Gonzaga cracks selection committee’s top 16 seeds as four seed in West Region

It’s not quite the same as Selection Sunday, but Gonzaga was probably relieved nonetheless to see its name appear Saturday during the annual top 16 reveal show on CBS.

The 13th-ranked Zags landed a No. 4 seed in the West Region in the NCAA Tournament selection committee’s rankings. Gonzaga was the 15th overall seed. That’s where most bracketologists projected GU, but some had the Zags listed as high as a No. 3 seed and as low as a No. 5.

The West’s top seeds are No. 1 Kansas (fourth overall), No. 2 Arizona (sixth overall) and No. 3 Kansas State (12th overall). Former Gonzaga assistant coach Tommy Lloyd is in his second season as Arizona’s head coach.

Alabama is the top overall seed. Houston and Purdue are the other No. 1 seeds. The Zags defeated Alabama 100-90 in Birmingham in December. Purdue handled Gonzaga 84-66 at the PK85 in Portland.

Selection committee chair Chris Reynolds pointed to the Zags’ challenging nonconference schedule for providing several Quad 1 contests.

“They’ve helped themselves, those two teams,” said Reynolds, when asked about GU and the American Athletic Conference’s Houston, which also doesn’t play in a Power Six conference. “For example, Gonzaga played Alabama at a neutral site, so they helped themselves in the nonconference and so did Houston by going to Virginia.”

The Zags have also played projected No. 2 seeds Texas (lost 93-74) and Baylor (lost 64-63) and No. 4 Xavier (won 88-84). No. 3 seed Tennessee thumped the Zags 99-80 in an exhibition game in October.

Gonzaga was projected as a No. 1 seed in five of the previous six top 16 reveal shows and remained on the one line when brackets were announced on Selection Sunday. GU was the top overall seed in 2021 and 2022.

“First time in a long time for Gonzaga, it’s not their tournament where everybody is looking at them and everybody is looking to beat them,” said former Villanova coach Jay Wright, an analyst for CBS. “They’re coming in a little like an underdog and they’ve got a potential player of the year in Drew Timme that has carried his team. He’s obviously one of the best post players in the country.

“They’ve also got (coach) Mark Few, who has won a lot of these NCAA Tournament games, and a pretty experienced team, so I like seeing them coming in here without the target on their back.”

Reynolds, the athletic director at Bradley, said Creighton, Miami, Saint Mary’s and UConn were just outside the top 16 seeds.

Big 12 Conference teams accounted for five of the top 12 seeds.

The selection committee attempts to keep top seeds closer to home in earlier rounds for fans to be able to attend March Madness games.

Selection Sunday is set for March 12.