If you must, here's why Gonzaga can still be questioned

Gonzaga is an exceptional basketball team that's certainly worthy of the No. 1 seed it was given by the selection committee. And Mark Few is an incredible coach who has led the program to its first Final Four ever.

Despite this successful run, people are still lining up to question just how good the Bulldogs actually are. If you're one of those people, this is probably the best argument you can use to prove the point.

It's a debate had in the college basketball world about the team from Spokane every year, as the Bulldogs annually roll through the weak West Coast Conference schedule.

This year, the Bulldogs ripped through an impressive non-conference slate, posting wins over Florida, Iowa State, and Arizona, and winning every conference game by double digits other than the loss to BYU to end the regular season.

When taking a closer look, however, there are holes in Gonzaga's resume.

Here's how the Bulldogs' entire season has broken down, using Ken Pomeroy's ranking system against the other Final Four teams:

Pomeroy has Gonzaga as the top team in the country, but the average rank of the Bulldogs' opponents this season is far worse than any of the other teams in the Final Four. With only 10 wins over top-75 teams, the program falls well behind the other teams in that category as well.

A run to the Final Four would surely quell any further questions about the team, though, right?

Wrong. If anything, Gonzaga's opponents have only added to the intrigue surrounding its resume.

After the usual No. 1 over No. 16 beatdown in Round 1, the Bulldogs struggled mightily with a Northwestern team making its first-ever NCAA tournament appearance. They benefited from an absolutely terrible missed goaltending call late in the game that would have brought the Wildcats to within three points. Instead, Northwestern head coach Chris Collins was hit with a technical foul for arguing, and the Bulldogs escaped with a win.

That set up a date with West Virginia, the only team Gonzaga has faced in the tournament that's ranked in Ken Pomeroy's top 25. The Mountaineers somehow managed to make an abysmal 26.7 percent of their field goals against the Bulldogs, and still only lost by three points. Bob Huggins' program usually makes 45 percent from the field, and while the Gonzaga defense should be commended, many of those misses were on wide-open shots.

Awaiting Gonzaga in the Elite Eight was ... Xavier? The Musketeers barely made the NCAA tournament after losing six of their last seven games in the regular season, but went on a magical run to knock out No. 6 Maryland, No. 3 Florida State, and No. 2 Arizona. Xavier essentially plays only seven players, and its upset run clearly took a toll on the roster. Gonzaga pounded them in impressive fashion to make the first Final Four in school history.

Following the first round, here's the rank of opponents Gonzaga and South Carolina have faced.

There's no doubt Gonzaga is a very good basketball team, and has been a strong program for years. There's some doubt, however, as to whether the Bulldogs can truly be the best team in the country playing in such a weak conference.

Luckily for all those involved, there are two games left in the season with which Gonzaga can end that debate forever.