A Grip on Sports: An amazing Monday already, as Kyle Smith leaves for Stanford, and even more tonight, as GU hosts Utah in the NCAAs
A GRIP ON SPORTS • How does one know the difference between the usual Monday in March, as today represents, from the average one in, say, December? Besides the lack of snow on the ground, we mean. And the crocuses peaking their heads above the dirt? Why, it’s simple. Lose a basketball game today and your season is over. That isn’t the case in December.
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• Either that, or the idea of a meaningful game is being played on Monday at all might just give away the time of year.
The NCAA understands overlap. How games on the men’s side of their tournament take away from the women’s product – and vice-versa. There is no avoiding it, sure, but there is a way to limit it a bit. And that happens tonight. The last day of women’s second-round games. After the men have finished theirs.
Caitlin Clark and Iowa play tonight, holding down an (almost) unencumbered 5 p.m. PDT time slot on ESPN. USC and UCLA also play tonight, splitting up the Los Angeles market, but the bigger issue being the Bruins game with Creighton running at almost the time (5:30, ESPN2) the Hawkeyes face West Virginia.
There are also two games in the later hours. The aforementioned USC contest, with star freshman JuJu Watkins leading the Trojans against Kansas (7, ESPN) and, in the game that matters most to the basketball fans of Spokane, Utah visiting Gonzaga (7:30, ESPN2).
The Utes offer an interesting look into the evolution of the Pac-12’s season – as well as a peek at what 30 games or so can do to a roster.
Before the year’s first tip, Lynne Roberts’ squad was ranked fifth nationally, trailing only fourth-ranked UCLA on the West Coast. (If you are wondering, the Zags were not in those first Associated Press rankings, despite entering the season with an almost intact roster from a successful year before.)
The first poll taken after action had begun saw the Utes move up to third, what would be their highest ranking of the season. A loss knocked them down six spots, though, being it was by seven points at Sweet Sixteen participant Baylor, that penalty seems even now a bit pejorative.
Their other loss before Pac-12 play began? Against still undefeated – and always ranked No. 1 – South Carolina, a 78-69 decision that shows anyone with eyes just how well the Utes can play. Even more impressive, that neutral site loss in early December came right after Utah lost 6-footer Gianna Kneepkens to a foot injury, costing it one of their best scoring threats.
Without her, the Utes’ offensive attack underwent a metamorphosis, with more put on Alissa Pill’s shoulders. The former Pac-12 freshman of the year (at USC) is more than capable of carrying the load, as her 21-points-per-game average shows. But the Utes still needed to adjust and, without Kneepkens, they’ve been up and down though that may saw more about the strength of their conference than anything. They’ve won home games against USC and UCLA, lost a two-point decision in their one matchup with Stanford and ending the final four games of the regular season with a win at USC but a loss to Washington at home.
That last defeat, which was followed by a second loss to UCLA, this one in the Pac-12 tournament, may have cost the (23-10) Utes a top-four seed. And host duties in the NCAAs.
Which means tonight’s matchup with Gonzaga (31-3) will be in McCarthey. Is that important? It most-certainly should be. Everyone, except maybe South Carolina, which can win anywhere, and Iowa, which seems at home everywhere, welcomes such circumstances with open arms.
• It’s not often we get breaking news that has to be covered as we write, but Kyle Smith is leaving Washington State for Stanford. The news broke on ESPN first. The Cardinal hierarchy confirmed it later with a news release.
Not the most surprising news we’ve ever heard, sure, but still an arrow into the heart of all our WSU friends. And it was in that spot they knew such news was coming, even as they hoped it wouldn’t be true.
There will be a news conference Wednesday. There will be mourning in Pullman a lot longer than that.
