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

Grip on Sports: The one where we talk about primates, backs, the Final Four and Gonzaga

Gonzaga center Przemek Karnowski, left, fingers his beard during a press gathering, Friday, March 24, 2017, at the SAP Center in San Jose. Johnathan Williams is center with Jordan Mathews at right. The Zags will play Xavier on Saturday afternoon in the NCAA Elite 8. (Dan Pelle / The Spokesman-Review)

A GRIP ON SPORTS • For the third time in program history and the second time in three years, Gonzaga is playing an Elite Eight game. The reward for the winner is a trip to the Final Four, the Holy Grail of college basketball. Or the monkey cage, if you prefer. Read on.

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• Years ago, one of the artists who worked for me at the S-R – I was the graphics and design editor of the newspaper for 17 years – illustrated a piece on Washington State’s Mike Price.

The subject: Price’s inability to win games in November.

The image: A scary-looking monkey on Price’s back.

(I have a lot of the artwork of those days on my office wall, but the face on that monkey was so terrifying, there is no way I would ever want it around. I do have a great caricature of Norm Peterson though.)

I don’t think the former WSU coach has forgiven John Blanchette for it yet. Yes, John had nothing to do with the image. If Price wants to blame anyone, it’s me. I signed off on the illustration. But for some reason he blames John. Ah well. There’s no accounting for grudges.

The weight of primates on someone’s vertebrae came up again the other day in San Jose, California, after the Zags had defeated West Virginia to move into the Elite Eight.

This time the cliché was aimed at Gonzaga coach Mark Few. And he didn’t answer in a passive-aggressive manner. He went full bore “are-you-kidding-me” mode.

John was in San Jose – just as he was in Pullman and on the road with the Cougars during a lot of those November losses – and he examines the monkey in the room with his column this morning.

Funny thing is, not too long after Price’s monkey was revealed, the Cougars began winning those November games. And just about every other one as well. It was just before the three consecutive 10-win seasons.

Maybe the same thing will happen today. Few’s fictional monkey – let’s call it “Harvey” – could disappear for good about 5:30 this evening. Or it could gain a whole heck of a lot of weight.

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Gonzaga: Besides John’s column, Jim Meehan has his usual pregame items, including an advance and some key matchups. He also has stories on the floor in San Jose and Johnathan Williams’ connection to Xavier. There is also a piece on Gonzaga’s connections to Xavier. … Jacob Thorpe looks at the similarities between Gonzaga and 11th-seeded Xavier. He also writes about the Musketeers’ defense. … Nigel Williams-Goss’ numbers are down in the tournament, but, as Whitney Ogden writes, the Zags aren’t panicked over them. … The way Xavier plays should allow Przemek Karnowski more time on the court. … Yesterday was devoted to media duties, which were captured by the images of Colin Mulvany and Dan Pelle. … The Gonzaga women’s season is over but Jim Allen is already looking ahead to the next one. … Today’s game in San Jose has drawn interest from around the area and around the nation, including the similarities between the schools.

WSU: With spring practice underway in Pullman, Jacob has some questions the Cougars are looking to answer. … Let’s stay with football, as other Pac-12 schools, including Arizona State and Arizona, are deep into spring practice. That leaves us with ESPN.com’s weekly mailbag. … In hoops, only Dillon Brooks and Oregon remains alive in the NCAA tournament after Friday night’s UCLA loss to Kentucky. The Bruins were in foul trouble from the opening tip. Lonzo Ball said afterward he’s leaving for the NBA while Steve Alford said he’s staying in Westwood. … The Ducks will have their hands full with Kansas and its fanatical fans. … California was reportedly turned down by Saint Mary’s Randy Bennett. The Bears then made a surprise hire. … In case you are wondering, Michael Porter Jr. is following his dad to Missouri. … The Husky women saw their season end in the Sweet Sixteen.

EWU: The Eagles will open spring football practice April 4, the first under head coach Aaron Best. Jim Allen previews what to expect. … Portland State seems to be focusing in on a basketball coach.

Empire: Spokane returned to the Arena and had little trouble with Salt Lake, winning 53-36. Josh Horton has the story.

Mariners: The M’s played two games yesterday, being no-hit in a game with mostly minor leaguers and winning 4-3 against Kansas City. Hisashi Iwakuma pitched well in the latter contest. … The M’s are setting up their rotation for the regular season. … Edwin Diaz plans to lose the hair color but keep the emotion.

Seahawks: The Richard Sherman trade rumors make Richard Sherman laugh. … The Hawks continue to add to their defense.

Sounders: The U.S. National Team won the game it needed to win last night, and it did it 6-0. The Sounders’ Clint Dempsey scored three goals. … Seattle is happy to see Harry Shipp regain his form. … Real Salt Lake is, like Seattle, a bit shorthanded.

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• We’ll be back here later this evening with our TV Take on the Bulldogs’ game. The question is, will we be back with another next weekend? Until later …