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Gonzaga Basketball

Gonzaga vs. West Virginia Thursday, 4:20 p.m. on TNT

Basketball Hall of Famer Jerry West played at West Virginia before his career with the Lakers. (Associated Press)
Basketball Hall of Famer Jerry West played at West Virginia before his career with the Lakers. (Associated Press)

Gonzaga (25-6)

Seed, region: No. 7, East

Location: Spokane

Enrollment: 7,837

Founded: 1887

Mascot: Bulldogs

Conference: WCC (13-3)

Bid: At large

NCAA tournament record: 16-14

Marquee players: Freshman guard Kevin Pangos, the team’s top scorer at 13.8 points per game, earned WCC newcomer of the year honors. Center Robert Sacre was first-team All-WCC and the conference’s defensive player of the year. Forward Elias Harris made first-team All-WCC for the second time in three years.

Famous alumni: Former Speaker of the House Tom Foley, entertainer Bing Crosby, basketball Hall of Famer John Stockton.

West Virginia (19-13)

Seed, region: No. 10, East

Location: Morgantown

Enrollment: 29,617

Founded: 1867

Mascot: Mountaineers

Conference: Big East (9-9)

Bid: At large

NCAA tournament record: 25-24

Marquee players: Forward Kevin Jones makes 51 percent of his shots and 78 percent of his free throws. He leads the team at 20.1 points and 11.1 rebounds per game. Darryl ‘Truck’ Bryant averages 17.2 points per game and 6-9 forward Deniz Kilicli, who is from Turkey, chips in 10.7 points and 5.4 rebounds.

Famous alumni: Actor Don Knotts, NBA great Jerry West, NFL Hall of Famer Sam Huff.