2016–17 Gonzaga Bulldogs men's basketball team

2016–17 Gonzaga Bulldogs men's basketball
NCAA Tournament, Runner-Up
Conference West Coast Conference
Ranking
Coaches No. 2
AP No. 2
2016–17 record 37–2 (17–1 WCC)
Head coach Mark Few (18th season)
Assistant coach Tommy Lloyd (16th season)
Assistant coach Donny Daniels (7th season)
Assistant coach Brian Michaelson (4th season)
Home arena McCarthey Athletic Center
2016–17 West Coast Conference men's basketball standings
Conf     Overall
Team W   L   PCT     W   L   PCT
No. 2 Gonzaga 17 1   .944     37 2   .949
No. 22 Saint Mary's 16 2   .889     29 5   .853
BYU 12 6   .667     22 12   .647
San Francisco 10 8   .556     20 13   .606
Santa Clara 10 8   .556     17 16   .515
Loyola Marymount 8 10   .444     15 15   .500
San Diego 6 12   .333     13 18   .419
Pepperdine 5 13   .278     9 22   .290
Pacific 4 14   .222     11 22   .333
Portland 2 16   .111     11 22   .333
2017 West Coast Conference Tournament winner
Rankings from AP Poll

The 2016–17 Gonzaga Bulldogs men's basketball team represented Gonzaga University in the 2016–17 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The team was led by head coach Mark Few, who was in his 18th season as head coach. The team played its home games at McCarthey Athletic Center in Spokane, Washington. The Bulldogs (also informally referred to as the Zags) played in their 37th season as a member of the West Coast Conference.

The 2016–17 season was arguably the greatest season in Gonzaga's 109-year basketball history. The Bulldogs finished with a 32–1 regular season record and did not lose a game until February. They finished ranked second in the AP Poll, the highest final national ranking in school history. They won both the West Coast Conference regular season and tournament championships, and advanced to the first NCAA National Championship game in the school's history--the deepest run for a WCC team since San Francisco advanced to its third consecutive Final Four in 1957. With a victory over South Carolina in the regional semifinal, the Bulldogs tied the NCAA Division I record for the second-most wins in a season. Their run ended in the NCAA National Championship game, where they lost to North Carolina.

Previous season

The Bulldogs team finished the 2015–16 season 28–8, 15–3 in WCC play to earn a share for the WCC regular season championship. They defeated Portland, BYU, and Saint Mary's to win the WCC Tournament and earn the conference's automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament; the Bulldogs have sequentially earned a place in this tournament for the past 18 years. As a No. 11 seed, they defeated No. 6 seed Seton Hall and No. 3 seed Utah to advance to the Sweet Sixteen. There they lost to No. 10 seed and eventual Final Four participant Syracuse.

Preseason

The Bulldogs were picked to finish first in the WCC preseason poll.[1] Przemek Karnowski and Josh Perkins were selected to the All-WCC preseason team.[1]

The Bulldogs were ranked No. 14 in the preseason AP poll and No. 13 in the preseason Coaches Poll.

Departures

Name Number Pos. Height Weight Year Hometown Reason for Departure
McClellan, EricEric McClellan 23 G 6'4" 184 Senior (Redshirt) Austin, TX Graduated
Wiltjer, KyleKyle Wiltjer 33 F 6'10" 243 Senior (Redshirt) Portland, OR Graduated
Dranginis, KyleKyle Dranginis 3 G 6'5" 203 Senior (Redshirt) Nampa, ID Graduated
Sabonis, DomantasDomantas Sabonis 11 F 6'11" 240 Sophomore Kaunas, Lithuania Entered the 2016 NBA draft

Incoming transfers

Name Pos. Height Weight Year Hometown Previous
School
Years
Remaining
Date
Eligible
Mathews, JordanJordan Mathews G 6'4" 203 Senior San Francisco, CA California 1 Oct. 1, 2016[2]

