Grip on Sports: Maybe someday we will have a better perspective on Gonzaga’s title game defeat, but not yet

A GRIP ON SPORTS • You have any perspective today? Me neither. But it will come. Maybe. Then again, some of us are still not over the Super Bowl. Against Pittsburgh. Or are wondering what happened to the final seconds of the Rose Bowl against Michigan. Read on.

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• There a lot of things that go on during a college basketball game that decides the outcome. Many of them get lost in the course of the game. After all, we can only process us so much and, in our case, there is only enough time or space to document part of the 40 minutes of action.

Take last night for instance. As Gonzaga and North Carolina battled down the wire – if you missed it Mr. Van Winkle, the Tar Heels scored the final eight points and won 71-65 – I was mesmerized by a game within the game.

That is, the battle between Nigel Williams-Goss and Justin Jackson.

Both are exceptional college basketball players. Both were the key players for their teams all season. And both were having awful games.

Mainly because, for the most part, the two were guarding each other. And both players worked their tails off defensively.

Williams-Goss would finish 5-for-17 from the floor. Jackson was 6-for-19, including missing all six 3-pointers he attempted.

And yet both would impact the final few minutes, with Williams-Goss scoring the last eight of GU’s points and Jackson’s three-point play giving the Tar Heels a 66-65 lead they would never surrender.

Which is why I agree with this excerpt from John Blanchette’s column:

“What was expected to be an up-and-down shootout instead became a lurch-and-stagger slog, undone by both teams’ awful marksmanship and the referees’ unfortunate hijacking of the action. Football stadiums supposedly suck the life out of shooters; maybe they impact the zeebs, too.

And, no, the refs didn’t steal the game from the Zags.

Just from the rest of us.

They did, however, make things more challenging.”

The constant whistles, especially in the second half, made the game a slog, not a ballet. And that’s too bad. Mainly because these two teams were in this position because they played the game with precision and execution, not brute force.

It was exactly what the NCAA rule makers have been longing for in their recent emphasis on freedom of movement.

So much was missed last night, either with over-zealous whistles – Mike Eades overturning an out-of-bounds Jordan Mathews airball, saying it was touched when it obviously wasn’t (though his non-shooting hand certainly was), comes to mind – or just through undeniably bad judgment – over the course of the evening more than a dozen calls were just flat out missed both ways, from travels to fouls – there was no flow or rhythm to the contest.

Gonzaga coach Mark Few took the high road, refusing to blame the officiating, which not only tells you he’s diplomatic, he’s also smart as heck. He knows whining about it won’t change it. The game is over, the outcome fixed.

But down the road there might be another title game in Gonzaga’s future – don’t bet against it – and his magnanimous postgame comments could pay dividends then.

• Is it just me or did it seem as if Przemek Karnowski’s vision was not what it should be? He missed so many close-in shots (he was 1-of-8 shooting), so many bunnies he usually makes, it made me wonder if his right eye was still bothered by Saturday’s night’s blow to the face.

Then again, the big guy, who is not the world’s best free-throw shooter, was 7-of-9 from the line. Hard to explain. As my man William Shakespeare once wrote, “there are more things in heaven and earth, Horatio, than are dreamt of in your philosophy.”

• The Bulldogs had some great second halves this season. Last night wasn’t one of them.

In fact, the stretch just after halftime may have decided the game. The Zags led 35-32 at intermission. They had the ball first.

Josh Perkins turned it over. North Carolina layup. Perkins turned it over. Two North Carolina free throws. And empty possession. Two Tar Heel offensive rebounds and a dunk. Another empty possession. A Joel Berry II jumper. Timeout Gonzaga.

Two minutes, 45 seconds and North Carolina led 40-35.

Yes, the Zags fought back. Yes, they led by as many as three after that. And yes, they led by two with less than two minutes to play.

But in the beginning of the half – and the end – North Carolina had 8-0 runs. The symmetry was impressive – and decisive.

• One of the things that made me smile last night was other fan bases telling the Gonzaga fans not to get so upset over the officiating.

You know who I mean, the same folks who think they got jobbed on an uncalled pass interference penalty against Oregon a couple years ago, or a technical called at the end of a New Year’s Eve basketball game against the Ducks. (You know what? They were jobbed – in both instances.)

Or folks who still don’t understand why Jake Locker was given that celebration penalty. Or who still believe Bill Leavey should be run out the country.

As my dad used to say, if you live in a glass house, don’t throw stones. And get yourself a new contractor. Why the heck did he build it with glass?

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Gonzaga: There is a lot to get to, starting with John’s column we also linked above. … Jim Meehan had the game story as well as some analysis from his seat in the media section. … Dan Pelle and Colin Mulvany captured the images from the game while Kathy Plonka and Tyler Tjomsland did the same in Spokane. … Jacob Thorpe covered the winning side, with a look at the Tar Heels’ key big man, their performance and their understanding of the position Gonzaga is in. He also gave us a blow-by-blow account of the game. … I covered CBS’ broadcast, where being able to play back key parts of the game is both a blessing and a curse. … Whitney Ogden covered the (poor) free throw shooting and Mathews’ short stint in Spokane. … Josh Horton talked with all-tournament performer Zach Collins about his future, focused on Karnowski and Josh Perkins and checked in with some fans. … Paul Turner tried to sum up what Gonzaga’s run to the title game means to the school and Spokane. Paul also has a short on Dick Vitale’s arrival. … Rachel Alexander was at the viewing party in the Kennel. … Jim Camden has this piece about a wager. … In other sports, the baseball team picked up a win in California.

From other parts of the country, the Washington Post didn’t have a dog in the hunt, but it had some thoughts on the game itself and the officiating. … The game itself was covered well in the region, from Seattle to Eugene, from Colorado to Oregon and Arizona. And the national media also weighed in with visions of what getting to the title game, and losing, may mean to Gonzaga.

WSU: Around the Pac-12 yesterday, it’s official. Washington is looking for a new women’s basketball coach. … The Huskies were also back on the football practice field as was Arizona. Oregon will be soon.

Chiefs: Josh continues his look at the Chiefs with this piece on the forwards. … A couple Spokane players will be busy with national duty.

Mariners: Dave Nichols is compiling a Mariners Log for each game, and it’s more than worth your time. It also will contain, today at least, all the links of the coverage we usually offer here. Check it out.

Seahawks: The offseason work will begin this month, though the number of workouts will be shorter than usual. … The draft is coming up and Richard Sherman may have some influence on that as well.

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• We will be on the radio again today, starting at 3 p.m. You can listen to Dennis Patchin – he’s in Phoenix but headed home late today – and myself here if you like. Until then …