Gonzaga Having 'Conversations' with Big 12 Commissioner amid Expansion Rumors

Gonzaga is on the Big 12's radar.

"I like Gonzaga," Big 12 Commissioner Brett Yormark told reporters before the men's conference tournament. "Obviously a great program. My focus right now is to see what happens throughout our industry. There's a lot of moving parts. I continue to have conversations with Gonzaga."

Yormark also said he believes "the strength of this conference in basketball, I think, is unrivaled," which is notable given what he said the league is looking for in expansion targets.

"It's gotta be a good cultural fit first and foremost," he said. "Obviously, we look at geography. We want to be a truly national conference from a brand perspective and geographic footprint."

There aren't many realistic programs to target for expansion that would bolster a league's basketball standing more than Gonzaga. The Bulldogs are among the top teams in the nation on a seemingly yearly basis under head coach Mark Few and just defeated Saint Mary's by 26 points on Tuesday to win the WCC tournament title game for the fourth straight season.

This season will mark Gonzaga's 24th consecutive NCAA men's tournament appearance, and it has reached the national championship game twice, the Elite Eight five times and the Sweet 16 a total of 12 times during that span.

Both of the national championship game appearances came in the last seven years as the program continues to get closer to that elusive title.

The Big 12 will undergo radical changes in the coming years, with the departure of powerhouse football programs in Texas and Oklahoma to the SEC and the addition of BYU, Cincinnati, Houston, and UCF.

Cincinnati and Houston, in particular, have strong basketball histories, and a focus on the sport while football has driven much of the conference realignment discussion would be notable.

A conference with Kansas, Gonzaga, Baylor, Houston and Kansas State, among others, would be a force on the hardwood, and it is clear Yormark is proud of the league's stature in the sport.

The Bulldogs would only add to that stature.