Desperation sets in for Gonzaga's seniors ahead of 2025 NCAA Tournament: 'Our story is far from over'

'"A few weeks ago we weren't a lock for the tournament, so we did have some desperation. We worked our way in here."

Gonzaga Bulldogs Graham Ike (13), Ryan Nembhard (0) and Khalif Battle (99). / Photo by Erik Smith, Myk Crawford

Khalif Battle appeared in over 100 games and scored over 1,300 points between four different schools before he eventually wound up at Gonzaga for his sixth year of college basketball.

The 6-foot-5, 185-pound native of Hillside, New Jersey, could barely point out where Spokane was on a map. In fact, Battle had never even played a game in the Pacific Standard Time Zone during his stops at Butler, Temple and Arkansas.

Though his friends and family back home didn't exactly know where Gonzaga was located, Battle wasn't concerned with distance — he just wanted to win, specifically in the NCAA Tournament.

"It's kind of crazy," Battle said of his career up to this point. "I actually would've made [the NCAA Tournament] my freshman year but COVID struck so you know, they kind of messed that up for me."

Unofficially, Butler would've made the 2020 tournament as an at-large team. KenPom.com's database from the unfinished 2019-20 season graded the Bulldogs as a 5-seed had the tournament been played, while his current team would've probably earned one of the four No. 1 seeds after going 31-2 in the regular season and the West Coast Conference tournament. Technically the Zags had already punched their ticket before the whole world was thrown into chaos, though no one will ever know how far that squad could've gone in the postseason had it been given the chance.

As such, Few can be quick to point out — five years after the fact — that Gonzaga's streak of NCAA Tournament appearances is actually 27 and not 26 like the NCAA record books indicate. As for his current crop of seniors, they don't want to rehash the "what if?" game in five years when they look back on the final chapters of their respective college careers.

"A few weeks ago we weren't a lock for the tournament, so we did have some desperation," senior Ben Gregg said. "We didn't want to go out with any regret — I personally didn't. We worked our way in here."

Thursday's matchup between 8-seed Gonzaga and 9-seed Georgia from Intrust Bank Arena in Wichita, Kansas, will mark Gregg's 13th NCAA Tournament game, tying him with Drew Timme, Corey Kispert and Pzremek Karnowski for the fourth-most tournament games played in program history. Some of those appearances were alongside a few future NBA studs on teams seeded No. 1 in the tournament.

Even after the topsy-turvy season, the Bulldogs had to earn a No. 8 seed in this year's tournament, not much about the experience feels any different for Gregg as he sits in front of his locker, awaiting the open practice session to commence outside. Across the locker room, though, Gregg's teammate Michael Ajayi is taking it in all in as a first-timer to the NCAA Tournament.

"It feels so good to be here," Ajayi said. "I always dreamt of this when I was a kid, and now just experiencing it — the practices, the pregame, going to this gym — I could never have believed it."

Ajayi transferred to Gonzaga following one season at Pepperdine and two at the JUCO level with Pierce Community College in Puyallup, Washington. The Kent, Washington, native was a late-bloomer in high school, as he went from 5-foot-10 his junior year to closer to 6-foot-7 when he was a senior at Kentwood High School. Ajayi parlayed one solid year of high school hoops into a shot at the JUCO level, which turned into an opportunity with the Waves and Lorenzo Romar.

Like Battle, Ajayi came to Gonzaga for a chance to play on the sport's grandest stage for the first time in his career. Fittingly, they developed a friendship over the course of the season and played paramount roles in the Bulldogs' last two wins heading into the NCAA Tournament.

Ajayi sparked the Bulldogs early in their triumph over San Francisco in the WCC tournament with nine points, eight rebounds and two steals. The next night, Battle dropped 14 points and recorded five steals, including one with under a minute left that essentially iced the final result and officially punched Gonzaga's ticket to the NCAA Tournament.

"I felt [desperation] the moment I walked through these doors," Battle said. "I don't want this to end. I think our story's far from over."

Battle compared Gonzaga's spot in the tournament to that of a story arc from a captivating book series. The title of this story is one word: Redemption.

"Hopefully we shock a lot of people," Battle said. "I think we're going in as underdogs, which is rare for being a Zag, but I know we're definitely going to prove people wrong so, I'm excited."

Senior guard Ryan Nembhard is technically making his third appearance in the NCAA Tournament and his second with the Bulldogs, though it's worth noting he missed what would've been his first with Creighton due to a broken right wrist he suffered back in 2022. The following year, Nembhard dropped 30 points against Baylor in the second round and helped propel the Bluejays to the regional final for the first time since 1974. Nembhard took the Bulldogs to the Sweet 16 last season while breaking the program's single-season record for most assists in a season, a mark he shattered in even fewer tries this season.

Heading into the tournament, Nembhard, who has 325 assists this season, is just one assist away from tying former Syracuse guard Sherman Douglas for the ninth-most assists in a single campaign. Should he dish out 10 assists — close to his per-game average — he'd crack the top five while passing Ja Morant and Avery Johnson in the process.

"It's senior year — this could potentially be your last, whatever, game or not, so there's obviously some desperation," Nembhard said. "I think all the guys are aware of that and coach Few does a great job of preparing moments like this and we're gonna be ready to go tomorrow."

The battle of the Bulldogs is set for Thursday, 1:35 p.m. PT on TBS. The winner advances to the second round on Saturday.

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