2016 Recruiting Class

US college sports recruiting information for high school athletes
Name Hometown High school / college Height Weight Commit date
Zach Collins[3]
C
Las Vegas, NV Bishop Gorman 7 ft 0 in (2.13 m) 230 lb (100 kg) Mar 16, 2015 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout:4/5 stars   Rivals:5/5 stars   247Sports:5/5 stars    ESPN:4/5 stars   ESPN grade: 88
Killian Tillie[4]
F
Antibes, France INSEP 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 230 lb (100 kg) Aug 29, 2015 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout:4/5 stars   Rivals:4/5 stars   247Sports:4/5 stars    ESPN: N/A   ESPN grade: NR
Zach Norvell[5]
G
Chicago, IL Simeon 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 185 lb (84 kg) Nov 2, 2015 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout:3/5 stars   Rivals:4/5 stars   247Sports:3/5 stars    ESPN:4/5 stars   ESPN grade: 82
Jacob Larsen[6]
C
Holte, Denmark Falkonergårdens Gymnasium
SISU Copenhagen
6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 235 lb (107 kg) Nov 12, 2015 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout:3/5 stars   Rivals:4/5 stars   247Sports:4/5 stars    ESPN: N/A   ESPN grade: NR
Rui Hachimura[7]
F
Sendai, Japan Meisei 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 210 lb (95 kg) Nov 20, 2015 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout:4/5 stars   Rivals:3/5 stars   247Sports:3/5 stars    ESPN: N/A   ESPN grade: NR
Overall recruiting rankings: Scout: #14   Rivals: #13  247Sports: #10  ESPN: #21
  • Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight.
  • In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale.

Sources:

2017 Recruiting Class

Roster

Gonzaga Bulldogs and Quinnipiac Bobcats playing a basketball game
The Gonzaga Bulldogs and the Quinnipiac Bobcats play in the Quarterfinals at the 2016 AdvoCare Invitational.
2016–17 Gonzaga Bulldogs men's basketball team
Players Coaches
Pos. # Name Height Weight Year Previous school Hometown
C 24 Karnowski, PrzemekPrzemek Karnowski 7 ft 1 in (2.16 m) 286 lb (130 kg) RS Sr Nicolaus Copernicus
Siarka Jezioro Tarnobrzeg
Toruń, Poland
G 15 Bakamus, RemRem Bakamus (W) 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) 173 lb (78 kg) RS Sr Mark Morris HS Longview, WA
G 4 Mathews, JordanJordan Mathews 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 203 lb (92 kg) Sr Santa Monica
California
Los Angeles, CA
G 5 Williams-Goss, NigelNigel Williams-Goss 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 195 lb (88 kg) RS Jr Findlay Prep
Washington
Happy Valley, OR
F 3 Williams, JohnathanJohnathan Williams 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 228 lb (103 kg) RS Jr Southwind
Missouri
Memphis, TN
C 25 Edwards, RyanRyan Edwards 7 ft 1 in (2.16 m) 295 lb (134 kg) RS Jr Glacier HS Kalispell, MT
G 55 Triano, DustinDustin Triano (W) 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 180 lb (82 kg) RS Jr New Hampton School Vancouver, BC
G 0 Melson, SilasSilas Melson 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 195 lb (88 kg) Jr Jefferson HS Portland, OR
F 22 Jones, JeremyJeremy Jones (W) 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 210 lb (95 kg) RS So East Central
Rice
San Antonio, TX
G 13 Perkins, JoshJosh Perkins 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 190 lb (86 kg) RS So Huntington Prep Park Hill, CO
G 10 Alberts, BryanBryan Alberts 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 198 lb (90 kg) RS So Village Christian Northridge, CA
G 2 Beach, JackJack Beach (W)  6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 175 lb (79 kg) So Torrey Pines HS San Diego, CA
F 32 Collins, ZachZach Collins 7 ft 0 in (2.13 m) 230 lb (104 kg) Fr Bishop Gorman HS Las Vegas, NV
F 33 Tillie, KillianKillian Tillie 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 200 lb (91 kg) Fr INSEP Cagnes-sur-Mer, France
F 21 Hachimura, RuiRui Hachimura 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 225 lb (102 kg) Fr Meisei Sendai, Japan
G 23 Norvell, ZachZach Norvell  6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 205 lb (93 kg) Fr Simeon Chicago, IL
C 14 Larsen, JacobJacob Larsen   6 ft 11 in (2.11 m) 227 lb (103 kg) Fr Falkonergårdens Gymnasium
SISU Copenhagen
Holte, Denmark
Head coach
Assistant coach(es)

Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (S) Suspended
  • (I) Ineligible
  • (W) Walk-on

Roster
Last update: February 7, 2016

Depth chart

Pos. Starting 5 Bench 1 Bench 2 Bench 3
C Przemek Karnowski Zach Collins Ryan Edwards
PF Johnathan Williams Killian Tillie Rui Hachimura
SF Jordan Mathews Jeremy Jones
SG Josh Perkins Silas Melson Bryan Alberts Rem Bakamus
PG Nigel Williams-Goss Dustin Triano

Coaching staff

Name Position Year at
Gonzaga
Alma Mater (year)
Mark Few Head Coach 18th Oregon (1987)
Tommy Lloyd Associate Head Coach 16th Whitman (1998)
Donny Daniels Assistant Coach 7th Cal State Fullerton (1976)
Brian Michaelson Assistant Coach 4th Gonzaga (2005)
Ken Bone Special Assistant to the Head Coach 1st Seattle Pacific (1982)
John Jakus Director of Basketball Operations 3rd Trinity International (1999)
Riccardo Fois Director of Analytics 3rd Pepperdine (2009)
Josh Therrien Athletic Trainer 1st Washington State (2007)
Travis Knight Strength & Conditioning Coach 11th Gonzaga (2000)

Schedule and results

Gonzaga's non-conference schedule included a matchup with Washington[15] as well as neutral court games against Tennessee (in Nashville)[16] and Arizona (in Los Angeles).[17] The Zags were invited to play in the AdvoCare Invitational in Florida, where they ultimately played against Quinnipiac, Florida, and Iowa State.[18] Gonzaga played 18 conference games (home-and-home) within a nine-week span, beginning on December 29, 2016.[19] The Zags also played in and won the single-elimination WCC Tournament, which took place March 2–7, 2017 at Orleans Arena in Las Vegas. This year's tournament was the first under a new 3-year contract with that venue.[20][21]

Date
time, TV
Rank# Opponent# Result Record High points High rebounds High assists Site (attendance)
city, state
Exhibition

Oct. 29*
No. 14 Baylor
Secret Scrimmage
T -  -
                - 
Oklahoma City, OK

Nov. 5*
6:00 PM, KHQ
No. 14 West Georgia
Exhibition Game
W 122–76 
 20  Williams-Goss  14  Williams  5  Williams-Goss  McCarthey Athletic Center (6,000)
Spokane, WA
Non-conference regular season

Nov. 11*
6:00 PM, RTNW/KHQ
No. 14 Utah Valley W 92–69  1–0
 17  Melson  9  Tillie  6  Williams-Goss  McCarthey Athletic Center (6,000)
Spokane, WA

Nov. 14*
9:00 PM, ESPN2
No. 14 San Diego State
College Hoops Tip-Off Marathon
W 69–48  2–0
 17  Mathews  10  Tillie  3  Williams-Goss  McCarthey Athletic Center (6,000)
Spokane, WA

Nov. 18*
5:30 PM, KHQ/RTNW
No. 14 Bryant W 109–70  3–0
 22  Karnowski  8  Tied  5  Williams-Goss  McCarthey Athletic Center (6,000)
Spokane, WA

Nov. 24*
3:30 PM, ESPN2
No. 11 vs. Quinnipiac
AdvoCare Invitational Quarterfinals
W 82–62  4–0
 13  Tied  8  Karnowski  8  Williams-Goss  HP Field House (1,949)
Bay Lake, FL

