NCAA Tournament 2011 Bracket: Gonzaga Receives Bid, St. Mary's On The Bubble

What did Monday night’s WCC Tournament Championship do for the Gonzaga Bulldogs and St. Mary’s Gaels NCAA Tournament chances? For the Zags, the win in Las Vegas ensured entry into the field of 68 this year, taking away the guesswork and creating a stress-free Selection Sunday. St. Mary’s, on the other hand, isn’t so lucky, and will likely be on pins and needles when the selection committee chooses the NCAA Tournament field later this week.

Gonzaga is assured its 13th straight NCAA Tournament appearance, the fourth-longest active streak in the NCAA. The Zags are listed as a nine-seed at SB Nation, placing them on one of the tougher seed lines in the tournament. ESPN also has the Zags as a nine-seed, set to take on Utah State in the first round, with the winner facing Kansas in the second.

For the Gaels, the news isn’t so good, but it’s also not terrible either. After the loss, St. Mary’s remained in several bracketology projections, but are right on the edge, and a few upsets could keep the Gaels home. Here’s a rundown of where St. Mary’s stands, as of Tuesday.

SB Nation: The Gaels are in the field as an 11 seed, right on the edge. Chris Dobbertean has St. Mary’s listed in his “next four in,” used for teams automatically in the field of 64.

ESPN: The Gaels are a 10-seed in Joe Lunardi’s latest bracket, projected to face UCLA in the first round. St. Mary’s doesn’t appear on any of Lunardi’s first/next four list, perhaps keeping the Gaels a bit more safe.

Will the WCC get two in this season. Gonzaga is safe, but St. Mary’s should be sweating, rooting for the favorites in conference tournaments. Just a few upsets could tip the balance, bouncing the Gaels out of the NCAA Tournament and into the NIT.

To relive all the magic from Las Vegas, check out the rest of our 2011 WCC Tournament StoryStream. To celebrate with Gonzaga fans, visit The Slipper Still Fits.

Gonzaga Basketball To Make 13th Straight NCAA Tournament Appearance

The Gonzaga basketball dynasty continued its freight train-like run through the West Coast Conference on Monday night with a 75-63 win over St. Mary's in the WCC Tournament finals. The win ensures Gonzaga its 13th consecutive NCAA Tournament appearance, coming by way of the WCC's automatic bid into the tournament. In a down year, where the Zags struggled early and barely squeaked out the WCC regular season title, sharing the honors with St. Mary's, the automatic bid may have been the Bulldogs only way into the field of 68.

The Bulldogs reign of terror over the conference has spanned the entire last decade. The last time Gonzaga didn't bring home the regular season title was 2000, a year they took home the tournament championship and the conference's auto-bid. After making its first March Madness appearance in 1995, Gonzaga has run off an impressive streak, making the NCAA tournament every year since 1999. The streak includes five Sweet Sixteen appearances and a spot in the Elite Eight once, in 1999.

The Bulldogs have been remarkably consistent, even if the WCC isn't on the same level as the NCAA's power conferences. The depth of talent it takes to rise above the rest, year in and year out, cannot be understated, a testament to the recruiting efforts of head coach Mark Few. From Cinderella to a major player on the national scene, Gonzaga has built itself an empire, staying just ahead of the pack in the WCC.

On Selection Sunday, the Bulldogs won't have to anxiously wait, hoping their name gets call, after winning the WCC Tournament on Monday. In a year where Gonzaga wasn't its usual, dominant self, the Bulldogs found a way to get it done, and will be dancing in March again.

For more on the game, check out the rest of our WCC Tournament StoryStream. To connect with Gonzaga fans, check out SB Nation's Slipper Still Fits.

Gonzaga Basketball Wins WCC Tournament 75-63 Over St. Mary's

Tonight's game wasn't quite the classic that the first two meetings between the Gonzaga Bulldogs and St. Mary's Gaels were,  which might be considered an encouraging sign for Mark Few's team.

Gonzaga (24-9) defeated St. Mary's 75-63 (24-8) in the WCC Championship game to secure an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament, which has to come as something of a relief after a season filled with inconsistency and anxiety about whether they'd be ready for March Madness at all.

Steven Gray led the Bulldogs with 15 points and seven rebounds while Robert Sacre added 12 points and eight rebounds. However, a significant reason why the Bulldogs were as successful as they were on the boards - particularly in the second half when they out-rebounded the Gaels 21-13 - was foul trouble. With both Rob Jones and Mitchell Young in foul trouble for much of the second half, SMC simply wasn't able to put up much resistance in the post and while it wasn't necessarily Gonzaga's posts taking advantage of that, the driving lanes were plenty open for their guards and Sacre was set up for 10 free throw attempts and a massive uncontested dunk late in the game.

