SAN JOSE, Calif. (AP) – Like a top soccer team, Gonzaga built a title contender by dipping into the transfer market.
Point guard Nigel Williams-Goss arrived from Washington, forward Johnathan Williams from Missouri and guard Jordan Matthews from California.
Add in 300-pound, 7-foot-1 Polish center Przemek Karnowski and guard Josh Perkins, both granted extra seasons because of injuries, and the Zags’ starters made some of the most interesting journeys to the Pacific Northwest since Lewis and Clark.
And what better place for Gonzaga to lose that chip on its shoulder than Silicon Valley?
“We’re all here for a reason, right,” Perkins said in the corner of the locker room, sitting under the West Regional championship trophy. Saturday’s 83-59 manhandling of Xavier earned the Zags their first trip to the Final Four semifinal matchup against Florida or South Carolina next weekend.