Nov. 25*
6:30 PM, ESPNU
No. 11 vs. Florida
AdvoCare Invitational Semifinals
W 77–72  5–0
 18  Perkins  6  Tillie  3  3 Tied  HP Field House (2,941)
Bay Lake, FL

Nov. 27*
10:30 AM, ESPN
No. 11 vs. No. 21 Iowa State
AdvoCare Invitational Championship
W 73–71  6–0
 18  Williams-Goss  8  Karnowski  5  Tied  HP Field House (2,305)
Bay Lake, FL

Dec. 1*
6:00 PM, KHQ/RTNW
No. 8 Mississippi Valley State W 97–63  7–0
 15  Tied  9  Tied  5  Williams-Goss  McCarthey Athletic Center (6,000)
Spokane, WA

Dec. 3*
2:30 PM, ESPN
No. 8 vs. No. 16 Arizona
HoopHall LA
W 69–62  8–0
 18  Karnowski  8  Collins  3  Williams-Goss  Staples Center 
Los Angeles, CA

Dec. 7*
8:00 PM, ESPN2
No. 8 Washington W 98–71  9–0
 23  Williams-Goss  8  Karnowski  5  Tied  McCarthey Athletic Center (6,000)
Spokane, WA

Dec. 10*
5:00 PM, RTNW/KHQ
No. 8 Akron W 61–43  10–0
 14  Karnowski  8  Karnowski  5  Williams-Goss  McCarthey Athletic Center (6,000)
Spokane, WA

Dec. 18*
1:00 M, ESPN2
No. 8 vs. Tennessee
Nashville Showcase
W 86–76  11–0
 20  Williams-Goss  9  Tied  8  Williams-Goss  Bridgestone Arena (13,784)
Nashville, TN

Dec. 21*
6:00 PM, RTNW/KHQ
No. 7 South Dakota W 102–65  12–0
 21  Collins  9  Williams-Goss  5  Tied  McCarthey Athletic Center (6,000)
Spokane, WA
WCC regular season

Dec. 29
6:00 PM, RTNW/KHQ
No. 7 Pepperdine W 92–62  13–0
(1–0)
 16  Tied  7  Tied  8  Perkins  McCarthey Athletic Center (6,000)
Spokane, WA

Dec. 31
5:00 PM, RTNW/KHQ
No. 7 at Pacific W 81–61  14–0
(2–0)
 19  Karnowski  6  Tied  7  Karnowski  Alex G. Spanos Center (2,859)
Stockton, CA

Jan. 5
6:00 PM, ESPN2
No. 5 at San Francisco W 95–80  15–0
(3–0)
 36  Williams-Goss  11  Williams-Goss  6  Tied  War Memorial Gymnasium (3,814)
San Francisco, CA

Jan. 12
6:00 PM, RTNW/KHQ
No. 5 Loyola Marymount W 93–55  16–0
(4–0)
 17  Karnowski  9  Collins  5  Tied  McCarthey Athletic Center (6,000)
Spokane, WA

Jan. 14
7:00 PM, ESPN2
No. 5 No. 21 Saint Mary's W 79–56  17–0
(5–0)
 19  Williams-Goss  6  Karnowski  6  Williams-Goss  McCarthey Athletic Center (6,000)
Spokane, WA

Jan. 19
8:00 PM, ESPNU
No. 4 at Santa Clara W 88–57  18–0
(6–0)
 19  Karnowski  10  Williams-Goss  4  Perkins  Leavey Center (4,738)
Santa Clara, CA

Jan. 21
5:00 PM, RTNW/KHQ
No. 4 Portland W 73–52  19–0
(7–0)
 15  Williams-Goss  9  Collins  6  Perkins  McCarthey Athletic Center (6,000)
Spokane, WA

Jan. 23
5:00 PM, RTNW/KHQ
No. 3 at Portland W 83–64  20–0
(8–0)
 13  Collins  7  Williams  5  Karnowski  Chiles Center (4,852)
Portland, OR

