A Grip on Sports: Ironies abound in every facet of life, including televised sports and the decisions made about them

A GRIP ON SPORTS • What a way to start a weekend. There was an ironic – more on that in a second – snowfall around the Spokane area overnight. Confetti fell like snow on the Idaho basketball teams. And the slippery-as-ice Big 12 glass basketball court melted into the storage closet, but not before it may have cost BYU a win.

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• OK, why ironic? School children in the city do not have classes today. The district saved Friday the 13th of March as a makeup day – in case a December or January snowfall caused classes to be cancelled. There may or may not have been enough white stuff overnight to trigger a cancellation today – about an inch of slippery stuff fell at my house – but it would have been in the mix.

Thankfully, it should all be gone by the afternoon as the temperatures soar into the high 30s. Maybe even to 40.

In other words, I won’t have to shovel before sitting down to watch the Big 12 men’s tournament from Kansas City. Where the conference “brain” trust finally listened to its players and coaches and nixed the “state-of-art” glass court being used. And, yes, the quotes are there to emphasis the ironic parts of my statement.

Last week, when the glass court debuted, the women players and coaches warned their male counterparts it was slippery. And the changing colors took some getting used to. Reportedly, some even asked the conference to go back to the hardwood of yore. But, you know, it’s just the women.

Then came Thursday. In a key second-half stretch between BYU and Houston in one quarterfinal, there were about five consecutive possessions impacted in some way by a player, offensively or defensively, slipping to a greater degree than usual. And the frustration showed. It also may have had an influence on the final score, as the losing Cougars of BYU seemed more adversely affected while losing contact with the winning Cougars of Houston.

It’s not ironic that when the men’s coaches began to complain, the conference listened. And overnight made a change, going back to the wood floor of years’ past. It’s just normal. Women? Be grateful you get to play at all. Men? So sorry. We’ll fix it.

• Yes, I’m cynical. But the joy the Idaho men and women showed Wednesday night while celebrating their Big Sky tournament titles, and the resulting NCAA tourney berths, melted that cynicism some. And the celebration, that continued Thursday in Moscow, also reinforced my belief success, no matter the level of competition, is worth celebrating. As is reaching a goal. Or seeing a dream fulfilled.

• That’s what we all get to watch this weekend. More of that, anyway. The schedule of what’s on our TV in the world of sports begins with college basketball and, in one regard, ends with it as well.

The conference tournaments continue today, though it’s mostly the big guys playing now, so winning or losing won’t impact their NCAA chances. And Sunday afternoon’s selection show (3, CBS) will not only put a cap on the weekend, it will also start the upcoming week’s madness.

You know the madness I am referring to, right? Your old high school buddy sending you emails and texts wondering why you haven’t filled out your pool yet. This year I’m thinking of just sending a donation directly to The Human Fund and not wasting my money.

• OK, so there are more sports than just college hoops on the idiot box – as my dad used to refer to it whenever I was sitting on the living room floor, eating bowl after bowl of Captain Crunch and watching cartoons – this weekend.

There is baseball that actually means something, is fun to watch and, seemingly, fun to play. The World Baseball Classic. The U.S. vs. Canada. Again on an international stage. This time the red, white and blue guys are heavily favored (5 p.m. tonight, Fox).

And the fifth major golf tournament is also on all weekend, though that statement is ironic in itself. There are just four majors. In order (these days), the Masters. The PGA. The U.S. Open. And The Open. Not five, no matter what the Players Championship public relation folks, and their TV partners, want you to believe. The partners are the Golf Channel today and NBC this weekend (11 a.m. start Saturday, 10 a.m. Sunday).

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WSU: Around the (current, old and future) Pac-12 and the nation, if you like to bet, you may be able to wager on the Cougs, Huskies and Zags soon. At least it could be legal soon. … The bubble is shrinking for the men, which means Cinderella teams might be as well. … You know what else is shrinking? Places outside of the NCAA’s control where college men’s teams can play in the postseason. The CBI announced yesterday it will not host a tournament this season. … Oregon State has made a well-received hire. Now the school has to support the men’s program financially. … Former Arizona State coach Bobby Hurley was a lot easier to cover than one might have thought. … Colorado needs to keep Isaiah Johnson as a foundation for next season’s roster. … UCLA’s Donovan Dent posted the Big Ten tournament’s first triple-double in the Bruins’ quarterfinal win over Rutgers. … Arizona doesn’t get the same support in Kansas City it used to get in Las Vegas. The Wildcats could use it against Iowa State. … Utah State’s Jerrod Calhoun is one of the most sought-after coaches in the nation right now. And his Aggies are still playing. They avenged two losses to UNLV with a Mountain West Conference quarterfinal win last night. And lost an assistant coach who will be a head coach next season. … San Diego State also avenged a recent loss with a win over Colorado State. The winner of Friday’s semi between the Aztecs and New Mexico is still alive for a NCAA at-large berth. The loser (and CSU) hope to play on somewhere but, well, there is no CBI to play in. … Boise State needs to revamp its roster headed into the Pac-12 next season.

