Illini now look to be out of the NCAA tournament. However, their two home wins over the Buckeyes and Spartans make Gonzaga's loss in Champlaign still seem reasonable.
• Michigan State 74, Gonzaga 67. The Spartans came to the Kennel and Draymond Green powered his team to the win. Michigan State was unranked at the time, as they started the season with back to back losses (though to North Carolina and Duke), but are now ranked #6. The Spartans have only lost three times since. They sit alone atop the Big Ten, which looks to have at least seven teams in the big dance.
• Oral Roberts 61, Gonzaga 67. Oral Roberts came to Spokane on December 15th with three losses, they left with four but have only added one since. That one loss came at South Dakota State, who are a good team with a 22-7 record. Oral Roberts clinched sole possession of the Summit League regular season championship (over second place South Dakota St.) way back on February 15th.
• Butler 55, Gonzaga 71. Two straight national championship game appearances under the Butler Bulldogs belt weren't enough to beat the other prominent mid-major bulldogs back on December 22nd. While Butler hasn't turned it's season around completely, they came in sub .500 but are now 18-12. Currently on a 5 game winning streak with their next and last game against league leading Valparaiso (who just lost to LMU and then needed overtime to beat the awful Loyola Chicago Ramblers). Butler has gotten hot at the right time, and a win over Valpo tomorrow puts them in a great place. They'll have to win the Horizon League tournament to make the dance, but the way they're playing now they certainly could. They do have a history of getting hot at the right time after all.

Saint Mary's
I'm not sure what Randy Bennett is thinking when he schedules his non-conference slate of games. Because last year beating the Zags once and a lot of nobody schools before that wasn't enough to take the Gaels dancing. This year was the same, but I'm hoping the Gaels don't miss the dance again.

• Northern Iowa 41, Saint Mary's 57. This was just the second game of the season for both squads. Northern Iowa went on a nine game winning streak after this until a loss on December 20th. They've been sub .500 since then and sit seven games back of Wichita State in the Missouri Valley standings. You can't predict that sort of drop off when you're scheduling, but you have to expect it could happen when you're scheduling a mid-major. Since the Gaels won this doesn't look bad by any means, but their only signature pre-WCC win is no longer anything more than just a win.
• Saint Mary's 58, Denver 70. Saint Mary's first loss of the season came on November 23rd at Denver. It wasn't a horrible loss, and Denver is a solid 22-8 right now. But they sit in 5th place in the Sun Belt. In retrospect a tournament team should have found a way to win this one.
• Weber State 70, Saint Mary's 87. The Wildcats fell into a bit of a slump after this game and dropped two of their next four. Since then though, the 22-4 Wildcats have lost just one game. They are a half game ahead of Montana in the Big Sky standings, with a match up with the Grizzlies upcoming. Weber State has Damian LilliardWCC. Saint Mary's is the best team they've played.
• Saint Mary's 59, Baylor 72. Baylor was undefeated and ranked 7th in the nation when they met the Gaels at Orleans Arena in Las Vegas, the site of the WCC tournament. By no means a bad loss, as Baylor, barring complete collapse, is an at large lock. The Bears first loss came on January 16th at Kansas. Including that game, they're 6-5 since. Saint Mary's could learn from Baylor, who racked up a lot of wins in non-conference (against quality opponents) but have sputtered to the finish line without being questioned as a NCAA tournament worthy team.

Brigham Young
BYU is in between Gonzaga and Saint Mary's when it comes to scheduling. They've played good teams, not great teams, but most of them you've at least heard of.

• Brigham Young 63, Utah State 69. Utah State has had a bad year, this is their best win. These two teams are in state rivals and it was the first game of the season. The Cougars were without Matt Carlino for this game so it's excusable.
• Brigham Young 66, Nevada 55. A first round game of the Chicago Invitational Tournament. The Wolf Pack left this game at 3-3, they're 22-5 now. Atop the WAC standings with a 2.5 game lead over New Mexico State. They've beaten some bubble teams, but they probably aren't on the bubble despite that. Regardless of where in relation to the bubble the Wolf Pack are, going from 3-3 to 22-5 has drastically improved the way this win looks, on the surface at least.
• Brigham Young 79, Oregon 65. The Ducks didn't establish themselves in the non-conference, and being in the horrible Pac-12 they could have used a signature win. But they haven't had a serious misstep in league play and somehow find themselves on the bubble. I don't think the Pac-12 deserves a single at large bid, but the Ducks are under consideration, so this win looks way better than it did when it happened.

Loyola Marymount
It's a shame the Lions lost as many as they did in their non-conference schedule (six) because where the sit now, with the wins they've picked up in league play and their Bracket Buster game, they could be on the bubble.

• Loyola Marymount 69, UCLA 58. The Bruins were ranked at #20 in the preseason polls and they invited the crosstown runt LMU Lions to kick off what was expected to be a return to form season for the Bruins. Loyola Marymount "upset" UCLA by 11. In retrospect this wasn't an upset, which sucks for the Lions. Not just did the Bruins drop off but the whole Pac-12 has so this win means very little to anyone seeding for the NCAA or NIT. It did however mark the Lions first of many wins on the road this season.
• Saint Louis 68, Loyola Marymount 75. This was an upset and still is. The Billikens came to L.A. with a fresh #25 next to their name. At 22-5 Saint Louis isn't ranked anymore, and weren't for long, in the polls that is. They're 21st in the RPI and only a game behind Temple for the top of the Atlantic 10. The Billikens are a lock for the NCAA tournament.

San Francisco
The Dons are the last WCC team with a chance to participate in a postseason tournament. They probably won't make the NIT unless they beat Saint Mary's and make some noise in the WCC tournament. The CIT isn't bad though, with only 16 teams the Dons would have a legitimate shot at winning it. Since they're the last team with post season potential, they will be the last team on the list.

• Murray State 70, San Francisco 67. Had Cody Doolin's three at the buzzer gone in Murray State could very well be unknown. This was the Racers' sixth game, but only third against a D-I opponent. This Great Alaska Shootout game was all Racers until the last two minutes. The Dons came within a point four times in the last 1:12. This loss almost looks good now, because the Racers are 26-1, ranked 12th in the land and just put a whoopin' on Saint Mary's.
• Montana 62, San Francisco 65. Montana are currently 20-6 and a half game out of first in the Big Sky. They're also on a nine game winning streak heading into a key match up with Big Sky leader Weber State. The Grizzlies very well could make the NCAA tournament. What makes this win impressive is it happened in Missoula. The only other team to win there this year is Nevada, who I've discussed earlier and are pretty darn good too.