Jan. 26
6:00 PM, RTNW/KHQ
No. 3 San Diego W 79–43  21–0
(9–0)
 25  Williams-Goss  12  Williams  5  Tied  McCarthey Athletic Center (6,000)
Spokane, WA

Jan. 28
7:00 PM, ESPN2
No. 3 at Pepperdine W 96–49  22–0
(10–0)
 16  Karnowski  7  Williams  8  Williams-Goss  Firestone Fieldhouse (3,104)
Malibu, CA

Feb. 2
8:00 PM, ESPN2
No. 1 at BYU W 85–75  23–0
(11–0)
 33  Williams-Goss  8  3 Tied  4  3 Tied  Marriott Center (18,987)
Provo, UT

Feb. 4
7:00 PM, ESPN2
No. 1 Santa Clara W 90–55  24–0
(12–0)
 16  Mathews  8  Collins  8  Perkins  McCarthey Athletic Center (6,000)
Spokane, WA

Feb. 9
7:00 PM, RTNW/KHQ
No. 1 at Loyola Marymount W 90–60  25–0
(13–0)
 19  Williams-Goss  11  Williams-Goss  3  Perkins  Gersten Pavilion (4,156)
Los Angeles, CA

Feb. 11
5:15 PM, ESPN
No. 1 at No. 20 Saint Mary's
College GameDay
W 74–64  26–0
(14–0)
 19  Karnowski  9  Tied  3  Williams-Goss  McKeon Pavilion (3,500)
Moraga, CA

Feb. 16
6:00 PM, RTNW/KHQ
No. 1 San Francisco W 96–61  27–0
(15–0)
 30  Williams-Goss  11  Williams  7  Williams-Goss  McCarthey Athletic Center (6,000)
Spokane, WA

Feb. 18
1:00 PM, RTNW/KHQ
No. 1 Pacific W 82–61  28–0
(16–0)
 18  Williams-Goss  11  Williams  7  Williams-Goss  McCarthey Athletic Center (6,000)
Spokane, WA

Feb. 23
7:00 PM, RTNW/KHQ
No. 1 at San Diego W 96–38  29–0
(17–0)
 15  Tied  19  Williams  6  Perkins  Jenny Craig Pavilion 
San Diego, CA

Feb. 25
7:00 PM, ESPN
No. 1 BYU L 71–79  29–1
(17–1)
 19  Williams-Goss  12  Williams  3  Williams-Goss  McCarthey Athletic Center 
Spokane, WA
WCC Tournament

Mar. 4
7:00 PM, ESPN2
(1) No. 4 vs. (9) Pacific
Quarterfinals
W 82–50  30–1
 22  Mathews  9  Karnowski  4  Williams-Goss  Orleans Arena (7,315)
Paradise, NV

Mar. 6
6:00 PM, ESPN
(1) No. 4 vs. (4) Santa Clara
Semifinals
W 77–68  31–1
 25  Williams-Goss  8  Williams-Goss  5  Williams-Goss  Orleans Arena (8,712)
Paradise, NV

Mar. 7
6:00 PM, ESPN
(1) No. 4 vs. (2) No. 19 Saint Mary's
Championship game
W 74–56  32–1
 22  Williams-Goss  10  Karnowski  6  Williams-Goss  Orleans Arena (8,179)
Paradise, NV
NCAA Tournament

Mar. 16*
11:00 AM, TBS
(1 W) No. 2 vs. (16 W) South Dakota State
First Round
W 66–46  33–1
 16  Mathews  14  Williams  4  Williams-Goss  Vivint Smart Home Arena (16,952)
Salt Lake City, UT

Mar. 18*
2:15 PM, CBS
(1 W) No. 2 vs. (8 W) Northwestern
Second Round
W 79–73  34–1
 20  Williams-Goss  8  Williams-Goss  4  Williams-Goss  Vivint Smart Home Arena (18,565)
Salt Lake City, UT

