Tonight at 9:40 p.m. ET, the final game of the NCAA Tournament's first weekend tips off when the West's No. 1 seed Arizona Wildcats face off with the Gonzaga Bulldogs on TBS. Live stream the matchup for free by clicking this link; 'Zona fans can hear the action on 1290 AM The Source, while Gonzaga fans can listen in on AM 880 KIXI.
Gonzaga is in a far different position than they were a year ago, when Kelly Olynyk led them to a No. 1 seed. This year they're a No. 8 seed that many people had out vs. Oklahoma State. The Bulldogs showed a ton of heart against Marcus Smart's Cowboys, and now they loom as a scary threat to this year's No. 1 seed, Arizona.
"There isn't as much pressure," Sam Dower said. "I wouldn't say we're looser; we're more aggressive. We have to be that Wichita State team last year and prove that we can be one of the best teams in the country."
The Wildcats have acknowledged the difference being a top seed can make. "It's a little different than last year as far as being targeted and stuff like that; we've been dealing with that all year," Arizona junior guard Nick Johnson said. "Seems like every single team gives us their best shot. You can see that same team probably a week later and they're not playing nearly as hard and stuff like that. Pretty much all year has (been like that)."
Johnson is the team's lead dog, despite freshman Aaron Gordon getting most of the attention. Johnson was the Pac-12 Player of the Year, averaging 16.3 points 3.9 rebounds and 2.7 assists per game, while knocking down 37 percent of his 3-pointers.
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