Grip on Sports: After two decades, the Gonzaga basketball phenomenon just keeps rolling

A GRIP ON SPORTS • Some of us are old enough to remember 1999. Y2K, The Matrix, Jose Mesa, Livin’ la Vida Loca, Vin Baker’s knee, Jar Jar Binks. But most importantly, Gonzaga’s first NCAA Tournament run. Man, was that a long time ago. And yet, Zagmania seems to still be growing. Read on.

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• If you braved the ice this morning to pick up your morning newspaper – heck, if you are one of the few remaining admirable folks who receive a printed paper in the morning – you opened a news-delivery system filled with stories from Las Vegas, Nevada.

Gonzaga basketball stories.

And there was even more on your handy, dandy computer screen, the reading of which doesn’t have to be preceded by sliding around the driveway in your aptly named slippers.

There are not just one Gonzaga basketball team to keep track of today but two. And the one with the two major injuries yesterday had the more-interesting Monday, that’s for sure.

Oh, watching the men toy with Pepperdine like a 3-year-old plays with a wiffle bat, is entertaining in its way, especially when college basketball’s most experienced analyst comes this close to picking the Zags to win this year’s national title.

But the game earlier in the day, while you may have been stuck in the office trying to balance the accounts receivable, was more compelling. Not just because of the outcome – the Zags snuck past Saint Mary’s 78-77 in double overtime – but for how they got there.

And who didn’t.

There was Laura Stockton, she of Spokane’s royal basketball family and the senior leader of this year’s team, on crutches as Zykera Rice’s game-winning shot fell, out due to a third-quarter knee injury. Still in the locker room was Jill Townsend, another of the Bulldogs’ tougher players, felled by what looked to be a significant ankle injury.

And yet Gonzaga prevailed.

Who knows what today will hold – the Zags face this year’s nemesis, BYU, at 1 on ESPNU for the tournament title and the automatic NCAA berth – but we do know this: Monday’s win was everything you could want in a college basketball game. And, sadly, a couple of things you never want to see.

• In contrast, the men’s prime-time rout was over before the NBC Nightly News. If you wanted to switch over to Lester Holt, you didn’t miss much. Except the return of Killian Tillie, which was treated like MacArthur to the Philippines or something.

OK, it’s more important than that. Today at least.

Tillie’s return to the court gives the Zags something they’ve needed, even if their 30-2 record and nation’s leading offense seems to indicate they don’t need much.

You never know when one of your two big men, Rui Hachimura and Brandon Clarke, will pick up a couple of cheap early fouls in an NCAA game and a third big will be needed. Instead of having to turn to an inexperienced freshman, Mark Few will be able to call on a 6-foot-11 shooter who just happens to have a few tough games under his waistband.

And a guy whose abilities, when healthy, compliment Clarke’s and Hachimura’s perfectly. As Lorenzo Romar said after the game, the rich get richer.

• Before we exit the stage ourselves this morning, we wanted to congratulate Washington State’s Robert Franks. He was named to the Pac-12’s 10-man first team yesterday.

In a season of mediocrity, the senior forward stood out most every time he took the court. When he announced last spring he was returning for his senior season, it seemed as if it gave the Cougars a chance for success. That didn’t happen, but not because Franks disappointed.

He earned his All-Pac-12 recognition with his stellar play.

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Gonzaga: There are so many GU stories – I counted 19 but I might have missed a couple – it’s hard to know where to begin. How about Jim Meehan’s game analysis? Or his keys to the win? Good. And then there is John Blanchette’s column on Tillie. Or Theo Lawson’s story on his return. … Theo also has a piece on Corey Kispert, the only GU starter that wasn’t on the All-WCC first team. … Tyler Tjomsland has the photo story from the Orleans Arena. … The guys in the office put together a recap with highlights. … The last item from the men’s game is my TV Take. The rout allowed ESPN to turn much of the second half into a roundtable discussion between Dick Vitale and Sean Farnham, which isn’t a bad thing. … Jim Allen led the way with the women’s coverage, posting a game analysis and the keys to the double overtime win. … John also has a column. … Tyler has the photo report. … Theo covers the injuries to Gonzaga’s guards. … There is more, not related to last night’s games. Jim Meehan covers a couple of breaking news stories, as Few is a finalist for a coaching award and the Zags retained their No. 1 ranking for another week. … Both Jims have previews of today’s game, with Jim Allen covering the women in their matchup against BYU and Jim Meehan the men. … While he is in Las Vegas, editor Rob Curley has been writing a series of stories concerning GU graduates who live in that community. Today’s story is especially interesting. … Around the WCC, the fallout from BYU’s early exit in the tournament is still being felt. As is the fallout from some recent defections, which continue unabated.

WSU: Theo has the coverage of Franks’ All-Pac-12 designation as well as CJ Elleby being named to the All-Freshman team. … Theo also shares with us his AP basketball poll votes. … Around the Pac-12, on any other day we would have led the column with commentary on John Canzano’s Oregonian column today. Instead, we want you to write down this day, March 12. It’s the beginning of the end of Larry Scott’s tenure as Pac-12 commissioner. … Washington, which dominated the conference standings, also dominated the conference’s awards. Rightfully so. … Arizona’s Sean Miller says his Senior Night comments were not a goodbye speech. … The Wildcats’ struggles will put a damper on the Pac-12 Tournament’s attendance. … Who will win in Las Vegas? It could be almost anyone. … There is also football news from Oregon and Colorado.

EWU: The Eastern women won their opening-round game in the Big Sky Tournament. Ryan Collingwood is in Boise and he has the coverage.

Idaho: Ryan also has a story on the women’s All-Big Sky team. The Vandals’ Mikayla Ferenz was the MVP.

Mariners: The first major injury of the spring has surfaced in Peoria, with third baseman Kyle Seager out at least a month with torn ligaments in his hand. … Felix Hernandez has a right to be disappointed but he also has an opportunity. … Wade LeBlanc didn’t pitch yesterday and the M’s lost. … The M’s sent down many of their highly touted prospects.

Seahawks: Free agency has started and the Hawks have already been hit hard, with Justin Coleman leaving for Detroit. … Russell Wilson is going to be paid a lot of money by somebody.

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• I stayed up last night to watch the end of Saint Mary’s win over San Diego. It was the basketball-watching equivalent of willing yourself to the Bloomsday finish line. But I got there. Now I’m exhausted. I’ll need at least two naps before Gonzaga’s title game tilt with the Gaels – during which I will complain at least five times about the Saint Mary’s players not showing any energy. That, in a walnut shell, is what it means to be a sports fan. … By the way, we will be back tonight with our TV Take. Join us then. Until later …