• In football news, are you wondering who are the 25-best college football coaches in the nation? We can pass along competing lists. … An Oregon football player’s number honors his uncle Kobe Bryant. The Ducks kicked off spring practice and Dan Lanning talked with the media. … The Oregon State offense will be different this fall. And the Beavers should have one more quarterback on the roster by then. … Colorado has a new, loud and passionate assistant coach. … Utah coach Morgan Scalley made a not-completely altruistic donation of $2 million to the program. … USC receiver Makai Lemon is still high on NFL team’s radar after the Trojans’ pro day. … Finally, I didn’t know exactly where to put this John Canzano column. Because the protagonist is a former Oregon football player, Dan Fouts, I decided to drop it here. It’s actually about The Facebook and The Idiocy that allows folks (companies?) to post false information about people and hide behind anonymity.  

Gonzaga: What another ironic happenstance? Earlier this season, the Zags’ Graham Ike was listed among the finalists for the Karl Malone Award, given to college basketball’s best power forward each season. But yesterday he was announced as one of the five finalists for the Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Award, given to the top center. It’s ironic because he always should have been listed as a center. And he has a better chance to win the award named for UCLA’s three-time NCAA champion. Theo Lawson has more in this story. … Earlier this week, I linked Jon Wilner’s imaginary awards for an imaginary conference when they appeared in a still-real newspaper, the Mercury News. They are available on the still-real S-R site now, so I link them again. … Elsewhere in the WCC, Santa Clara’s men may not be a lock for the NCAA tourney, but they are this close.

Idaho: I linked Peter Harriman’s story on the Vandals’ celebrations above. Because I know some of you skip my blathering, I link it again here. … Elsewhere in the Big Sky, why the heck is Sacramento State spending upwards of $23 million to get away from the Big Sky? …The Idaho State men’s basketball team needs to improve defensively next season. … Weber State has lots of places it needs to improve. And it will have to do that under a new coach. Eric Duft was kicked upstairs Thursday.

Preps: Winter’s sports are over. But awards season is not. Cheryl Nichols has the lists of the all-league folks around the area. … Spring sports competitions started this week and I can pass along this roundup of Thursday’s action.

Velocity: The USL League One season is about to begin and Spokane hopes to make the league finals for the third consecutive time. And win. John Allison has a season preview, focused on the team’s attempt to build depth throughout the roster.

Kraken: Playoffs? They would not be in play today. Seattle’s Thursday night 5-1 loss to first-place Colorado dropped it below the cut line.

Sounders: Stefan Frei returned. So did Paul Arriola’s scoring touch, despite an ACL tear suffered one year and one day ago. A 3-0 win over Vancouver was the result.

Seahawks: The Hawks signed a running back yesterday. Former Packer Emanuel Wilson. … They also re-signed Brady Russell and D’Anthony Bell and signed free agent safety Rodney Thomas II. … Rashid Shaheed signed earlier of course. … My goodness, how do the Rams and 49ers and other sign free agents if a state tax is going to scare players off? … The new coaching staff is set. 

Storm: The WNBA and its players are still talking. But coming to an agreement? That seems far away this morning. (Cue settlement announcement as soon as I post this in 3-2-1 …)

Mariners: Wondering how you will watch the M’s this season? I am. Sadly, this Seattle Times’ Q&A that is on the S-R site today, doesn’t answer that. Even though the question was asked. No one knows for sure what cable systems will carry the games. How and how much are still an open question. And may not be answered until Opening Day on March 26. … Emerson Hancock may just be the guy who starts the season in Bryce Miller’s rotation spot

Reign: Seattle is about ready to begin its NWSL season. The roster is set and two young budding stars are on it.

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• I hate ironing. Which is ironic I guess. Because I love irony. And satire. And “The Rockford Files.” They are all interrelated through my past relationship with the pinnacle of mass communication that sits in our homes. And the Bugs Bunny cartoons it used to display every Saturday morning. At least that’s probably what my therapist would tell me. If I had one. Until later …