Despite being without a post rotation, SMC deserves credit for staying in this game as long as they did by continuing to run what they could and managing to minimize the bigger Sacre in the post. Meanwhile, their perimeter players did their best to keep them in it by playing the full 40 minutes - crafty Mickey McConnell came up big with 24 points, including 13-for-15 free throw shooting and Matthew Dellavedova came up big with 21 points on 8-for-17 shooting.

To celebrate with Gonzaga fans, visit the celebration thread at The Slipper Still Fits.

Gonzaga Vs. St. Mary's Score: Bulldogs Lead WCC Championship At The Half, 39-34

The Gonzaga Bulldogs are in prime position for an NCAA Tournament bid, leading the Saint Mary’s Gaels at the half, 39-34. Gonzaga used a late-run in the first, ending with Marquise Carter’s runner at the buzzer to take the halftime lead, putting the Bulldogs 20 minutes away from punching their ticket to March Madness. Carter led the way with 11 points as he matched St. Mary’s star Mickey McConnell step-for-step. As we said earlier, Carter is a key for Gonzaga, and showed why in the first half.

It was a back-and-forth half in the WCC Championship, with both teams trading punches over the first 20 minutes in a hard-fought matchup, as expected. The Bulldogs scored the final five points of the half after St. Mary’s knotted the score at 34, four of which came from Carter.

For the Gaels, it’s been all McConnell and Matthew Dellavedova. McConnell scored 11 points in the half, with Dellavedove close behind, adding 10. Stephen Holt added six points and Rob Jones chipped in four. Jones led the way with three rebounds and McConnell played the role of facilitator with a team-high three assists.

Elias Harris was aggressive early against the Gaels, scoring seven first half points including a three-pointer. Steven Gray and Demetri Goodsen each had five points, with Sam Dower pitching in six points off the bench. Harris had a team-high three rebounds in the half, making up for Robert Sacre’s ineffective performance — one point and one rebound. Carter and Gray each had two assists in the half.

The Bulldogs are knocking on the door of an NCAA Tournament bid, leading St. Mary’s by five at the half. Stay tuned to our WCC Tournament StoryStream for more on the game and check out SB Nation’s Slipper Still Fits to connect with Zags’ fans.

2011 WCC Championship Game: Defense & Marquise Carter Are Keys For Gonzaga

After an up and down season, the Gonzaga Bulldogs can put all that frustration behind them by beating St. Mary's tonight at 6 p.m. PST and earning themselves an automatic fresh start in the NCAA tournament.

While Basketball Prospectus rightly points out that Gonzaga has ridden their defense to improved performance, the story of this season has continued to be how they would replace the leadership and ball handling of Matt Bouldin at the point guard spot and Zach Bell of SBN's The Slipper Still Fits cites that as both the reason for their improvement over the last month and why they got past the USF Dons in the semifinals.

Gonzaga slips by San Francisco, advances to WCC title - The Slipper Still Fits
The story of the game (and for the past month or so) was Marquise Carter. At some point, when no one was looking, Marquise transformed himself from the lost guy on the court to possibly Gonzaga's most indispensable. Carter once again logged a game high 38 minutes, shot 4-9 from the floor, went 10-12 from the line, and had three steals. He's become extraordinarily reliable and it has become crystal clear that when the game is in the balance, the offense is going to go through him. Carter sank eight free throws in the final minute of the game and had a huge steal near the end to seal things up for the Zags. I can't say I have ever seen such a remarkable in-season transformation as the one Marquise is currently pulling off.

But as Bell notes the thing that has plagued them all year - including against USF - has been consistent intensity and an inability to put teams away.

Tonight against St. Mary's we get to see just how far they've come.

WCC Championship 2011: Gonzaga, St. Mary's To Settle The Score With NCAA Tournament On The Line

It all comes down to this for the Gonzaga Bulldogs and Saint Mary’s Gaels. On Monday night in Las Vegas, the Bulldogs and Gaels look to settle the score as they face-off in the WCC Championship with an NCAA Tournament bid on the line. With the conference down this season, it’s possible both these teams must win to make it into March Madness, setting up what should be a hotly contested matchup.