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WSU: The Cougars’ season is over. As is the Kyle Smith Era (see above). Just when both were hitting their stride. Greg Woods takes a look back at the Iowa State loss, focusing on just where it went wrong for Washington State. There will be a lot more on the other development throughout the day. … The women are still playing, albeit in the Women’s Basketball Invitation Tournament. They hosted Santa Clara last night and blasted the WCC runners-up 73-47. Peter Harriman has that coverage. … Elsewhere in the Pac-12 and the nation, Michigan decided on a new coach. That may allow other dominoes to fall. Of course, Smith’s name was included in all the speculation and it turned out the speculation was right. … There is a lot of smoke (and fire) around UW’s open coaching position. It centers on Utah State’s Danny Sprinkle. … The Pac-12’s roster of teams still playing fell Sunday, as Colorado fell behind early to Marquette and couldn’t get over the hump. … Arizona is the lone conference team still playing and the Wildcats will face Clemson in Los Angeles on Thursday. … Utah is still playing, though in the NIT, after a 91-82 home win over Iowa. … On the women’s side, Stanford moved on to the Sweet Sixteen, overcoming Iowa State’s hot shooting with an overtime win. Funny, it wasn’t Cameron Brink leading the way. Kiki Iriafen scored 41 points. … Oregon State is playing its best and Nebraska found out just how good that is. The Beavers blocked any shot the Cornhuskers had at moving on, winning in Corvallis. … Colorado is also moving on to the Sweet Sixteen after rolling over Kansas State on the road. … As we mentioned above, there are two games in the L.A. Basin tonight as UCLA hopes to move on and USC puts its No. 1 seed on the line. … In football news, USC is raking in commitments. … We have another Arizona spring preview to pass along, on the special teams.
Gonzaga: Want to know more about tonight’s game in the Kennel? Greg Lee has you covered. Like a warm comforter in December. He has a preview of the matchup as well as the key matchup. Guess what? Pilli is part of the latter. … We wanted to examine something a little different heading into what could be the final games of the GU seniors’ career. We wanted to look at the joy they play with, focused on the Truong sisters. We did just that in this long-winded column. … There is this preview from Utah. … Theo Lawson understands the focus. Purdue. In Detroit on Thursday. A chance to avenge one of the Zags’ nonconference losses. And, more importantly, keep this suddenly impressive season going. But first Theo has to look back at the win over Kansas, the one that moved GU into its ninth-consecutive Sweet Sixteen. … Jon Wilner, writing in the Mercury News, has the Zags as one of his winners thus far in the tournament.
NCAA games at the Arena: San Diego State did its main job yesterday. It took down upset-minded Yale 85-57. Now the Aztecs head to Boston where a national-title-game rematch awaits with UConn. Pretty cool. Jim Allen has the coverage. … Alabama’s 72-61 win over Grand Canyon was exhausting. For us, even, and we were just watching from home. Colton Clark was in the Arena and has this game story. … College sports are not just about the sports, in a sense. They are also about the students and their connections to the athletes. Nick Gibson caught that well today in this story on the Grand Canyon student section and, most importantly, the lone student fan in the Arena cheering on Alabama.
Idaho: The Vandals are in the middle of spring football practice. It comes on the heels of consecutive FCS playoff appearance. And large roster changes. … Elsewhere in the Big Sky, Montana won its CBI game on the road. … Northern Colorado lost its at home.
Mariners: The Arizona portion of spring is over. … Luke Raley won’t want to leave considering how hot he is at the plate. … At least this projection gives the M’s a better-than 54% chance to make the playoffs.
Kraken: It’s over, though the season continues. Seattle gave up four first-period goals in another lopsided loss.
Sounders: Not really MLS news, as such, but the U.S. Men’s National Team won the Nations League title last night, defeating Mexico 2-0 in Texas.
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• Here’s a peak behind our curtain. We have about an 8:50 a.m. deadline for having our column on the S-R website. We were all done writing today when the Smith news hit. We adjusted on the fly. If it had happened an hour earlier, it would have been our main piece. That will have to wait until tomorrow. Until then …