Don't hate Drew Timme: Five reasons to love Gonzaga forward in his last push for Final Four

Don't hate on Drew Timme. 

The Gonzaga senior forward — yeah, the one with the handlebar mustache who has played college basketball forever — is one of the most-polarizing players in the country. 

Timme scored 36 points with 13 rebounds to No. 3 Gonzaga past No. 2 UCLA in a 79-76 thriller on Thursday. Now, the Bulldogs will take on No. 4 UConn in the Elite Eight on Saturday at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas (8:49 p.m. ET, CBS).

He is sure to factor in that result and trend on social media along the way. You either love the smooth footwork in the post and max-effort rebounding, or you hate the gratuitous flexing and how he effortlessly slims in NSFW language in post-game interviews. 

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Either way, you can't ignore Timme in the 2023 NCAA Tournament. 

"He delivers in the NCAA Tournament," Gonzaga coach Mark Few said after the Bulldogs beat TCU 84-81 in the second round. "I just think he's going to go down, when you really think about all his accomplishments, as one of the all-time great college players in the history of the game." 

Here are five good reasons not to hate on Timme heading into the Sweet 16: 

Drew Timme makes 20-point games look easy

Gonzaga's all-time leading scorer (2,294 career points) broke the record for most 20-point games in the NCAA Tournament against the Bruins. He now has scored 20 or more points 10 times in tournament games. 

MORE: Ranking the Sweet 16, from 1 (Alabama) to 16 (Princeton)

"That's who he is and what he does," Few said. "He shines on any stage, actually. It's not like he's not getting 20-point games when he plays for us regularly." 

Drew Timme in NCAA Tournament

Seven other players in NCAA history to have nine 20-point games in the tournament. The other six are Princeton's Bill Bradley, UConn's Richard Hamilton, Houston's Elvin Hayes, Kansas' Danny Manning, Michigan's Glen Rice and Arkansas' Corliss Williamson. 

MORE: UCLA vs. Gonzaga odds, prediction, betting trends

Drew Timme could join the 300-point club 

Timme has 289 points in NCAA Tournament play, and he is close to joining another exclusive group. Here is a look at the players with at least 300 career points in the NCAA Tournament. 

Timme is tied with Notre Dame legend Austin Carr, who scored 289 points in 

NCAA Tournament career points 

Timme is in his 13th tournament game. He has averaged 24 points per game in NCAA play, numbers that are on par with Rice at Michigan. It's worth noting Timme would be higher on this list had the 2020 NCAA Tournament not been canceled because of COVID-19. 

Gonzaga had a 31-2 record that season and Timme was averaging 9.8 points per game as a freshman. That list of players with 275 points or more is full of college basketball legends. There is no question that Timme belongs. 

Drew Timme is a perfect college villain 

Sporting News made a list of the most hated players in college basketball history in 2017. Christian Laettner and Tyler Hansbrough were on that list too, and they are members of the 300-points-or-more club. When you hang around in college and have success, that is going to attract the haters. 

Nobody will ever touch Laettner in terms of both accomplishments and haters, but Timme fits the description, perhaps more than former Gonzaga star Adam Morrison.  

MORE: Inside the 'One Shining Moment' ad with Adam Morrison, Greg Oden & more

It's good to have a villain in the NCAA Tournament. Laettner and Hansbrough, however, won national championships. 

Drew Timme can finish Gonzaga's Cinderella epic

A title would validate Timme's career more than anything else. Gonzaga is 121-12 the last four seasons, and the bracket buster-turned-blue-blood program continues to get closer to a national championship. Timme was part of the team that finished 31-1 and made the championship game in 2021 before losing 86-70 to Baylor. 

When asked about his personal success after the victory against UCLA, Timme put the focus on the team. 

"We're not worried about when my last game is or this or that," Timme said. "It doesn't matter. One game at a time. Final Four's a long 40 minutes away, long 40 minutes. You can't even think about that." 

Drew Timme's NBA future can wait

Timme told The Athletic on Feb. 27 that he would not return for a fifth season that was granted to players because of the COVID-19 pandemic. That means Timme will move on to the NBA, where he also will be a polarizing prospect. 

TSN has a second-round draft projection for Timme. Kyle Irving writes: 

"Timme is a college basketball star but he's not the type of moldable prospect that NBA teams would use a first-round pick on. His ceiling is limited but because of his proven skill, effort and winner's mentality, some team will likely take a swing on him in the second round." 

That is a reasonable expectation. In the meantime, it is OK to enjoy what is left of a fantastic collegiate career without worrying about what Timme will do at the next level. Chances are he's going to be remembered more for what he did in college anyway, just like Laettner and Hansbrough. Those are the players who make the NCAA Tournament that much more exciting. It's fun to root for players. Sometimes it's even more entertaining to root against them.

That's why you should love Drew Timme on his way out.