Way-too-early WCC men's basketball power rankings: Gonzaga, Saint Mary's on top

Bulldogs sit firmly at No. 1 in early look at 2024-25 conference rankings

Photo by Erik Smith, Myk Crawford

Few programs in the country can say they reloaded this offseason quite like the Gonzaga Bulldogs.

Fresh off their ninth straight Sweet 16 appearance, the Zags are set to return 81.4% of their minutes played from this past season according to Bart Torvik. That’s on pace to be the fifth-highest return rate in the nation (highest among 2024 NCAA Tournament teams), as Mark Few brings back six of his top seven scorers and four of his five starters. Headlining the returning group are All-WCC selections Ryan Nembhard, Nolan Hickman and Graham Ike.

Few addressed some of the team’s perceived weak points from last season — 3-point shooting, depth and all-around scoring ability — by bringing in two talented scorers from the transfer portal in 6-foot-7 wing Michael Ajayi (Pepperdine) and 6-foot-5 grad transfer Khalif Battle (Arkansas). Few also added defensive specialist Emmanuel Innocenti (Tarleton State), a versatile defender who can guard multiple positions and likes to attack the rim when the ball is in his hands.

Mix in the existing continuity on the roster with a batch of talented newcomers, and Gonzaga is poised to be ranked in the top 10 in the country to start the 2024-25 season. Most credible outlets already had the Bulldogs near the top of their respective rankings even before Battle and Innocenti committed.

As such, the Zags sit atop Gonzaga Nation’s way-too-early West Coast Conference men's basketball rankings for the 2024-25 season.

NO. 1 GONZAGA BULLDOGS

Key additions: Michael Ajayi (Pepperdine), Khalif Battle (Arkansas), Emmanuel Innocenti (Tarleton State)
Key losses: Anton Watson, Luka Krajnovic, Pavle Stosic

Experience, continuity and interior scoring are paramount for success in the WCC. Gonzaga has all that and plenty more. Nembhard, fresh off a historic season as a passer, could be the key to the team’s national championship aspirations — seven of the previous 10 champions had the same starting point guard from the year prior. Ike, the likely preseason favorite to be the WCC Player of the Year, along with Ben Gregg and Braden Huff will form an imposing frontcourt trio once again. There are a lot of minutes to go around between Steele Venters, Dusty Stromer and Ajayi on the wing as well. Depth certainly won’t be a problem this season for the Zags.

NO. 2 SAINT MARY’S GAELS

Key additions: Paulius Murauskas (Arizona), Ashton Hardaway (Memphis), Mikey Lewis (four-star recruit)
Key losses: Aidan Mahaney (UConn), Joshua Jefferson (Iowa State), Alex Ducas

The gap between No. 2 and No. 3 is thin, but considering Saint Mary’s has finished in second or better in the conference standings in eight of the past 10 seasons, it’s a safe bet that Randy Bennett will get his team on the right track again despite losing key players from last season’s NCAA Tournament team. Mahaney’s departure stings for a number of reasons. It’s time for sophomore guard Jordan Ross, a former top 100 recruit in the 2023 class, to step into a bigger role than he had as a freshman. He’ll have veteran support from Augustus Marciulionis, the reigning WCC Player of the Year, and Mitchell Saxen, the WCC Defensive Player of the Year. Lewis, another top 100 recruit, headlines the Gaels’ 2024 freshman class.

NO. 3 SAN FRANCISCO DONS

Key additions: Jason Rivera-Torres (Vanderbilt), Carlton Linguard (UTSA), Tyrone Riley (four-star recruit)
Key losses: Mike Sharavjamts, Isaiah Hawthorne (Northern Colorado), Stefan Todorovic (Pepperdine)

The Dons are right on the Gaels’ heels for the No. 2 spot after Chris Gerlufsen brought back his top five scorers from last season’s 23-11 team. That is, if Jonathan Mogbo, the reigning WCC Newcomer of the Year, withdraws his name from the 2024 NBA Draft. Losing the multi-skilled 6-foot-8 point forward would hurt San Francisco’s hopes of potentially earning an at-large bid into the 2025 NCAA Tournament, though Linguard is talented in his own right at 6-foot-11. Not to mention the plethora of guards on the roster is intriguing.

The Dons improved from 101st in 2022-23 to 65th in KenPom rankings last season. Expect another jump in 2024-25.

NO. 4 SANTA CLARA BRONCOS

Key additions: Carlos Stewart (LSU)
Key losses: Carlos Marshall, Jalen Benjamin, Francisco Caffaro

Adama Bal returning for his senior season after going through the NBA Draft Combine was huge for the Broncos, who have the second-highest retention rate in the WCC and return five of their top six scorers from a 20-win team that handed Gonzaga a rare WCC loss in January. Herb Sendek wasn’t very active in the transfer portal, though adding/bringing back Stewart to play next to Bal in the backcourt should pan out well considering the 6-foot-1 guard was an All-WCC selection for the Broncos in 2022-23. 

