College basketball season is upon us. Across the country, teams are wrapping up their final exhibition games and preparing for the 2024-25 season. The West Coast Conference, like most conferences these days, has some new faces that should make for an exciting year. With that being said, these are some conference wide predictions for the coming season out on the west coast.
2024-2025 West Coast Conference Predictions
WCC Conference Champions
The Pick: Gonzaga Bulldogs
Shocker. Over the past 31 seasons it has been the Zags world with the rest of the conference just living in it. They have won 26 regular season conference championships and 21 conference tournament titles. Last season their conference rival, the Gaels of Saint Mary’s, dethroned them winning both the regular season and tournament titles. Clearly, that did not sit well with the Bulldogs who have put together a dominant offseason. They returned all of their major contributors with the exception of Anton Watson. Coach Few also brought in some elite reinforcements in the form of Michael Ajayi and Khalif Battle. On the preseason All-Conference team, four Zags made appearances. Few is a Hall of Fame coach. Ryan Nembhard and Graham Ike have All-American potential. This roster will go 10 deep on any given night. As the old adage goes, the Zags got dudes!
The Dark Horse: Santa Clara Broncos
History would tell anyone that the lone challengers to the boys in Spokane should be the Saint Mary’s Gaels. This year, the Broncos of Santa Clara will look to shake up the hierarchy of the WCC. Santa Clara returns six players who all saw significant playing time last year. Headlining this group is All-Conference guard Adams Alpha-Bal. Bal may be the conference’s best NBA prospect based on his size, athleticism and upside.
On top of the core returners, a pair of high level transfers should give them a deep rotation. After spending a year at LSU, Carlos Stewart is back with Santa Clara. His last stint in the WCC led to an All-Conference selection backed by 15.2 points, 2.4 rebounds and 2.3 assists per game. The second is junior college transfer Elijah Mahi. Mahi was a force at West Valley College where he led them to a state championship and a perfect 33-0 record. Thanks to averages of 17.5 points, 6.6 rebounds, and 4.5 assists the 6-foot-6 forward could be a breakout star.
WCC Player of the Year
The Pick: Ryan Nembhard, Gonzaga
Last year, Graham Ike should have won this award. Plan and simple he was a juggernaut not just during conference play, but for the duration of the season. This year, his point guard should be the one to hoist the award. Ryan Nembhard took some time to find his footing with Gonzaga but once he did, he may have been the best pure point guard in the nation. Across 16 conference matchups Nembhard averaged 13.8 points and 6.8 assists per game. He led the conference in total assists, assists per game and assist to turnover ratio. Nembhard had six games against conference opponents that resulted in double-doubles via points and assists. He was also stellar against the best the conference had to offer. In eight matchups against USF, Santa Clara and Saint Mary’s he averaged 16.6 points, 7.1 assists and shot a blistering 53.6% from the floor.
The precedent exists for Gonzaga lead guards to earn the award with players such as Nigel Williams-Goss and Kevin Pangos bringing home the WCC Player of the Year honors in the last handful of seasons.
The Dark Horse: Adama Alpha-Bal, Santa Clara
Speaking of precedents, often the most highly productive player on a team that challenges Gonzaga is very much so in the WCC Player of the Year race. Adam Alpha-Bal was solid last year and even hit a game winner at home to lift the Broncos over the Bulldogs. He will have plenty of support around him, and if his production elevates, he can easily be in contention. Bal averaged 14.4 points and just over three assists and three rebounds a game. Getting up to roughly 16 points a game will be important as only three players have earned the Player of the Year award averaging under 15 points a game. Still, the combination of Santa Clara supplanting Saint Mary’s and Bal having a strong senior season could sway voters to favor him.
WCC Defensive Player of the Year
The Pick: Mitchell Saxen, Saint Mary’s
Mitchell Saxen is the anchor of Randy Bennett’s entire defensive scheme. The 250-pound big man is an absolute load down low, and while he will never dominate teams with scoring the ball, Saxen is capable of controlling the entire paint. As a rebounder, he is one of the best in the conference despite the averages not leaping off the boxscore. Outside of Ike, there were no opposing big men that could score over, around, or through Saxen with consistency. For good measure, he chipped in 1.3 blocks a game and rarely found himself in foul trouble.
The Dark Horse: Ndewedo Newbury, USF
Ndewedo Newbury is a Swiss Army knife-like defender. At 6-foot-7, Newbury can guard one through five in the West Coast Conference. He can defend on the ball with great agility and length. Yet, when asked to defend in the post, he is more than capable of holding his own. Not only does he have the strength to defend in the paint, but his vertical “pop” makes him dangerous as a shot blocker and weak side helper. With 1.1 blocks a night with a 5.2% block percentage, he is USF’s top dog on the defensive side of the ball. Lastly, he works well as an off-ball defender which is critical in serving as the “glue” of the team’s defense.
WCC Newcomer of the Year
The Pick: Cedric Coward, Washington State
Cedric Coward followed head coach David Riley from Eastern Washington to Washington State. Coward was incredibly productive under Riley last season to the tune of 15.4 points, 6.7 rebounds and 1.7 assists per game. Coward will have a green light to help lead this team’s transition to the WCC and has proven he can dominate any given night against mid-major level competition. He did exceed 20 points on 10 separate occasions last year, but the biggest question will be how he does against the conference’s top dogs. Coward was not as effective against the more traditional “Power 5” programs he faced last year. Against USC, Washington State, Utah and Washington, he failed to reach double figures in scoring and lost all those games. Gonzaga and Saint Mary’s are all more talented than those teams were last season and could give Coward trouble.
The Dark Horse: Paulius Murauskas, Saint Mary’s
If fans simply look at Paulius Murauskas’s production from his last season with Arizona they may be wondering why he is even on this list. Yet, in doing some digging, it becomes clear that Murauskas has the makings of an all-conference performer. This past summer, the forward played for the Lithuanian national under-20 team. He was dominant with nightly averages of 18.1 points and 10.3 rebounds per game. All the reports from preseason training and early exhibitions have been glowing of Murauskas’s ability to serve as the Gaels’ newest power forward. As an added bonus, he shares a strong off-court relationship with starting point guard Augustas Marciulionis given both players backgrounds with the Lithuanian national team.
WCC Projected Final Standings
1: Gonzaga Bulldogs
2: Santa Clara Broncos
3: Saint Mary’s Gaels
4: San Francisco Dons
5: Washington State Cougars
6: Loyola Marymount Lions
7: Pepperdine Waves
8: Oregon State Beavers
9: Pacific Tigers
10: Portland Pilots
11:San Diego Toreros
Projected “March Madness” Bids
1: Gonzaga Bulldogs
2: Saint Mary’s Gaels
3: Santa Clara Broncos
The Last Word
Huge change is coming to the West Coast Conference. Gonzaga is on its way out, and Washington State and Oregon State are only temporary fill-ins. Regardless, the top half of this conference should be a fun and competitive time with the usual powerhouses and fresh upstarts squaring off. While the future may be uncertain, 2024-25 will be a great time for fans of west coast college basketball.
