Will Gonzaga crack top 16 when selection committee reveals seeds Saturday?

For the first time in five years, there should be some suspense for Gonzaga when the NCAA Tournament selection committee reveals its top 16 seeds Saturday morning.

Never mind that the reveal show will air on CBS at 9:30 a.m. and the seedings probably wouldn’t look the same by noon.

Still, for the 13th-ranked Zags (21-5), it’ll be a strong indication of where they stand in the eyes of the committee with Selection Sunday just over three weeks away on March 12. Gonzaga has been the top overall seed in the past two February reveal shows and was on the No. 1 seed line at third overall in 2020 and fourth overall in 2019.

GU didn’t make the top 16 in the 2018 reveal, but eventually earned a fourth seed in the final bracket.

Gonzaga appears to have a good shot at making the top 16, according to most bracket projections, but the selection committee’s opinion is the only one that matters.

Joe Lunardi’s latest bracketology for ESPN has Gonzaga as a No. 4 seed in the East Region, facing No. 13 Yale in Albany, New York. Alabama is projected as the top overall seed, joined by Purdue, Houston and Kansas as No. 1 seeds.

Lunardi lists Saint Mary’s as a No. 6 seed facing the North Carolina/Mississippi State play-in winner. Arizona, led by former Gonzaga assistant Tommy Lloyd, is a No. 2 seed in the East, facing No. 15 Rider in Sacramento, California. Boise State, led by former GU assistant Leon Rice, is projected as a No. 11 seed. Eastern Washington, seeded 15th, is matched up against No. 2 UCLA.

The Zags are a No. 3 seed in the West, facing No. 14 UC Santa Barbara in Sacramento, according to CBS Sports’ Jerry Palm. Saint Mary’s is the West’s No. 5 seed, tangling with No. 12 Utah Valley.

Palm also has No. 15 EWU facing No. 2 UCLA. He has No. 3 Arizona tangling with No. 14 Furman and No. 11 BSU taking on No. 6 Creighton. Palm’s No. 1 seeds are Kansas, Alabama, Purdue and Texas.

NCAA.com projects Alabama, Purdue, Houston and Texas on the top seed line. In the West, fourth-seeded Gonzaga is projected to meet No. 13 Utah Valley and No. 15 EWU faces No. 2 UCLA. In the Midwest, it’s No. 6 Saint Mary’s vs. No. 11 Boise State and No. 3 Arizona vs. No. 14 UC Santa Barbara.

Houston, Alabama, Purdue and Kansas are the No. 1 seeds in Mike DeCourcy’s bracket for Fox Sports. No. 5 Gonzaga’s opener in the West Region is against the USC/Mississippi State play-in winner. Saint Mary’s is also a No. 5 seed, facing Drake in the South. No. 2 Arizona and No. 15 Rider square off in the Midwest.

At bracketmatrix.com, Gonzaga’s average seeding is 3.88, based on 100 bracket projections.

The Zags and Marquette are tied for the 13th and 14th overall seeds. Saint Mary’s is a five with an average seeding of 5.11.