The Gaels took round one of what’s now a three-round fight, using this shot by Mickey McConnell to drop Gonzaga on its home floor, a rarity at The Kennel in Spokane. Gonzaga rallied back the next time the two teams met, returning the favor on the Gaels home floor in an overtime victory. Two games, on needing an extra five minutes, decided by six total points.

Gonzaga and St. Mary’s had the easy route to the finals, earning a free pass to the semifinals of the WCC Tournament by virtue of their regular season records. The two schools finished tied atop the WCC standings, with St. Mary’s taking the No. 1 seed and Gonzaga the No. 2. The Bulldogs survived a pesky San Francisco team on Sunday night, after an unfortunate gaffe late in the game, with the Dons calling a timeout that didn’t exist, while St. Mary’s breezed in its semifinal matchup.

It all gets underway at 6 p.m., live on ESPN. Stay tuned to our 2011 WCC Tournament StoryStream throughout the tournament for the latest news and updates. For another take, check out SB Nation Bay Area’s 2011 West Coast Conference Tournament StoryStream. For more on Gonzaga, check out SB Nation’s Slipper Still Fits.

WCC Tournament 2011 Bracket: Gonzaga, Saint Mary's To Play For NCAA Tournament Bid

Gonzaga and Saint Mary's survived and advanced in the WCC Tournament, setting up a rematch between the conference's top-two teams with an automatic NCAA Tournament bid on the line. Gonzaga caught a break on Sunday night, taking advantage of a Chris Webber moment by the San Francisco Dons in the waning seconds on the WCC semifinals. Without a timeout, San Francisco stole the inbounds pass down three, but called a frantic timeout in the scrum, giving Gonzaga two technical foul free throws. The Bulldogs survived, advancing to the finals with a 71-67 win.

Saint Mary's made it to the finals in less dramatic fashion, pulling away in the second half to drop Santa Clara, 73-64. Both Gonzaga and Saint Mary's were given a free pass to the semifinals after finishing first and second in the conference during the regular season.

Gonzaga and Saint Mary's split the regular season series in hard-fought matchups. The first time around, Saint Mary's stole a win in Spokane, squeaking out a two-point win after Mickey McConnell drilled a contested shot just before the buzzer at The Kennel. Gonzaga got its revenge on the Gaels home court, snatching away a 89-85 overtime win.

The rubber match comes with higher stakes as Gonzaga and Saint Mary's do battle with a spot in the NCAA Tournament on the line.

Here's a look at the final bracket.

It all gets started at 6 p.m. on ESPN. Stay tuned to our 2011 WCC Tournament StoryStream throughout the tournament for the latest news and updates. For another take, check out SB Nation Bay Area's 2011 West Coast Conference Tournament StoryStream. For more on Gonzaga, check out SB Nation's Slipper Still Fits.

Gonzaga Vs. San Francisco Score: Bulldogs 20 Minutes From WCC Tournament Finals Berth

The Gonzaga Bulldogs came out of the gate swinging on Sunday night in the WCC Tournament, pulling away from the San Francisco Dons early in what looked to be a rout. But the Dons came roaring back, staying within striking distance and inching closer ahead of halftime. Even still, the Bulldogs carried a 35-25 lead into the half and are 20 minutes from a berth in the WCC title game against Saint Mary’s.

The Bulldogs shared the scoring load in the first, with all eight players that saw floor time putting up points. Marquise Carter led the way with eight points, Elias Harris and Demetri Goodsen had six and Robert Sacre added four points. David Stockton came off the bench and pitched in four points, as well. Goodsen, Steven Gray and Sacre each had three rebounds, but Gray was off the mark for much of the first half, scoring just two points.

It was a two-man show for San Francisco as Perris Blackwell and Michael Williams scored 17 of the Dons’ 25 points. Black led the way with nine, followed closely by Williams, who had eight. Marko Petrovic added three points off the bench, as well. Blackwell had a team-high four assists and Rashad Green led the way with two assists.

With the WCC down this season, it’s likely the Zags have to win the WCC Tournament to make the NCAA Tournament, making this semifinal, and Monday’s final should they advance, of the utmost importance.

Stay tuned to our 2011 WCC Tournament StoryStream throughout the tournament for the latest news and updates. For another take, check out SB Nation Bay Area’s 2011 West Coast Conference Tournament StoryStream. For more on Gonzaga, check out SB Nation’s Slipper Still Fits.

