Team preview: Gonzaga

Blue Ribbon Yearbook previews the 2005-06 college basketball season, exclusively on Insider.

Updated: November 1, 2005, 10:48 AM ET
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(Information in this team report is as of October 1.)

COACH AND PROGRAM

No admission will be forthcoming, at least from the man in charge, but heading into the 2004-2005 season, maybe for the first time in Mark Few's tenure as head coach, Gonzaga faced the season with a little anxiety.

There was no experienced point guard, no experienced perimeter scoring and the loss of an all-conference center to contend with. For the first time in Few' s six seasons he would be relying largely on youth instead of the upper-class dominated lineup he had been used to fielding.

True, he did have all-conference forward Ronny Turiaf returning, and many of the players that were expected to transition from role players to starters did have some experience.

But until they were actually out on the court, the coaching staff had no idea what to expect from its young charges.

"Last year, we were a very young team," Gonzaga assistant Bill Grier said. "Other than Turiaf, between [Adam] Morrison, [Derek] Raivio and [Sean] Mallon we didn't have much experience. We lost five seniors and a lot of talent in that bunch."

But as everyone was soon to find out, the kids were all right.


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