With Star Power Gone, Where Will West Coast Conference Turn?

The 2009 season was one of the more memorable seasons for the West Coast Conference, some more than others.

Gonzaga reached the Sweet Sixteen again. Some said the group of Jeremy Pargo, Matt Bouldin, Austin Daye, Micah Downs and Josh Heytvelt was the best starting five Gonzaga has ever had. They rolled off 28 wins including their eighth WCC title in ten years.

Furthermore, this could have been Gonzaga's best defensive team under Mark Few.

Saint Mary's recorded more wins and postseason wins than in any previous season of Saint Mary's basketball (101 years to be exact). They, too, recorded 28 wins and had two postseason victories (NIT). Those two wins doubles the school's previous record.

What made those 28 wins even more impressive was being without NBA-bound guard Patty Mills for nine games.

The Portland Pilots had a resurrection this season and were a player for the WCC title. Being led by the brother of former Gonzaga guard Derek Raivio, Nik Raivio, the Pilots were invited to the College Basketball Invitational (CBI).

Santa Clara had one of the more dominant big men in college basketball in John Bryant.

As great as the 2009 season was, the 2010 season could be a hugh blow.

Let's start with the key players who have moved on from college basketball:

Gonzaga

G Jeremy Pargo, F Micah Downs, F Austin Daye (early entry), F Josh Heytvelt

Saint Mary's

G Patty Mills (early entry), G Carlin Hughes, F Diamon Simpson, F Ian O'Leary

Portland

All key players return

Santa Clara

C John Bryant

San Diego

C Gyno Pomare, F Rob Jones (transferred)

San Francisco

F Dior Lowhorn

This leaves this conference with few stars and big time players. But some of those players will be San Diego's Brandon Johnson, Gonzaga's Matt Bouldin, and Saint Mary's Omar Samhan.

The team to beat will always be Gonzaga until somebody proves them wrong. Bouldin, Demetri Goodson and Steven Gray will provide plenty of leadership and ability for this Gonzaga team. They won't be top-25 status as they are perennially but they will still be the class of the conference.

Mark Few stayed with Gonzaga despite getting the offer from Arizona. There is something to be said about that. Few has a powerhouse in the Pacific Northwest and nobody is touching that legacy in the WCC.

Portland has a good chance to do mess with the Zags. With the entire team returning, Portland will be a force to be reckoned with. Raivio, Campbell and Erik Stohl, whom I expect big things from, can shoot the lights out of any team. They were also one of the best three-point shooting teams in the nation.

Saint Mary's will be the interesting case. They have not had fewer than 17 wins since 2003. They have the force in the middle with Samhan in the middle but where do you go after that?

Junior Mickey McConnell will be much improved over last season. He stepped in for Mills after the injury and provided some very solid performances, though he struggled in pressure situations.

Red-shirt freshman Tim Williams will be a big key to the teams' success as he will be replacing two-time WCC Defensive Player of the Year Diamon Simpson.

The x-factor for the Gaels will be senior Wayne Hunter. He has shown flashes of being a prominent scorer but has never put it all together. He has always been an active defender and could replace Simpson as the DPOY. But his activity on the offensive end will determine the success in Moraga.

San Diego has large holes but large hearts. The one thing the Toreros have never lacked is grit. With Brandon Johnson returning from his Achilles injury, he could be the best point guard in the conference.

Roberto Mafra and De'Jon Jackson will add to the fire power of the Toreros. This year will also be the first time we will see Bill Grier's recruits and he had one of the better recruiting classes on the West Coast.

San Francisco and Santa Clara are a mess.

SCU is losing players almost everyday. John Bryant graduated and then freshman James Rahon jumped ship. With those two players alone, they lost over 30 points and 16 rebounds per game. Head coach Kerry Keating has not had a winning seaosn since taking over the Broncos.

The Dons are in a slightly better condition. The players from the Jesse Evans era are filtering out and head coach Rex Walters can place his system in without the distraction of a Dior Lowhorn or a Manny Quesada.

As far as Pepperdine and Loyola Marymount... they can only go one direction. Up.

This will be a transition year for the conference and where the next crop of stars come from, we will see. This maybe the year the conference goes back to only one postseason team. But maybe the youth movement is exactly what this conference needs.