Grab Your Dancing Shoes
03/08/2023
By: Jeff Yoder
#9 Gonzaga Among 8 Teams (Men & Women) to Secure Automatic Bids on Tuesday Night
Everybody knew Gonzaga was going dancing, but the Zags and senior Drew Timme made it official last night. America’s favorite underdog has been in the shadows through the 2022-23 season. There will not be a 1-seed next to Gonzaga’s name in the bracket, and they had to overcome an ugly start to the season. On Tuesday, they were one of four teams celebrating their NCAA Tournament bids.
WCC Final: #9 Gonzaga def. #16 Saint Mary’s (77-51)
Gonzaga pummeled Saint Mary’s to win their 21st conference title on Tuesday night. Senior Drew Timme led the way with 18 points to become the program’s all-time leading scorer, and the Zags are heading into March Madness winners of nine in a row.
Men’s NCAA Tournament Automatic Bids (11)
Four more teams punched their ticket to the Big Dance on Tuesday night to bring the total automatic bid tracker to eight. Charleston (CAA), Oral Roberts (Summit), Northern Kentucky (Horizon), and Gonzaga (WCC) are the newest auto bids. They join Kennesaw State (ASUN), UNC Asheville (Big South), Drake (Missouri Valley), Fairleigh Dickinson (Northeast), Southeast Missouri State (Ohio Valley), Furman (Southern), and Louisiana (Sun Belt). Four more tickets will be claimed tonight, but the power conference tournaments are just tipping off.
Men’s Conference Tournaments
Women’s Big 12 Conference Schedule & Bracket
Women’s NCAA Tournament Automatic Bids (13)
Virginia Tech, South Carolina, UConn, Iowa, Washington State, James Madison, Tennessee Tech, Chattanooga, Saint Louis, Cleveland State, South Dakota State, Gardner-Webb, Portland
Additional Storylines
CBS Sports: Bracketology: What’s at Stake for NCAA Tournament Hopefuls During Conference Tourneys
ESPN: Champ Week Rematches We Want to See: Houston-Memphis, Arizona-UCLA & Purdue’s Revenge on Indiana
Photo: Ethan Miller / Getty Images