WCC Tournament 2011 Results: Saint Marys Drops Santa Clara, Advances To Championship

The Saint Mary’s Gaels took care of business on Sunday in the WCC Tournament, dropping Santa Clara in the semifinals, 73-64. The Gaels, who were given an automatic berth to the semis by virtue of their first-place finish in the WCC regular season, took a two-point lead into the half over the perky Broncos before finally pulling away down the stretch to secure a berth in the finals with an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament on the line.

Mitchell Young came off the bench for the Gaels, scoring a team-high 15 points in 32 minutes. Stephen Holt added 15 points, Matthew Dellavedova added 13 and Mickey McConnell added 10. Young also had a team-high seven rebounds, with Dellavedova and McConnell dishing out six and five assists respectively.

Marc Trasolini led all scorers with 22 points, but it wasn’t enough for the Broncos, who couldn’t hang with top-seeded St. Mary’s late. Kevin Foster added 18 points and a team-high five rebounds for Santa Clara. Evan Roguemore was also in double-figures, finishing with 12 points. Foster also finished with a team-high four assists.

Santa Clara finishes the season at 19-14, including an 8-6 mark in WCC play. St. Mary’s moves on to face the winner of Sunday night’s Gonzaga-San Francisco matchup in the WCC finals.

Stay tuned to our 2011 WCC Tournament StoryStream throughout the tournament for the latest news and updates. For another take, check out SB Nation Bay Area's 2011 West Coast Conference Tournament StoryStream. For more on Gonzaga, check out SB Nation's Slipper Still Fits.

WCC Tournament 2011: Semifinal Schedule, Bracket And TV Information

The WCC takes its tournament to the national stage on Sunday as the semifinals are set to kick off in Las Vegas. The league's marquee teams -- the Gonzaga Bulldogs and St. Mary's Gaels -- join the tournament  on Sunday after receiving a free pass into the semifinals. For the first time in the tournament, the games will be televised nationally on the ESPN family of networks.

Here's the full schedule, TV information and bracket for the 2011 WCC tournament.

Schedule: Like the rest of the tournament, games will be played in prime-time on the West Coast. The first semifinal begins at 5 p.m., followed by the last game of the day at 7:30 p.m., or half an hour after the first game ends.

TV information: ESPN2 has both broadcasts, coming to you live from Las Vegas. Coverage begins at 5 p.m. as St. Mary's takes on Santa Clara in the first semifinal

Bracket

Gonzaga finally joins the fun on Sunday as they take on the San Francisco Dons. The two teams split the season series, with San Francisco winning on its home court in overtime before Gonzaga won in The Kennel, 70-53. The stakes are higher in the rubber match, with a berth in the WCC finals and a shot at an automatic NCAA tournament bid on the line.

Stay tuned to our 2011 WCC Tournament StoryStream throughout the tournament for the latest news and updates. For another take, check out SB Nation Bay Area's 2011 West Coast Conference Tournament StoryStream. For more on the Zags, check out SB Nation's Slipper Still Fits.

WCC Tournament 2011: Schedule, Bracket, TV Times For Second Round

The first round is in the books in Las Vegas as the 2011 WCC Tournament gets serious with the start of the quarterfinals on Saturday night. On Friday, Loyola Marymount pulled off the upset in the first round, dropping Portland, 72-68. On the other side of the bracket, Pepperdine took care of business, holding off the San Diego Toreros down the stretch in a 84-81 win. The Waves and Lions move on to face San Francisco and Santa Clara, respectively, in Saturday's quarterfinal round. The Dons and Broncos each had a first-round bye.

Here's the schedule and bracket after Friday's games.

Schedule: Loyola Marymount and Santa Clara get the action started at 6 p.m. In the late-night game, San Francisco and Pepperdine square-off, with the winner facing the Gonzaga Bulldogs on Sunday.

Teams remaining: Loyola Marymount, Santa Clara, Pepperdine and San Francisco play today as the WCC field continues to narrow ahead of Monday's finals. Gonzaga and Saint Mary's each have byes, and will join the tournament in the semifinal round on Sunday.

Bracket (click to enlarge):

Stay tuned to our 2011 WCC Tournament StoryStream throughout the tournament for the latest news and updates. For another take, check out SB Nation Bay Area's 2011 West Coast Conference Tournament StoryStream. For more on the Zags, check out SB Nation's Slipper Still Fits.

WCC Tournament 2011: Loyola Marymount Advances With 72-68 Win Over Portland

Loyola Marymount exacted revenge on the Portland Pilots in the WCC Tournament to survive and advance to the quarterfinal round. The Pilots, who swept Loyola Marymount in the regular season, were in it until the end, but couldn't get over the hump in a 72-68 win.

