10. Baylor Bears
12. Auburn Tigers
16. Texas A&M Aggies
19. Indiana Hoosiers
22. Texas Longhorns
25. Miami Hurricanes
28. BYU Cougars
29. Maryland Terps
31. UCLA Bruins
32. Oregon Ducks
34. Florida Gators
35. Ole Miss
36. USC Trojans
39. Mississippi State Bulldogs
41. Memphis Tigers
42. McNeese Cowboys
45. VCU Rams
46. Dayton Flyers
47. St Mary’s Gaels
49. UCF Knights
52. Clemson Tigers
53. New Mexico Lobos
58. SMU Mustangs
60. Nevada Wolfpack
61. TCU Horned Frogs
63. Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets
65. Syracuse Orange
68. Iowa Hawkeyes
70. Butler Bulldogs
71. Princeton Tigers
74. Oklahoma Sooners
75. West Virginia Mountaineers
76. Georgia Bulldogs
77. UAB Blazers
80. Missouri Tigers
Here’s where our TCH analysts have the Bulldogs ranked:
| Steven | Maxwell | Kam | Cody |
| 4 | 8 | 6 | 5 |
It’s hard to believe, but this year’s Gonzaga squad might be Mark Few’s best chance at a national championship. It’s hard to believe because every season at Gonzaga seems to be championship or bust. Coach Mark Few has never missed the NCAA tournament in 25 years at the helm and the Zags have also made nine straight Sweet 16s. The starting five consists of Ryan Nembhard, who set Gonzaga’s all-time single season assist record. Alongside Nembhard is Nolan Hickman. Hickman shot 33.6% from three during his first two years at Gonzaga while averaging 6.5 points per game. Last year, Hickman shot 41.3% from three and averaged 14 points per game. Hickman’s progression might make him the X factor on this Gonzaga team next year.
The third starter will likely be Michael Ajayi, a 2024 NBA Combine Invite and transfer from Pepperdine. Ajayi, a former JUCO product, is familiar with the West Coast Conference as he played last season at Pepperdine. After transferring from Pierce College, Ajayi led the WCC in scoring last year and put himself on the radar as a legitimate NBA draft prospect. If not Ajayi, it would be Khalif Battle. Starting on February 24th last year, Battle averaged nearly 30 points per game for Eric Musselman’s Arkansas squad last season. Both Ajayi and Battle will be seamless fits into Gonzaga’s high-low ball screen continuity offense. The final two starting spots will go to Graham Ike and Ben Gregg. Ike has potential to become an All-American this season.
Despite going 27-8 last season, last year could have been considered a down year for Gonzaga despite the Sweet 16 appearance and emphatic Round of 32 win over Kansas. Last year’s early season struggles had a lot to do with the lack of depth this Gonzaga team had. They lost Eastern Washington transfer, Steele Venters, before the season even started (it’s worthing noting Venters is out for the second consecutive season for the Zags), while Drew Timme, Julian Strawther, and Rasir Bolton all entered the NBA draft or graduated. Meanwhile, Hunter Sallis and Efton Reid both transferred to Wake Forest in that same offseason. As a result, Gonzaga returned just 34.5% of their minutes and 28.3% of their scoring from the 2022-23 season to last season. As a result, last year’s team had no depth. This year is different.
Not only is Gonzaga testing themselves early by playing in Battle 4 Atlantis, playing UCLA in the Intuit Dome, playing Kentucky in Seattle, and playing UConn in MSG, but the WCC Conference is better than it’s been in years. Aside from Gonzaga, Saint Mary’s, San Francisco, and Santa Clara all have legitimate NCAA Tournament aspirations, and it’s conceivable that this can be a three bid league for the first time since 2021-22. While KenPom has the Zags 9th, they have finished in the top 25 of KenPom every year since 2011. They are so, so consistent, and now just need to accomplish that coveted national championship. As previously stated, this squad has as good of a chance as any. I have been adamant about it all offseason, but Gonzaga is my pick to cut down the nets this upcoming season.
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