Arrow-right Camera
The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

SportsLink

Eagles are up to the task in showdown game

Sacramento State Hornets guard Nick Hornsby, right, can’t stop Eastern Washington forward Venky Jois as he heads to the basket Thursday. (Colin Mulvany)
Sacramento State Hornets guard Nick Hornsby, right, can’t stop Eastern Washington forward Venky Jois as he heads to the basket Thursday. (Colin Mulvany)

A GRIP ON SPORTS • It was the biggest night of basketball in Cheney in more than a decade. And will be the biggest night in Cheney for, what, about a month? Read on.

••••••••••

• Eastern Washington's basketball team was playing for first place in the Big Sky. More than 3,000 folks packed into Reese Court. Media from as far away as Seattle was there. And, if that's not enough to alert you last night's showdown with Sacramento State was important, EWU coach Jim Hayford wore his lucky red coat and vest combination. Now that's big. It worked too, though probably the Eagles (19-5, 10-1) shooting 52 percent from beyond the arc was more important in the 64-61 victory, but you can't discount Hayford's outerwear. OK, yes you can. But you can't discount his team's toughness, something its exhibited time and again recently. The Eagles have played significant stretches without one of its best players recently and still the reside atop the Big Sky standings this morning, a half-game ahead of the Hornets (16-7, 10-2). Last night it was the nation's leading scorer, Tyler Harvey, sitting his third consecutive game. And Sir Washington, who has become a key part of the rotation out front, hobbling in on crutches, a victim of a season-ending knee injury. Still, the Eagles endured. They held Sacramento State to 41 percent shooting. Their seniors, Parker Kelly and Drew Brandon, played 40 minutes each, combined for 28 points and 11 rebounds and made the big plays down the stretch. They built a big lead, frittered away all but one point of it but didn't fold. They toughed it out. And now, with seven games left in the conference season, the Eagles have assumed the driver's seat in the race to host the conference tournament. It's everything Hayford hoped for when he jumped from Whitworth to Eastern a few years ago. It's been a long, pothole-filled road (appropriate for this area, no?) but the Eagles have nearly arrived. Just not yet. Heck, Saturday's game with Portland State will be a test, it always is. But last night, anyway, Eastern exhibited the traits of a championship team. An NCAA-bound team. Let's hope, if the Eagles get there, Hayford has other jackets from which to choose.

• I wasn't going to jump into this morass, but when the Little League parents in Chicago began hiring lawyers, it pushed me over the edge. They want to keep a title they cheated to win? Are you kidding? Lets look at the facts. The adults who run the league gerrymandered the league boundaries – against Little League's rules – to draw in, as far as I can determine, at least three players for their all-star team. That's an out-and-out violation. No one seems to be disputing that. But the trio of arguments I've heard for letting the league keep the U.S. title are: The adults did it, so the kids shouldn't be punished; everyone does it so why the selective prosecution; and it didn't really matter anyway. The middle one makes no sense at all. No, not everyone does it. And, really, if everyone is going 25 miles over the speed limit and the state patrolman pulls you over, how often has that worked to get you out of a ticket? Never, as far as my experience goes. As for the other two, they sort of work together. How many kids are on a Little League all-star team? There usually is about a dozen, so if three or four kids are from outside of the prescribed area, that's about a quarter to a third of a roster. That's pretty significant. Some of the parents on the team admit to living outside of the attendance area, though none say they were recruited to play. It was just where they decided their boys, some of the best players in the nation, decided to compete. Fine. Except it is against Little League's rules and every parent should have known that. If the kids who live out of the prescribed area hadn't played with the JRW group, then there is no chance the league wins the national title. It's that simple. Did the kids know they were breaking rules? Maybe not. But they knew their friends and neighbors were playing in another Little League so they probably knew something had to be up. Sorry. The excuses don't wash. If they were using ineligible players, and it sure looks as if they were, then they have to forfeit. It should be the end of the story. But it probably won't be.

•••

• WSU: The Cougars' basketball weekend begins tonight at 8, which isn't my idea of fun. Sorry. Jacob Thorpe has a morning post with links and a preview of the weekend available on the blog. He also has a blog post and a story on the Graham Harrell hire. ... We also found a look back at the last Pac-12 football season and a look ahead to the next.

• Gonzaga: Loyola Marymount was not a factor last night, as Gonzaga broke out to a 20-0 lead and rolled over the Lions, 80-51. Jim Meehan has a story and a blog post on the game as well as a Q&A with Byron Wesley. ... The GU women also rolled over Loyola, 82-59. ... Now we know for sure the Zags are for real. ... Around the WCC, BYU just pasted St. Mary's in Provo, winning 82-60. That drops the Gaels three games behind GU. ... Portland had no trouble with Pepperdine, 69-52. ... USF got past Santa Clara 69-62 in overtime. ... USD defeated Pacific 68-48 in San Diego.

• EWU: Jim Allen and John Blanchette were in Cheney for the first-place showdown, with Jim taking care of the game story and a blog post and John the column. ... Bud Withers was also in town and has this column. ... Around the Big Sky, Montana got past host North Dakota, 65-61, Southern Utah defeated host Weber State, 65-56, and Idaho State upset Northern Arizona, 80-66. ... Montana State picked up a rare win, getting past Northern Colorado, 90-87. ... The conference announced the finalists for hosting duties for the 2016 (and beyond) Big Sky tournament. Jim Allen has the story. ... The choices don't impress this guy. What, he thought the Big Sky could hold its tournament in Las Vegas? ... The Vernon Adams saga just won't go away. It was part of "Around the Horn" and "PTI" yesterday on ESPN and the subject of this column.

• Idaho: The Vandals and Connor Hill shot down Portland State, 87-76. Sean Kramer has the game story.

• Whitworth: The Pirate women have a showdown of their own tonight in the Fieldhouse. Tom Clouse has an advance.

• Preps: Being the GSL boys regular season co-champion didn't mean much in district play last night as U-Hi took down Central Valley and Mead handled Lewis and Clark. Kevin Dudley has the story. ... Greg Lee was at G-Prep as the Bullpups remained perfect with a win over Mead in District 8 play. ... We also can pass along a roundup of other action.

• Seahawks: The Hawks' 2015 schedule may be the toughest in the NFL, with the road slate much harder than the games at home. ... Is Chris Matthews ready to contribute in a big way next season? ... What will Marshawn Lynch do? No one knows.

• Mariners: The signing of Rickie Weeks is sort of a head scratcher, with the team hoping a veteran guy who has never played anything but second base can help in a utility role. ... The M's also signed a left-handed pitcher to a minor league contract. ... Kyle Seager is pretty good.

• Sounders: Seattle extended its local TV deals.

•••

• The weekend is looming. Tomorrow isn't a holiday or anything, is it? Until later ...



Vince Grippi
Vince Grippi is a freelance local sports blogger for spokesman.com. He also contributes to the SportsLink Blog.

Follow Vince online:






Looking for a Grip on Sports?

Vince Grippi's daily take on all things regional sports has been moved to our main sports section online. You can find a collection of these columns here.