R-E-S-P-E-C-T Highly O-Ver-Rated

Thu., March 23, 2000

Gary Crooks The Spokesman-Revi

FOR THE RECORD: March 24, 2000: Place wrong: In an Opinion Page column that appeared Thursday, it was stated that Gonzaga University traveled to the University of Oregon for a basketball game. That game took place at a tournament in Hawaii.

`O-ver-rated! O-ver-rated! O-ver-rated!”

The catcalls cascaded to the court from all around the Huntsman Center in Salt Lake City last Saturday as the top-ranked team in the West Region was sent packing in yet another upset in the NCAA basketball tournament.

The University of Arizona fans were not amused. I was one of them. Though I live in Spokane, my heart (and heartburn) was with my alma mater from Tucson.

Meanwhile, in Tucson, another team was just beginning to rock our beloved McKale Center. The Gonzaga Bulldogs were taking the measure of another Goliath in a magnificent game.

My friends and I dragged our sorry selves to a Salt Lake City sports bar to see whether Gonzaga could do it again. We arrived at halftime, and the Bulldogs trailed by four points.

In our game, Arizona trailed by five at the half, but we pretty much knew it was over. The Wildcats were playing like a HoopFest team that was in it for the T-shirts.

Aside from a scattering of hushed Arizona fans, the crowd was solidly behind our underdog opponent, Wisconsin. Fans from the other two schools at the regional joined the Wisconsin fans in a deafening upset chorus.

It’s about this time almost every year that we Arizona fans wonder whether it’s worth it. Our school has won more games than any other since our first Final Four run in 1988. Thirteen years as a perennial power sounds wonderful, but on that sad Saturday in Salt Lake City, we were once again reminded that Goliaths have issues, too.

The main problem is that we are weighed down by an albatross called respect.

Gonzaga guard Matt Santangelo has picked up last year’s mantra that his team isn’t respected. The no-respect complaint makes for a good story, and from the players’ perspective, it is understandable. No team on that level likes to think it can be beaten. So, when a David wins, it demands to be called Goliath.

After Saturday’s victory, Santangelo said: “We are still fighting for respect. If people need to call this an upset or that we are a Cinderella team, then that’s OK because it means we are still playing and still winning, and that’s what it is all about.”

Take it away, Aretha: “R-E-S-P-E-C-T. Find out what it means to me.”

Matt, take it from someone who roots for one of the big, bad powers - that respect battle is one worth losing.

There’s a reason fans don’t chant “un-der-rated!” about their own teams. Nobody wants to relinquish the underdog role.

If Arizona or St. John’s had won Saturday, its fans would’ve loudly exhaled and quietly filed out of the arena. Teams burdened by high rankings don’t celebrate until they win four games, which gets them into the Final Four.

In the 1998 tournament, Arizona was the defending national champion. It was slathered with respect. The team went on to win three games, the same as Gonzaga last year. Yet, the fans were crushed. There was no heroes’ welcome at the airport.

Respect begets expectations. Expectations beget disappointment.

Last year, Duke University won five times and faltered in the championship game. But 20 years from now, more people will remember the three games Gonzaga won.

This year, Gonzaga traveled to the University of Oregon and was beaten by the Ducks. Ho-hum. Later, Arizona lost in Eugene, and the Duck fans stormed the floor and celebrated into the wee hours.

Maybe that’s no big deal to Matt Santangelo and the players, but believe me, respect is a burden the Bulldog fans can do without.

The proof of that was crystallized Saturday as fans from Arizona, Wisconsin, Louisiana and Texas came together in that raucous Salt Lake City bar and willed Gonzaga to victory.

Everybody roots for the Little Engine That Could, because nobody thought it could.

The entire Gonzaga story is built on a sturdy foundation of disrespect. Without disrespect, there is no disbelief. Without disbelief, there is no party.

So, Matt, with all due respect, keep winning but keep quiet. Because “Gon-zaw-ga” is a lot easier on the ears than “o-ver-rated!”

Local journalism is essential.

Give directly to The Spokesman-Review's Northwest Passages community forums series -- which helps to offset the costs of several reporter and editor positions at the newspaper -- by using the easy options below. Gifts processed in this system are tax deductible.

Meet Our Journalists

Jesse Tinsley

Meet Jesse Tinsley. As a certified drone pilot, this veteran Spokesman-Review photographer often can be seen capturing beautiful aerial photographs of our region. Sometimes though, the job requires getting down with the dogs.
Jim Meehan

Jim Meehan is no stranger to Zag Nation. As the lead writer covering the Gonzaga men’s basketball team, he tells the stories behind the game and gets fans a bit closer to their favorite players.
Molly Quinn

There is no artist in Spokane like Molly Quinn. Her whimsical style is instantly recognizable to readers of The Spokesman-Review. She has painted gorgeous illustrations that instantly elevate the journalism accompanying it. She brings to life the stories that defy photography. She makes our pages better.
Rob Curley

Spokesman-Review editor Rob Curley loves to talk with people and learn about their lives, whether it's a best-selling author or a stranger he meets downtown on his walk to lunch. It's that inquisitive nature combined with a playful sense of storytelling that helps make our newspaper different than most.