Two minutes into Saturday’s FanFest, the Gonzaga women buried the past and said hello to a bright future – all during the same play.

The Gonzaga women can’t wait to get back in the game, even if it’s only a controlled scrimmage against the same players they see every day in practice.

Point guard Lily Scanlon, who led the Australian U19 team to the silver medal in the FIBA Basketball World Cup this summer, has given an oral commit to play at Gonzaga next year.

Those extra practice days last summer are paying off for the Gonzaga women’s basketball team. By all accounts, everything is ahead of schedule thanks to the Zags’ European journey and the 10 practices that preceded it. Team chemistry, for one thing. Execution, for another. But leadership? Not yet.

There’s nothing like winning to inspire respect from your rivals.

Considering they lost three starters from last year, the Gonzaga women are walking and talking with a lot of confidence. And they should.

There’s nothing like variety, and the Gonzaga women will get plenty in this year’s nonconference schedule.

On Tuesday night, the former Gonzaga All-American had 10 assists to bring her single-season total to 263 and break her WNBA record set last year.

This was never about basketball, though that was fun too. The Gonzaga women are back from Europe, jet-lagged but joyful after 12 days.

The West Coast Conference schedule announced Tuesday morning has the Bulldogs playing at BYU on Jan. 2.

Katie Campbell can’t wait to taste the gelato. Kayleigh Truong is looking forward to some team bonding. Jill Townsend just wants to soak in the history.