The moment of truth is coming for Gonzaga. 

Or.  

I should say moments, plural. 

The Zags face a genuine gauntlet in their final six West Coast Conference games, and their fate regarding the NCAA tournament almost surely will be decided between Thursday night (when they host San Francisco) and the close of the conference season on March 1. 

Never mind the conference tournament, which won’t matter unless the Zags are truly collapsing and need to win the thing just to make the NCAA field at all. 

Only one game of this last six would normally set up as a breather — the Zags host Pepperdine this Saturday night, a team they’ve beaten 47 straight times. 

And yet. 

Gonzaga nearly blew a 20-point lead against the Waves in the league opener at Malibu, needing a flurry of late free throws from Khalif Battle to hang on, 89-82. 

This team, to quote Forrest Gump, “is like a box of chocolates.  

“You never know what you’re going to get.” 

Gonzaga has been shakier in conference play than we’ve seen in a while. 

A LONG while. 

Mark Few called out his guys for lack of “effort and toughness” after losses at Oregon State and at home to Santa Clara (a game in which the Zags surrendered 103 points, a Kennel record for visitors). 

SO, HOW might we expect these final six to play out? 

Few got a good response in a couple of victories, then the Zags lost a rock fight at Saint Mary’s in a game they led deep into the second half. 

That one basically handed the Gaels a conference regular-season title. 

Now Gonzaga is playing to establish some credentials with an NCAA tourney committee that probably looks unfavorably at an 0-7 record in close games. 

An interesting note: Ken Pomeroy, who uses a super computer to rank all the nation’s Division I teams, has a measurement called “Luck.” 

I have no idea how KenPom’s algorithms rate that item, but the Zags sit at 352nd in a total field of 364 teams. 

Now that’s spooky.

Try these curiosities that might lead to that “luck” number: West Virgina won in OT after trailing by five with 18 seconds left (and the Zags with the ball); Kentucky rallied from 20 down to win in OT, snapping the Zags’ streak of 175 victories when they’ve led by 10 or more at the half; and Santa Clara somehow hit 12 of 17 treys (a few unconscious) in the second half at the Kennel. 

FYI, KenPom ranks Gonzaga at No. 13 overall, although the Associated Press panel of voters doesn’t buy it. 

The Zags are nowhere in the AP poll, and sit No. 39 as the very last team to get any votes (five). 

Few would tell you his team still has talent, particularly with Ryan Nembhard leading the nation in assists and post players Graham Ike and Braden Huff combining to average 28 points per game. 

That’s usually a winning formula at Gonzaga, but it’s gone missing at the strangest times this season. 

Meanwhile, Few’s urging will need to inject more of his team’s newfound defensive energy through all six games. 

THE ZAGS should know right away how this stretch run might go, since San Francisco has now tied them for second in the WCC. 

Gonzaga and the Dons each have three losses, and Saint Mary’s only conference loss to date came at The Hilltop. 

If USF wins in the Kennel, the Zags’ NET ranking might plummet from No. 14 — and that’s a measurement that the NCAA tournament committee most definitely puts to use. 

After Thursday night’s gut check and the rematch with Pepperdine, the Zags play down the road at Wazzu, then meet Saint Mary’s at home. 

Finally, there’s a brutal Bay Area trip to finish, Santa Clara first and up to San Francisco on the first day of March. 

Few’s players believe in themselves, despite some evidence that might make you wonder. 

“When we tighten up and play our game, we can beat anyone in the country,” said Ike. 

“Now it’s time to do it.” 

You hear that and look at the roster (Gonzaga somehow has six players averaging in double figures), and you think maybe we’re going to see these guys run the table. 

On the other hand, they could go 3-3. 

If it falls that way, Few will never look at a box of chocolates again. 

Email: scameron@cdapress.com 

Steve Cameron’s “Cheap Seats” columns appear in The Press three times each week, normally Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday unless, you know, stuff happens. 

Steve suggests you take his opinions in the spirit of a Jimmy Buffett song: “Breathe In, Breathe Out, Move On.”