Streak has taken on life of its own

When McCarthey Athletic Center rose from the old baseball field at Gonzaga University in 2004, it’s unlikely any of the Bulldogs’ future basketball opponents considered it a no-win proposition.

Not that they ever approach it that way. But that’s how they leave it.

Thirty-three times the Zags have tipped it off in McCarthey and 33 times they’ve won, a relentless run of success that has grown into one of the best in college basketball history, relative to breaking in a new barn. And when coach Mark Few was asked about it Thursday afternoon, his response was predictable:

“You’re not going to jinx it, are you?” he asked.

Well, there is always that possibility. More likely an opposing team will have more to say about it than superstition, karma or newspaper voodoo, and perhaps no team more so than the University of Washington Huskies, who get another crack at the Zags and history here Saturday night. Thirteenth in one poll and eighth in another, the Huskies are the first ranked team to visit since … the Huskies, victim No. 4 when they were ranked 14th back in 2004.

And, yes, that limited representation from the Top 25 is one element of the streak. But there are many others.

Including luck.

“We’ve had some close games – some really close ones,” said GU forward Sean Mallon. “As many as we’ve won, there’s bound to be some luck involved.”

We’ll reference the West Coast Conference championship game of last March, when Loyola Marymount’s Chris Ayer doinked a wide-open layup that allowed the Zags to escape with a 68-67 victory.

But whether by blowout or blind luck, against UConn or UCan’t, 33 in a row is hell of a run.

Only three other college arenas have opened to more sustained success – UCLA’s Pauley Pavilion (51), what is now Dunkin’ Donuts Center in Providence (41) and Pittsburgh’s snazzy Petersen Events Center (34). Just last month, the Zags passed Houston and its streak of 30 at Hofheinz Pavilion 35 years ago.

Those 33 wins are part of a longer streak of 44 home victories dating back to the Zags’ days in the old Kennel, the longest current streak in college basketball – and Few said that “anytime you have No. 1 in the nation behind it, it’s a big deal.”

But it’s always about a streak of the next one.

“More important to us is that it’s our last game in here until January something,” Few said. “Hopefully, you’ll play well and get some success to carry on the road.”

As for the players, Mallon insisted they “don’t really talk about it.

“We haven’t had to. We know the advantage we have in here – the noise, the fans, the energy. That’s the important part. We don’t think about the streak itself.”

The fact that they’ve had any number of opportunities to cave under self-imposed pressure to sustain it may validate him, though common sense would suggest otherwise. Syracuse coach Jim Boeheim felt that way when his team slowed the pace and dared Pittsburgh to shoot 3s in ending the run at Petersen with a 49-46 overtime victory in 2004.

“When you have a streak going,” he said, “you’re going to think about it. It’s human nature.”

It’s human nature, too, to assume that the longest arena-opening streaks were fashioned by traditional powers – and it’s not always so. When Rupp Arena opened in 1976, Kentucky was upset in the fifth game by Utah. Same at Indiana, where Wisconsin won with Assembly Hall only four games old. Duke (nine), Kansas (seven) and Arizona (two) never really got up any steam, and Cincinnati lost its second game at what’s now Fifth Third Arena to Miami, Ohio.

Naturally, a run in the ACC is going to be more risky than in the WCC, but even with the scheduling limitations they have, the Zags have played three NCAA tournament and four NIT teams at McCarthey. And it’s not as if the rest haven’t had motivation.

“Everybody,” admitted UW guard Brandon Burmeister, “would like to be the team that broke the streak.”

A streak is a testament to great teams first of all, but also to loud and loyal fans who Few and the Bulldogs never fail to applaud. Mallon sees students camping in the snow outside McCarthey to position themselves for the best seats and feels he’s part of something special.

Few sees them and feels “obligated.

“Obligated to make sure our guys play as hard as they can. Obligated to make sure we’re as prepared and ready as we can be.”

And that’s pressure. But not the only kind.

“We just have to go in there and get a ‘W’ without worrying about the streak,” Burmeister said. “Trying to get a ‘W’ on the road in a hostile environment, that’s enough pressure.”

But it’s never a no-win proposition, no matter how it appears.