SPOKANE - Mark Few has never shied away from competition, and his Gonzaga men's basketball team played one of its toughest non-conference schedules ever this season.
On Sunday the Zags (25-7, 14-2 WCC) were rewarded for that schedule by earning a No. 5 seed in the 2024 NCAA Tournament. The final bracket projections from ESPN and CBS Sports had Gonzaga as a No. 7 or No. 8 seed, heading back East to play their first-round game.
Instead the Zags will take a short flight to Salt Lake City to face No. 12 McNeese on Thursday.
"For us to be in Salt Lake, I think they rewarded us for us going out and playing people in the nonconference," said Few. "I say this every year: It's just such a blessing to be involved in this thing."
Here's a snapshot of what Few said on Sunday after the NCAA Tournament bracket was revealed:
(You can watch and listen to Few's full comments in the video above)
Few on this team's journey and how far they've come:
"It makes you think introspectively ... to really appreciate everything and to really appreciate this group. They were under a ton of scrutiny that really, they didn't have anything to do with those previous teams ... they're their own team. They had to embark on their own journey. They figured it out. We dug our heels in. They listened all year, they were coachable all year."
On his message to the team after losing to Saint Mary's in the WCC Tournament championship:
"The message was easy. ... Everything is still in front of you. ... The reason it's in front of us now is because you guys got it done. You deserve all the credit for that."
On facing McNeese in the first round:
"Obviously this is a team that has won a lot of games and plays a really interesting style. ... They've got a lot of quickness and a lot of talent. It will be an interesting challenge and probably something a lot different than what we've faced all year."
On Boise State and former Gonzaga assistant Leon Rice being placed in the First Four:
"That's one of the worst screw jobs I've seen. They had a heck of a year and swept some of the teams that are four and five seed ahead of them. That one was shocking."
On Saint Mary's being placed in Spokane:
"I hope our people root for them. Randy's done a great job and I have ultimate respect for them. They're a good group of guys. They play basketball the right way. They're smart, they're tough. I hope that Zag fans get behind them. They should."
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