SPOKANE, Wash. -- When the Gonzaga Bulldogs returned to campus from San Diego last Sunday, there were 500 students waiting in line for tickets to Saturday's game against archrival Pepperdine.

"Students had brought couches and sleeping bags and TVs down," said star guard Dan Dickau. "They were playing video games. It was pretty unbelievable to see."

The No. 8 Bulldogs will be playing their most important home game of the season against Pepperdine, and tickets to the 4,000-seat Martin Centre are scarce.

But home sellouts have long been the norm for Gonzaga. A new phenomenon this year is playing to big crowds on the road.

From Saint Joseph's to San Diego, the Bulldogs are suddenly a chic, must-see opponent.

"When we watch tapes of opponents we are playing, we see 1,000 people in there, and then when we roll in the game is sold out," Gonzaga coach Mark Few said.

"It's certainly better than the alternative, which is apathy," Few added. "I don't have to talk the guys into getting up for the game. The excitement is already there."

This season, Gonzaga has played to sellouts or near sellouts at Illinois, at the Great Alaska Shootout, at Washington, at Monmouth, at Saint Joseph's, at New Mexico, at Pepperdine and at San Diego. The Bulldogs drew 4,600 in Los Angeles for a neutral site game against Fresno State.

While they are no threat to Duke or Kentucky as a road attraction, the Bulldogs play before an average of 7,114 fans on the road, often drawing a much bigger crowd than the home team is used to seeing.

At Pepperdine, which averages 2,300 fans per game, a crowd of 3,500 showed up at 3,100-seat Firestone Fieldhouse earlier this fall to watch the Waves hand Gonzaga its only West Coast Conference loss of the season. Saturday's rematch gives Gonzaga a chance to tie Pepperdine for the WCC lead.

At Washington, the crowd of 10,000 was 3,400 higher than the season average. The Bulldogs drew 4,700 at Santa Clara, which is averaging only 1,600 fans per game.

At Monmouth, the crowd of 2,500 was the Hawks' first sellout of a season in which they are averaging 1,500 fans a game.

San Diego, averaging 3,100 per game, drew 5,400 for the Bulldogs. Portland drew 4,400 against Gonzaga, but averages only 1,300 this season.

The biggest crowds of the year were 16,500 at Illinois and 17,400 at New Mexico. The Great Alaska Shootout title game between Gonzaga and Marquette, whose campuses are a long way from Anchorage, drew 8,450.

The only Spokane game that wasn't a sellout was Arkansas-Pine Bluff, and that was just 100 fans shy. The Bulldogs average 3,997 fans at home.

Gonzaga has built a nationwide following by reaching at least the round of 16 in the past three NCAA tournaments. The student bookstore ships hats and shirts with the Bulldog logo all over the country. This year's high poll rankings have made things even crazier, Dickau said.

"Other teams want to knock us off that pedestal," Dickau said. "It gets the opposing fans pretty riled up."

Not that he minds.

"I like to go into tough places and play tough games," Dickau said. "It's more fun and more of a challenge."

Each Gonzaga player gets four tickets to each home game, and Dickau's Pepperdine allotment is long spoken for.

"If I go anywhere in Spokane, people ask for tickets," Dickau said. "Sorry, it doesn't work like that."