John Blanchette

DENVER – So here was the toss-up, silly as it seems now: Could David Stockton crack the lineup at, oh, Whitworth?

Mollie Monson, age 8 and aglow in a bright yellow dress, stood in front of the bench minutes before tipoff, prepared to fulfill the game-time duty she shares with her brother MicGuire – which is to wrangle the stools upon which the Long Beach State 49ers camp during timeouts. There is some nepotism at work here: her father is the head coach. And when Dan Monson strode to his seat – his mind preoccupied with scouting reports and a nervous effort by his team the night before and the NCAA tournament goblin that bedevils every waking thought this time of year – he stopped suddenly, bent over and planted a kiss on Mollie’s forehead.

After stops at Gonzaga, Minnesota and now Long Beach State Dan Monson has a keen perspective on things as a coach and a father.

Greg Gumbel, the Bert Parks of Selection Sunday, hadn’t even taken his first breath when the yowling began drifting in from Bracket Nation. UAB? Clemson? If the NCAA committee was going to put anyone in, why not Northwestern, which has had its nose against the glass for 73 years?

Greg Gumbel, the Bert Parks of Selection Sunday, hadn’t even taken his first breath when the yowling began drifting in from Bracket Nation. UAB? Clemson? If the NCAA committee was going to put anyone in, why not Northwestern, which has had its nose against the glass for 73 years? The overall No. 1 seed, Ohio State, in a region with North Carolina, Syracuse and Kentucky – while Pitt gets valet parking to the Final Four? More teams – 68 – are in the NCAA basketball tournament than ever before and still the complaints and conspiracy theories topped all previous records, except at Gonzaga University, where both opportunity and perspective have been hard-won.

LOS ANGELES – A funny thing happened midway through the epic – no, not really a reach – basketball throwdown between Washington and Washington State on Thursday night. The Huskies seemed to realize they were the team on the vaunted bubble, and not the Cougars.

LAS VEGAS – In the casino at the Orleans Hotel, banners still hung above the smoke touting the West Coast Conference tournament 24 hours after it ended – perhaps because more Gonzaga logo apparel remained at the craps and blackjack tables than Idaho, Nevada and New Mexico State combined. But when the Western Athletic Conference moved in for its basketball event in earnest Wednesday, the proper decorations finally went up.

LAS VEGAS – In the garden of Gonzaga basketball have grown any number of dubious truths. The Bulldogs are dragged down by a weak league, say. Their thoroughly spoiled devotees take the program’s prolonged dominance for granted. And the players – each recruiting class more highly regarded than the last – are increasingly nonchalant about the whole Zag thing. It doesn’t mean as much to them.

LAS VEGAS – In the garden of Gonzaga basketball have grown any number of dubious truths. The Bulldogs are dragged down by a weak league, say. Their thoroughly spoiled devotees take the program’s prolonged dominance for granted. And the players – each recruiting class more highly regarded than the last – are increasingly nonchalant about the whole Zag thing. It doesn’t mean as much to them. Some of these can be weeds, mistaken for flowers.

LAS VEGAS – The Gonzaga Bulldogs celebrated Monday night in a way they haven’t in at least a decade. They celebrated like it mattered, because it did.

LAS VEGAS – Among all the streaks, chokeholds and assorted algebraic proof of Gonzaga’s sway over the West Coast Conference lo these many years comes more: The last time the Bulldogs got bounced in the league tournament semis as a 1 or 2 seed was back in 1994. In the 16 seasons between then and this weekend came 15 championship game appearances, and 13 in a row.

The last time Gonzaga got bounced in the league tournament semis as a 1 or 2 seed was back in 1994. In the 16 seasons between then and this weekend came 15 championship game appearances, and 13 in a row. Saddle up for No. 14. So why should we be surprised the Zags scraped their way into tonight’s title game?

Welcome to another session of Prominent Athlete Drug Bust. Join with sports fans here at the busy intersection of Thin Moralizing and Convenient Rationalization for reasoned debate, police bashing and stale jokes. Today’s perp: Washington State basketball star Klay Thompson.

Plummeting math test scores? Bah. Shrug. Standardized tests are irrelevant, biased and maybe evil. But don’t you be messing with the state basketball tournament, Mr. Educrat Man.

In the last week, a year’s worth of public stewing came to a boil as half the usual 16-team state basketball fields were eliminated with a couple rounds in high school gyms in Mountlake Terrace and Walla Walla.

The hair-trigger inclination is to report that Colton’s first appearance in the boys portion of the State 1B – or any B – basketball tournament this week had the coach so excited he was ready to burst. But, hey, that’s not funny.

The hair-trigger inclination is to report that Colton’s first appearance in the boys portion of the State 1B – or any B – basketball tournament this week had the coach so excited he was ready to burst. But, hey, that’s not funny.

Watched the Oscars last night and was terribly disappointed that no awards were given to my favorite movie of the past year, “Carrie II – The Ballet.” Then someone told me the actual title was “Black Swan.”

Watched the Oscars last night and was terribly disappointed that no awards were given to my favorite movie of the past year, “Carrie II – The Ballet.” Then someone told me the actual title was “Black Swan.” Really? I could have sworn … OK, so I’m no cinephile. I like my Captain Spauldings, my Czerviks, my Delta Tau Chis. I’m not much on “La Nuit de Subtitles” or Death walking on the beach. Still, it baffles me how the members of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Self-Congratulation could have overlooked honoring some of these fine films:

There’s not much room for irony in wrestling – just you and the other guy, a mat, 7 minutes, will and fatigue. OK, not always 7 minutes.

Paul Wulff recently returned with his family from a week’s vacation in Hawaii where, among the other highlights, was sleep. “It was amazing,” said Washington State’s football coach. “I haven’t slept like that in four years.”