NO. 5 WASHINGTON STATE COUGARS

Key additions: LeJuan Watts (Eastern Washington), Ethan Price (Eastern Washington), Dane Erikstrup (Eastern Washington)
Key losses: Isaac Jones, Myles Rice (Indiana), Ruben Chinyelu (Florida)

Washington State’s first year in the WCC will be without its top seven scorers from last season’s NCAA Tournament squad. An overwhelming amount of talent is leaving Pullman, Washington, but new head coach David Riley brings with him from Cheney, Washington, three impactful transfers in Watts, the reigning Big Sky Freshman of the Year, and Price and Erikstrup, two double-digit scorers for the Eagles last season. That transfer portal class ranks No. 1 in the WCC according to EvanMiya.com.

NO. 6 OREGON STATE BEAVERS

Key additions: Tyler Cochran (Toledo), Parsa Fallah (Southern Utah), Damarco Minor (SIU Edwardsville)
Key losses: Jordan Pope (Texas), Tyler Bilodeau (UCLA), Dexter Akanno

The Beavers replaced four of their top five scorers by bringing in Fallah, a 6-foot-9 post who averaged 13.2 points as a redshirt junior, and Minor, an All-OVC guard who averaged 15.5 points and 8.5 rebounds. Two proven transfers plus JUCO product Isaiah Sy and 7-foot-1 post Matthew Marsh round out Wayne Tinkle’s incoming transfer class. Time will tell if the newcomers and few returners come together to give Oregon State its first winning season since 2021. Michael Rataj, a 6-foot-6 German wing, will also play a key role as the lone returner from the starting lineup.

NO. 7 LOYOLA MARYMOUNT LIONS

Key additions: MJ Amey Jr. (San Jose State), Jevon Porter (Pepperdine), Jan Vide (UCLA)
Key losses: Dominick Harris (UCLA), Alex Merkviladze, Justice Hill

Once again, it feels like the Lions could be the sleeper team to watch out for in the WCC. Stan Johnson, with the help of new assistant coach Lorenzo Romar, got quite the haul out of the transfer portal. Amey Jr. steps in and joins Will Johnston in the backcourt after the San Jose State transfer put up 15.7 points and 5.1 rebounds as a junior. Porter has NBA upside if he can stay healthy, while Vide has yet to reach his potential after playing sparingly as a freshman with the Bruins. LMU loses a lot from last season, including program stalwart Keli Leaupepe, but if Johnson and Romar can put the pieces together, the Lions could sneak up the WCC table at season’s end.

NO. 8 PEPPERDINE WAVES

Key additions: Moe Odum (Pacific), Javon Cooley (Marist), Aaron Clark (Wake Forest)
Key losses: Michael Ajayi (Gonzaga), Houston Mallette (Alabama), Jevon Porter (LMU)

The next era of Waves basketball under new head coach Ed Schilling, formerly a Grand Canyon assistant, will begin without the team’s top seven scorers from last season. Boubacar Coulibaly, one of the few holdovers, could take on a larger role if he can remain healthy. Odum changes WCC schools after finishing second in the league with 4.6 assists per game. Cooley from Marist brings a lot of experience with him to Malibu, California, after starting 59 games over the past two seasons. 

NO. 9 PACIFIC TIGERS

Key additions: Elijah Fisher (DePaul), Lamar Washington (Texas Tech), Jazz Gardner (Nevada)
Key losses: Donovan Williams (Western Michigan), Moe Odum (Pepperdine), Judson Martindale (Cal State Northridge)

The Tigers cleared house after a disastrous 2023-24 season in which they went 6-26 and 0-16 in WCC play. New coach Dave Smart brings a lot of winning over the border from his years as a college basketball coach in Canada. The 57-year-old got right to work in his new home, as he snagged Fisher, a double-digit scorer as a sophomore, a former two-sport athlete in Washington and a former four-star recruit in Gardner. It just might take some time for all the pieces to fit together.

NO. 10 PORTLAND PILOTS

Key additions: Max Mackinnon (Elon), Jermaine Ballisager (American), Vincent Delano (freshman)
Key losses: Tyler Robertson, Tyler Harris (Washington), Juan Sebastian Gorosito

Shantay Leagans is tasked with rebuilding the Pilots’ roster yet again heading into his fourth season as the head coach. Portland hasn’t finished in the top 150 of KenPom since 2015 — the only WCC team that can say that — and will likely continue that trend after losing five of its top seven scores from last season. Mackinnon will step into the lead guard role while Ballisager holds down the interior in the frontcourt.

NO. 11 SAN DIEGO TOREROS

Key additions: None
Key losses: Deuce Turner (UC Santa Barbara), Wayne McKinney III (San Diego State), Kevin Patton Jr.

The saying goes if you’re not getting better, you’re getting worse. The Toreros have been completely inactive in the transfer portal. Meanwhile their top four scorers all left for greener grass. Steve Lavin has a lot of young talent on the roster, but in this era of college basketball it’s hard to say how far a team can go on that alone.