Josh Horton on the WCC's most meaningful talents

From Josh Horton's most recent post about the most meaningful talents in the West Coast Conference for the coming season:

Pacific – T.J. Wallace

Pacific’s entire starting lineup has departed from the Tigers roster, meaning one or more players will need to step up for Pacific to win games in the WCC this season.

While there are many other candidates, T.J. Wallace – a player who was in and out of the Tigers line-up last season – appears next in line to become a star at Pacific.

Sure, he made some mistakes, but Wallace’s performance last season was promising. He showed he could compete at the Division I level on the defensive and offensive ends of the court.

Pacific Head Coach Ron Verlin has already indicated he plans on playing Wallace primarily at point guard this season, and the success of the team could hinge on the play on Wallace even more if that is true.

San Francisco – Mark Tollefsen

After coming on strong at the end of his freshman season, Tollefsen became a consistent player for the Dons during the 2013-2014 season. Starting at the forward position, Tollefsen showcased his outside shot and his impressive bounce and proved to be an X-factor at times.

While the Dons excelled last season, finishing tied for second in the conference standings and earning a berth into the NIT, they have the pieces to be even better this upcoming season. If Tollefsen makes the next step, and can play more quality minutes consistently for the team, the Dons will be a matchup nightmare for most teams with Tollefsen’s ability to shoot it from outside and Kruize Pinkins ability to bang down low.

Saint Mary’s – Aaron Bright

In the latter end of the Bennett era, the Gaels have been primarily a point guard driven team. First it was Mills, then it was McConnell, next it was Dellavedova and most recently it was Holt.

For the Gaels to make some noise in the conference this season, Aaron Bright must step up as a team leader and playmaker. Bright showed that ability while at Stanford, and shined during his sophomore season, averaging 11.7 points and 3.7 assists. The Bellevue, Wash. native regressed after that, and will need to replicate or better that sophomore in order to flourish in the Gaels system.