Mar. 23*
4:39 PM, TBS
(1 W) No. 2 vs. (4 W) No. 13 West Virginia
Sweet Sixteen
W 61–58  35–1
 13  3 Tied  7  Williams-Goss  2  Tied  SAP Center (16,884)
San Jose, CA

Mar. 25*
3:09 PM, TBS
(1 W) No. 2 vs. (11 W) Xavier
Elite Eight
W 83–59  36–1
 23  Williams-Goss  8  Tied  4  Williams-Goss  SAP Center (17,011)
San Jose, CA

Apr. 1*
3:09 PM, CBS
(1 W) No. 2 vs. (7 E) South Carolina
Final Four
W 77–73  37–1
 23  Williams-Goss  13  Collins  6  Williams-Goss  University of Phoenix Stadium (77,612)
Glendale, AZ

Apr. 3*
6:20 PM, CBS
(1 W) No. 2 vs. (1 S) North Carolina
National Championship
L 65–71  37–2
 15  Williams-Goss  9  Tied  6  Williams-Goss  University of Phoenix Stadium (76,168)
Glendale, AZ
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. W=West Region, E=East Region, S=South Region.
All times are in Pacific Time.

Rankings

Ranking movements
Legend: ██ Increase in ranking. ██ Decrease in ranking.
NR = Not ranked. RV = Received votes. ( ) = First place votes.
Week
Poll Pre 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 Final 
AP 14 11 11 8 8 8 7 7 5 5 4 3 1 1 1 1 4 4 2 Not released 
Coaches 13 14 11 8 8 8 7 6 4 5 4 3 1 1 1 1 4 4 2 2

*AP does not release post-NCAA tournament rankings

Notes

    References

    1. 1 2 "2016-17 WCC Men’s Basketball Preseason Poll, All-WCC Team Unveiled | News". | Official Athletics Site. Retrieved 2017-01-10.
    2. "Cal's Jordan Mathews To Transfer To Gonzaga". June 23, 2016.
    3. "Zach Collins commits to Zags". March 16, 2015.
    4. "French forward Killian Tillie commits to Gonzaga". August 29, 2015.
    5. "Gonzaga men add Zach Norvell, another top 100 recruit". November 2, 2015.
    6. "Gonzaga adds Jacob Larsen, another big man from Europe". November 12, 2015.
    7. "Zags sign Japanese forward Rui Hachimura". November 20, 2015.
    8. "Kispert commits to Gonzaga". November 20, 2015.
    9. "Karnowski Decides to Return for 2016-17 season". May 24, 2016.
    10. "Gonzaga's Przemek Karnowski needs back surgery, out for season". December 31, 2015.
    11. "Priorities of a point guard – Gonzaga recruit Jesse Wade puts basketball on hold for LDS mission". January 24, 2015.
    12. "Larsen Suffers Season-Ending Knee Injury" (Press release). Gonzaga Bulldogs. October 7, 2016.
    13. "Walk-on Jack Beach isn't suited up. He is redshirting". November 11, 2016.
    14. Meehan, Jim (February 7, 2017). "Gonzaga redshirt Zach Norvell Jr. maintains positive attitude, work ethic". The Spokesman-Review. Spokane, WA.
    15. "UW, Gonzaga to renew series Dec. 7 in Spokane". April 13, 2016.
    16. "Barnes: Top-10 programs need top-10 schedules". May 11, 2016.
    17. "Staples Center to Host First-Ever Hoophall LA". April 27, 2016.
    18. "Gonzaga, Iowa St, Miami, Florida, Stanford, Seton Hall, Indiana St, & Quinnpiac are in the 2016 Orlando Classic, sources told @CBSSports.". October 29, 2015.
    19. "WCC’s scheduling experiment will end". January 26, 2016.
    20. "2016–17 Championship Schedule". Archived from the original on April 8, 2015. Retrieved April 8, 2015.
    21. "West Coast Conference, Orleans Arena Announce Three-Year Extension". May 12, 2016.
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