A Grip on Sports: It doesn’t matter what form of sports madness you like to follow in March, it is nearly ready to begin

A GRIP ON SPORTS • Sun shining. Birds chirping. Bulbs poking out of the recently thawed soil. Yep, another day in the paradise that is the Inland Northwest in March. Heck, the golf courses are even open. Well, a driving range or two.

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• No, we’re not suffering some form of madness, March or otherwise. If you live in Spokane, need to swing a club or two and abhor hitting into an electronic bedsheet, then the 50-plus-degree temps are for you. And your driver.

Everyone else? This is the first week they are confronted with a barrage of conference tournament games.

And, in one case, an NCAA tourney game.

The Whitworth Pirates will find out their assignment in the NCAA men’s Division III Tournament this morning. The entire bracket will be revealed online, starting at 10 a.m. in this part of the country.

It would come as no surprise if the 19-5 Pirates, who won the Northwest Conference’s automatic berth once more, are sent to Southern California for a Friday game against Redlands, 21-4 and ranked 16th nationally in the NCAA’s metrics. It’s cheaper and easier travel than sending them to the region’s top seed, 25-1 St. Thomas (Texas).

For the area’s Division I schools? The conference tournaments will get underway by this weekend. Though Idaho and Eastern Washington have their regular-season finales tonight. Against each other. The men play in Cheney, the women in Moscow. Both tip at 6.

If the Vandal women win, they will be the outright conference champion. They have already earned the No. 1 seed – and the all-important bye – into Starch Madness, as the conference calls its Boise tourney.

The Eagle men need to win and to have Portland State lose at home to Weber State to have any shot at tying for the regular season title. That’s a circumstance that seemed darn-near-impossible a few weeks ago. Now, after eight consecutive wins, it just seems somewhat improbable.

Gonzaga and Washington State are done until their final WCC tournaments begin this weekend.

The Cougar women, seeded ninth, open the Vegas experience Thursday at noon against last-place Seattle U. The men? With their eighth seed, they earned a bye. They will face the Portland/Pepperdine winner Friday at 6 p.m.

Gonzaga’s women earned the second seed and don’t play until next Monday. Their opponent is still to-be-determined but the time isn’t. They tip at 2:30 p.m. or whenever the court is free. Top-seed Loyola Marymount plays at noon that day.

The Zag men are the No. 1 seed, despite their no-show in Moraga on Saturday. They open in a week against whomever survives the top side of the bracket – Oregon State and all its coaching-change baggage is seeded fourth – in a 6 p.m. ESPN semifinal game.

Let the madness begin. And the nice weather continue.

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WSU: Around the (current, old and future) Pac-12 and the nation, John Canzano has a notebook today that includes some thoughts on David Riley’s future. … The USC men lost their leading scorer for the season. Injury? One suffered in the second half Saturday may have played a part. But for whatever reason, Chad Baker-Mazara is no longer part of the program. Things do not seem to be going well for the Trojans right now. … Mid-majors seem about to be squeezed out of the NCAA tourney. … Arizona State hosts Kansas for its final home game. … There is no Mountain West team hotter than Colorado State. … The Washington women won a nail-biter over Oregon in Eugene on Sunday and earned a bye in the Big Ten tournament. … Oregon State is the fourth seed in the WCC tournament. … No. 2 UCLA just continues to roll and there was nothing rival USC could do about it Sunday. Former Cougar Charlisse Leger-Walker played a big role. … It seems as if the Stanford women are back on track. They hammered Clemson on Sunday. … Cal won as well. … Utah could meet BYU again in the Big 12 tourney. … Colorado earned the sixth seed. … Arizona State seems poised to have a big run in that tournament. But first the Sun Devils have to get past rival Arizona. … There is awful football news from Boulder. Colorado quarterback Dominiq Ponder died early Sunday morning in a single-vehicle crash. He was 23 years old.

Gonzaga: Just how did Saint Mary’s dominate the second half Saturday night? By executing its game plan revolving around Graham Ike better. A lot better than it did in the first 20 minutes. Theo Lawson has his usual look back the game. If you are wondering, the picture above? There was no foul called on the play. … Theo takes a look at just who the Zags might play in their semifinal. As we mentioned above, the WCC’s fourth seed, Oregon State, has already made a coaching change. … If you want more on the Gaels’ key win Saturday, it is available. … Redemption is a good word to use concerning the Bulldog women. But not concerning their loss at Portland on Saturday. As Greg Lee tells us, win or lose, they would have finished on the same seed line in Las Vegas. … Colton Clark has his weekly look at the area’s baseball programs and how they fared over the weekend. … How big is the disappearing rivalry between GU and Saint Mary’s? Good enough to be ranked 23rd here. … How far will the Zags fall this time when the polls are released?

EWU: The late-season run has the Eagle men in a spot headed into tonight’s regular-finale against visiting Idaho. A good spot. Eight consecutive wins will do that this time of year. Dan Thompson has a preview of their game and what it could mean. … Elsewhere in the Big Sky, the Montana State women have to be rooting for Eastern tonight. … The Idaho State men have been up and down recently.

Preps: Finally. After the Districts, the early round State games spread from corner-to-corner in Washington, the different classifications come together this week at three sites to determine 12 champions. Dave Nichols has a list of every local school and when their journey in Tacoma or Yakima or Spokane begins.

Mariners: Logan Gilbert pitched Sunday. Did Logan Gilbert-type things. And then was followed by the next-big-arm for the franchise. … Cal Raleigh won’t be in the M’s camps for a while. He’s playing in the WBC. But his presence will linger.

Kraken: When hats are thrown on the Climate Pledge Arena ice after a hat trick, whether it stands up or not, where do they go?

Seahawks: Will Kenneth Walker III be part of an NFL bidding war? Or will the Hawks present him a number and, if he feels he can beat it, wish him a great future?

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• At some point today I am heading out to the back deck. It overlooks are palatial, park-like back yard. But most importantly, it faces south. Where the sun will be showing its bright face. Sitting, reading my book and basking in the sunlight for whatever time is available can only make me feel better, right? And means I can save the usual Vitamin D pill. Until later …