A Grip on Sports: It’s all about what you expect this time of year, which may not work in Gonzaga’s favor
A GRIP ON SPORTS • There are always two outcomes for any one team in the NCAA’s Division I basketball tournament. Either the team wins it all or it doesn’t. Only one school in America enjoys the latter and gets to climb the ladder to cut down the nets. Everyone else falls short. So why is a last-game loss so hard for a fan base to accept?
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• I expect it’s all about expectations.
That certainly seems to be the case here in our tidy neck of the woods. Eastern Washington lost its first-round game to Kansas and everyone connected to the Eagles thought it was fine. Until head coach Shantay Legans left town, but that’s another story. See, no one felt Eastern, despite its Big Sky Conference Tournament title and recent strong play, was going to upset the Jayhawks, even if this wasn’t a true Kansas-like season.
Just playing close, having an early lead, threatening throughout, that was enough for the Eagle faithful. Would they have loved to see the upset and a second-round matchup with USC? Sure. That would have probably triggered massive celebrations at Goofys or Showies, if Goofys and Showies were still around. And if taverns were really and truly open.
As it was, the near upset made national stars of Tanner and Jake Groves, if only for a Warholian 15 minutes, and helped Legans find new employment. Such is the vagaries of college hoops.
Down Interstate 90 – and across the river on Hamilton – a close first-round loss would have been met with lamentations and the rending of garments. In other words, sorrow of biblical proportions. Of course, top-seeded and undefeated and extra-special Gonzaga did not lose. Not in the first round. Not in the second. And no one expects – there’s that word – the Bulldogs to lose Sunday in the Sweet Sixteen either. Not after Creighton, of the big, bad Big East, barely survived in the first round against UC Santa Barbara, which is to the Big West as Eastern is to the Big Sky. You know, a big boy in a small conference.
So it’s agreed. Nothing less than the Zags winning four more games will be big news everywhere.
That seems a bit unfair. It isn’t. It is what Mark Few signed up for back in 1999, when he took over the program after its first Elite Eight run – and Dan Monson left for Minnesota. No one, except maybe Few, knew it then though. It’s what Few wanted, to be considered among the nation’s best. He didn’t see it as an impossible dream. He saw what others had in Durham and Lawrence and Bloomington and thought why not Spokane?
Over the past couple decades the expectations grew. This season they have hit their zenith. There is no higher peak than entering the NCAAs with three All-Americans, an undefeated record, the top seed and the No. 1 ranking all year. As expectations go, Gonzaga has crested the mountain in 2021. Now all that is left is to plant the Bulldog flag.
That’s not too much to ask, is it? Of course it is. But it’s reality. And what’s expected.
• The Zags’ quest for immortality would have been helped, it seems, by a little more chalk in its region. Instead of facing teams it had defeated before, the Bulldogs will meet either red-hot Oregon or cardinal-hot USC – if they get past Creighton on Sunday.
The whole disrupted nature of the bracket, and the Pac-12’s seeming domination of it, is the thrust of John Blanchette’s fun-to-read column this morning.
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Gonzaga: Sunday’s matchup with Creighton has a history and some connections, though neither is real deep. Jim Meehan examines both, first in this history lesson and then in this interview with former GU player and now UCSB assistant John Rillie. As we said, Rillie’s Gauchos lost to the Bluejays in a first-round squeaker. … Ryan Collingwood also looked at connections, though the ones he examined were between Spokane and Indianapolis. This photo gallery accompanies his main story. There is more, however, as Ryan spoke with Maria Stack, who held the Gonzaga women’s single-season scoring record for more than 25 years. … Elsewhere in the West Coast Conference, the BYU women hung tough but lost to Arizona.
WSU: Larry Weir spoke with Cougar radio voice Matt Chazanow yesterday for the latest Press Box podcast. … The baseball team lost at UNLV. … Around the Pac-12 and college basketball, the tournament success is helping the entire conference financially. … Some folks saw this coming. … Oregon State’s successful run has athletic director Scott Barnes reaching out to fans. The Beavers will need everyone on board to continue the success. … Another Washington player has entered the transfer portal. … The parents of UCLA’s players have to send their love long distance due to the bubble. … With Larry Krystkowiak saying goodbye, Utah’s coaching search is centered on an NBA assistant. … Colorado has some roster questions to iron out. … In the women’s tournament, Arizona ended BYU’s hope for an upset with one dominant stretch. … UCLA couldn’t handle Texas’ size and its season is over. … Oregon is back in the Sweet Sixteen again after a tight win against Georgia. …The rest of the way will be tougher for Stanford. … In football news, it’s time for Washington’s special teams to step up even more. … Arizona’s new defensive coordinator is already turning up the heat. … Arizona State will have a new center this season. … Utah’s secondary picked up experience in the short 2020 season.
EWU: Around the Big Sky, Northern Arizona’s top guard will be playing his hoops somewhere else next season. … A Weber State senior is staying around for another year. … In football, a Wildcat’s return from injury has really helped.
Preps: We received a text message yesterday from someone that included a level of surprise COVID-19 still has its claws into everyone. Huh. Why would anyone be surprised? As evidence, we present the Greater Spokane League football schedule this week. Dave Nichols shares the news a quarter of the league is off due to protocols. … On happier notes, Dave also has a feature on a Lewis and Clark High volleyball player, Katie Lenlein, and her coach, Larissa Welch. Plus, Jesse Tinsley has a photo gallery. … Dave has his usual roundup of last night’s action as well.
Chiefs: Spokane is about to begin its home season under first-year coach Adam Maglio. Dan Thompson uses that beginning to introduce us to the Chiefs’ new leader.
Mariners: The limited number of tickets to the home opener has all been sold. … The M’s lost yesterday as Justin Dunn struggled. … Evan White is trying to build confidence.
Seahawks: Would you be interested in Richard Sherman returning? … The Hawks re-signed a couple of reserve offensive linemen. Russell Wilson seems pleased.
Sounders: It will be an interesting schedule confronting Seattle this season.
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• My expectations of today are low. Lunch. A nap. Maybe puttering in the back yard. Paying a couple bills. Another nap. A shrimp salad for dinner. Some TV. If it all doesn’t come to fruition, I’m going to be angry. Until later …