Portland got within two with under 15 seconds to go, but the Lions broke the press for an easy lay-in to seal the game and a four-point win. Drew Viney, keyed the offense for the Lions on the night, and found Larry Davis with a superb pass that traveled about 90 feet to sink Portland's hope with time winding down in the second half.

Davis scored 25 points, grabbed five rebounds and had two assists, one of which came on that long pass, to lead all scorers in the win. Vernon Teel added 13 points off the bench and Anthony Ireland finished with 12. Davis had nine points, including the final bucket of the game. Godwin Okonji had a game-high 13 rebounds and Teel had five assists for the Lions.

Jared Stohl finished with a team-high 23 points for Portland. Nemanja Mitrovic was the only other player in double-figures for the Pilots with 14 points. Luke Sikma had a quiet night, missing his only field goal attempt and finishing with six points and eight rebounds in 37 minutes. Ryan Nicholas had seven points off the bench.

Loyola Marymount, the eighth-seed in the tournament, moves on to face Santa Clara on Saturday night at 6 p.m. For more on the tournament, check out the rest of our WCC Tournament StoryStream. For more coverage, check out SB Nation Bay Area's StoryStream.

WCC Tournament 2011: Pepperdine Moves On With 84-81 Win Over San Diego

The Pepperdine Waves survived and advanced in the first round of the 2011 WCC Tournament on Friday, sneaking by the San Diego Toreros, 84-81. After Pepperdine jumped out to a double-digit lead in the second half, San Diego came storming back, closing the deficit to just two with under 10 seconds left. After a free throw gave the Waves a three-point lead, Jordan Mackie's heave at the buzzer just missed, giving Pepperdine the win and a quarterfinal berth.

Dealing with foul trouble, and three starters that fouled out, San Diego was forced to use all of its bench, with 12 players seeing game-time for the Toreros. In total, 53 fouls were called, with San Diego accumulating 31. Combined, the teams 71 free throws were shot, with Pepperdine hitting 36-44 and San Diego connecting on 17-27.

Mychel Thompson, brother of Washington State's Klay Thompson, had an impressive night for the Waves, scoring a game-high 26 points and grabbing six rebounds. Lorne Jackson added 23 points and Corbin Moore finished with 11. Dan Suttle Jr. added nine points off the bench in the win. Moore also finished with a team-high seven rebounds and Jackson led the way with eight assists.

San Diego used a balanced attack to claw back into the game as four players were in double-figures. Chris Gabriel led the way with 18 points, with Darian Norris and Devin Ginty each adding 14. Chris Manresa had 12 points, as well. Gabriel finished with a team-high six rebounds and Matt Dorr dished-out five assists, though he only scored four points.

The Waves move on to face San Francisco on Saturday at 8:30 in the WCC quarterfinals. For more on the tournament, check out the rest of our WCC Tournament StoryStream. For a local look at the Waves, check out SB Nation Bay Area's StoryStream.

WCC Tournament 2011: Schedule, Bracket, Teams And More

The West Coast Conference is taking over Vegas this weekend with the automatic bid to the NCAA tournament up for grabs. Gonzaga and St. Mary's shared the conference title in 2011, with the Gaels taking the No. 1 seed in the tournament. Both teams have the easiest path to the championship, sitting out the first two rounds before joining the action in the semifinals on Sunday. The action kicks off on Friday with a primetime matchup between Portland and LMU.

Here's the full schedule, bracket and vital information on the tournament.

Schedule: The action begins on Friday, with the first two games scheduled for 6 p.m. and 8:30 p.m. On Saturday, Santa Clara and San Francisco join the tournament, with game times again set for 6 p.m. and 8:30 p.m. The semifinals get started on Sunday, with two more teams -- Gonzaga and St. Marys -- joining the fun at 5 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. Finally, the championship game takes place on Monday at 6 p.m.

Teams; All eight WCC teams are involved, with staggered byes throughout the tournament. The teams are, in order of seeding: St. Mary's Gaels, Gonzaga Bulldogs, San Francisco Dons, Santa Clara Broncos, Portland Pilots, Pepperdine Waves, Loyola Marymount Lions and San Diego Toreros

Bracket (click to enlarge):

Stay tuned to our StoryStream throughout the tournament for the latest news and updates. For another take, check out SB Nation Bay Area's 2011 West Coast Conference Tournament StoryStream. For more on the Zags, check out SB Nation's Slipper Still Fits.