Michael Ajayi was a late bloomer who didn’t make the high school varsity team until his senior season.
He grinded through two junior college seasons near Tacoma, earned one Division I offer from Pepperdine and blossomed into an All-West Coast Conference player last season. Roughly 51 weeks ago, he announced his transfer to Gonzaga, three days before the Zags lost to Purdue in the Sweet 16.
At the other end of the spectrum, Khalif Battle has played at four different D-I schools spanning six collegiate seasons and 134 career games, just behind Ben Gregg’s team-leading 139 and Nolan Hickman’s 137.
Ajayi and Battle will achieve a career milestone when they suit up for their first NCAA Tournament game Thursday against Georgia in Wichita. Freshman center Ismaila Diagne is also a newcomer to March Madness.
“It feels amazing man,” said Ajayi, shortly after the tournament bracket was announced Sunday. “I always dreamed about this moment as a little kid going to the tournament.”
It’s one of the main reasons Ajayi opted to transfer to Gonzaga.
“Ultimately, yeah,” he said. “I just wanted to win and get to the tournament, that was my goal and my dream. I feel like everybody wants to get to the tournament and play against the best of the best.”
Twenty-five wins later, Ajayi will experience March Madness in person instead of watching it on television. So will Battle, after previous stops at Butler, Temple and Arkansas.
“It’s exciting,” said Gregg, who leads the team with 12 NCAA Tournament games on his resume. Thursday will make 13, joining Corey Kispert, Drew Timme and Przemek Karnowski for fourth on GU’s all-time list.
“I know how special this moment is and that’s why I don’t take any of it for granted,” Gregg added. “We’re one of 68 to have this opportunity to play. I’m super excited for these guys to experience it and we have a lot of veteran guys that been through it and can help them out.”
Senior point guard Ryan Nembhard is 4 for 4, with an asterisk, in making the NCAA Tournament, two at Creighton and two at Gonzaga. Creighton made the 2022 tournament in his freshman year, but he was sidelined late in the regular season after undergoing right wrist surgery.
The Bluejays made it to the Elite Eight in his sophomore year before a heartbreaking 57-56 loss to San Diego State. If Nembhard had any jitters prior to his first NCAA Tournament game, he hid them well.
“I was super excited for my first tourney,” said Nembhard, who had 10 points, three assists and zero turnovers in 38 minutes in a win over North Carolina State. “Something you dream of since you’re a little kid.
“We were in Denver, good game, came out with the ‘dub.’ Close game all game, we ended up pulling away late.”
Nembhard, who scored 30 points in a second-round win over Baylor, said playing in March Madness is unique compared to the regular season and even conference tournaments, from the press conferences to the neutral site atmosphere.
“Different for sure,” he said, “but at the end of the day, it’s just basketball and we have to play another quality opponent.
“I’ll let them do their thing. It’s basketball. There might be some nerves but those will probably be out after the first 4 minutes. They’ve been playing in tough games throughout their careers and this season.”
Ajayi and Battle have become close friends in their first and likely only season at GU — Ajayi does have another season of eligibility — connecting as newcomers in the program going through similar learning curves.
“Man, my first year my teammates weren’t really telling me the ins and outs, so I kind of want them to experience everything on their own,” said Hickman, who has played in 10 NCAA Tournament games. “If they have any questions, I’m going to be right there along the way.
“It’s beautiful for them to get this opportunity, especially for ‘KB’ being his last year and last go-around. It’ll be a great experience for both of them.”
Ajayi has been more productive over the second half of the WCC season, including four consecutive double-digit scoring games. Battle, second on the team at 13.2 points, has averaged 17.5 points in Gonzaga’s four-game winning streak. He snagged eight steals in two WCC Tournament victories and coach Mark Few has pointed out that Battle has made strides defensively.
“I think we just attacked them,” Battle said following the title-game win over Saint Mary’s. “I told coach (Few) I wanted a lot of space to be able to operate. He gave me some space and I was able to make some plays, but everybody stepped up. We wouldn’t be holding this trophy without all of them.”
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