College Basketball Power 10: Big 12 Continues To Dominate
By Jeremy Karll
3. Gonzaga (17-0)
And then there was one.
The Gonzaga Bulldogs are the final undefeated team in college basketball this season. Playing in the West Coast Conference and never making the Final Four despite years of dominance can make this feat easily forgotten, but this Gonzaga team is different.
Against their rival Saint Mary’s this week, Gonzaga controlled the whole game. Saint Mary’s, the 21st-ranked team in the country, held a 28-27 lead with 6:39 left in the first half, but Gonzaga ended the half on a 16-6 run.
Every time the Gaels started to gain momentum, Gonzaga shut it down with a bigger run of their own.
In fact, it was a 58-52 Gonzaga lead with 8:40 left before they ended the game on a 21-4 run to win 79-56. To add to their dominating win, Gonzaga also shot 64.7 percent from the field and 53.8 percent from three while only committing seven turnovers in the game.
Gonzaga’s past Tournament history will keep people from believing in them, but the Bulldogs are one of the best teams in the country. It doesn’t matter if they play in the West Coast Conference, their win over Saint Mary’s was one of the most impressive outings of any team this season.
Gonzaga’s schedule gets easier this week. The Bulldogs travel to Santa Clara and then have a home-and-home with Portland.