Larry "Far from Harry" Ness Free Play: Saint Mary's

PICK: Gonzaga lost 66-65 to Utah on Dec 31 and the Bulldogs were just 8-4. However, their only loss in 2009 (Bulldogs are 17-1) came to Memphis (an ugly 68-50 one) but in case you aren't aware, the Tigers have won a nation-best 22 straight games. PG Pargo (9.3-3.6-5.1) was the WCC's player-of-the-year last season and distributes the ball to a trio of big guards, the 6-5 Bouldin (13.7-3.9-3.2), the 6-5 Gray (9.3) and the 6-8 Downs (9.1-4.3). Up front, it's the 6-11 Heytvelt (14.8-6.7) and the 6-11 Daye (13.1-6.9). Now everyone knows Gonzaga's record. The Bulldogs have won eight of the last 10 WCC tourney titles, losing only to San Diego in the 2003 and 2008 title games. With its 94-59 win on Sunday over Santa Clara, Gonzaga has now reached the WCC championship game for a 12th straight time! St Mary's last won the WCC tourney title back in 1997 and the Gaels have lost 25 of the last 28 meetings in this series, including six times in the WCC tourney. So why will it be any different tonight? It may not be but I still want the points. Guard Patty Mills (18.4) broke two bones in his right hand back on Jan 29, when St Mary's lost 69-62 at Gonzaga (Gaels were in control, prior to the injury). That loss saw the Gales go on a 1-4 slide but since winning on Feb 14, St Mary's has won six straight, including last night's 10-point win over Portland, in which Mills returned. The sophomore guard scored 12 points last night and I expect him to be even better tonight. St Mary's doesn't have Gonzaga's depth but in the 6-11 Samhan (13.6-9.3) and the terrific 6-7 Simpson (13.6-120.8), the Gaels can 'hang' with the Bulldogs. Gonzaga connected on a season-high 13 three-pointers last night and led by as many as 40 points. However, leading scorer Josh Heytvelt was held to a season-low three points and is averaging just 8.7 PPG over his last three games. Maybe I'm "spitting into the wind," but I'm taking the points.