A Grip on Sports: Wins today would go a long way toward ending WSU’s long NCAA drought and melting Gonzaga’s icy outlook this season

A GRIP ON SPORTS • Ice, ice, baby. Just when we thought winter had loosened its grip on us, it decided to show up again this morning. Temperatures dipped. The car is coated in stuff better suited in your Diet Coke. We are so appreciative of not having to drive anywhere until it warms a little. In fact, we may stay inside all day.

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• Why not? Two of the area’s most-impactful college basketball games in a decade are about to play out today on our television screen, so why leave? Oh, right. Have to stock up the larder for tomorrow’s Big Game. Well, there is always a grocery delivery service. We can just cash in our IRA.

It’s worth it to sit here all afternoon, avoiding others, blinders on, watching Super Games on Super Bowl weekend.

Sadly, they overlap.

First up is Gonzaga, the little school on the banks of the Spokane River, playing at 17th-ranked Kentucky, the blue blood from the Bluegrass State. Rupp Arena. John Calipari and Mark Few. Twenty-First Century college basketball royalty. And two teams with issues.

Both 16-6 overall (in the NCAA’s eyes). Both looking up in their respective conference standings. And both hoping for a boost from today’s game.

Funny, though. They share another similarity. Both seem better than the narratives. By that, we are going to use two well-respected analytical formulas. Well, one respected one, from Ken Pomeroy, and the NCAA’s NET ranking.

The schools are close in each, with Gonzaga atop KenPom’s (22nd nationally to UK’s 24) and the Wildcats the NCAA’s (UK 23, GU 25) heading into today’s matchup (1 p.m., CBS).

For our purposes, the Gonzaga numbers make it clear. A win today, the avoidance of bad losses down the stretch and, voila, the Zags earn an at-large berth even if Saint Mary’s takes the WCC’s automatic bid. Don’t fret it. The dearth of Quad 1 wins? The NET is supposed to take that into account. If GU wins, it will finish the season pretty locked into the mid-20 range in both formulas.

That will get them a bid.

The other local team trying for the same status? Washington State plays in Eugene today, with the Cougars on a roll, having won seven of their last eight games. Oregon is going the other way, though the Ducks stopped the bleeding of a four-game slide with a Thursday win over visiting UW.

Though Oregon, ranked 58th in the NET (and 54th by KenPom), won the first meeting this season in Pullman, and are favored by 3.5 points in this one, all signs point to the Cougars picking up another Quad 1 win today. That would give WSU a 4-3 mark in that metric, and should help it improve its current 41st spot – as well as its KenPom standing (42nd).

Give Washington State some credit. Kyle Smith’s group, trying to become the first Cougar men’s team to make the tournament since Tony Bennett’s penultimate squad, played one of the easiest nonconference schedules in the nation. That’s a millstone in the metrics. They are overcoming that with a special Pac-12 season.

Today is a chance to write another line on the resume.

We have a prediction, something we are loath to do. But today is so big, we think it is warranted. Whichever team wins today will make the NCAA Tournament. Both? Sure. Neither? If they both lose, we’ll go there. Barring a conference-tournament title, of course.

It’s that big a day. A make-or-break day, to use the cliché. And we’re going to enjoy it.

• There is also a regional rivalry game late this afternoon. Out at Eastern Washington. The Eagle men (and women) host their Idaho counterparts. Unlike the games above, neither hold NCAA tourney ramifications. The Big Sky is about one bid. That goes to the postseason-tournament champion. But any time Idaho and EWU meet, no matter the sport, it’s fun.

If you want to watch the men play in this area, their game is on SWX, with a 4:30 tip. Both are on ESPN+ nationally.

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WSU: It didn’t take 20/20 vision to see the Washington State women were in trouble when Charlisse Leger-Walker went down with a knee injury a couple weeks ago. The All-American was a crucial part of the Cougars’ success. And trying to re-write the script this late in the season was going to be a chore. So far, no happy endings. The Cougs lost their third consecutive game without her, falling 66-59 Friday night to visiting California. … Elsewhere in the Pac-12 and the nation, Jon Wilner answers some key questions about the conference in this Friday mailbag. … John Canzano has some interesting questions of his own as well. … Let’s start with the football realm, because the news from Los Angeles (and Columbus, Ohio) is so interesting. Chip Kelly, whose last couple UCLA teams have been pretty good, bailed on the Bruins yesterday to take the offensive coordinator spot at Ohio State. Kelly’s unprecedented move elicited loud wailing and moaning in L.A., where the idea of leaving the sun for the Midwest is unfathomable. Our thoughts? We attended a couple UCLA games the past couple years. Sat among the alums. Listened to their criticisms. Thought they were, well, misguided is a kind word. Deranged might be more accurate. They got what they deserved. Now who will the Bruins end up with? In this transfer-portal era, they have to move quickly. Former Stanford coach David Shaw seems to be the frontrunner. … In more normal news, we have Christian Caple’s mailbag about Washington to pass along. … Oregon State’s assistants are making a lot of money but not as much as they could have. … In basketball news, this season is full of surprises. Which is not surprising. … Washington’s women took No. 6 Stanford to overtime but the visiting Cardinal pulled out the 63-59 win. … By the way, Kelsey Plum had an incredible career with the Huskies. … No. 17 Oregon State shut down 20th-ranked Utah and rolled to a 58-44 road victory. … Oregon has lost six consecutive games after a 90-57 defeat at No. 4 Colorado. … JuJu Watkins scored 31 points and No. 10 USC handled visiting Arizona State 81-63. … Lauren Betts returned for ninth-ranked UCLA and the Bruins got past Arizona 66-58. … On the men’s side, No. 8 Arizona will have its hands full against Colorado in Boulder. … Utah is coming off a triple-overtime home loss to UA and must bounce back against Arizona State. … UCLA plays its final league game at California. … USC is another team that needs to win its conference tournament to make the NCAA Tournament.

Gonzaga: If GU and Kentucky were having typical seasons, the main storyline today would revolve around Nolan Hickman, the one-time Kentucky commit who spurned the Cats for Spokane. But it’s not a typical year. Hickman’s story, as told by Jim Meehan this morning, is just another minor one submerged by the importance of the outcome. … See, both teams are “desperate,” as Theo Lawson spotlights in this preview. He also has the key matchups.

EWU and Idaho: Around the Big Sky, Northern Colorado and Montana meet in basketball, with the men playing in Greeley and the women in Missoula.

Whitworth: The Pirate men and women picked up home wins last night, with the men’s 73-66 victory over Linfield helping strengthen their hold on first place in the Northwest Conference.

Preps: Dave Nichols has a roundup of Friday’s basketball action.

Chiefs: Spokane is fighting for a playoff spot. So are the Tri-City Americans. The rivals met in the Spokane Memorial Arena last night, trying to take a key step toward the promised land. Give this one to the Chiefs. Dave has this story of their 5-1 victory.

Seahawks: What a weird day for the Hawks. The news broke they had hired a new defensive coordinator, Aden Durde, the defensive line coach for the Cowboys. That’s a big deal by itself. But then late in the evening, the Seahawks’ staff was sited in a Renton area eatery with former Washington offensive coordinator Ryan Grubb, who recently moved to Alabama and swore fealty to the Crimson Tide. That didn’t last. Bob Condotta confirmed he’s the Hawks’ new OC. … Super Bowl MVPs? Two of them have Inland Northwest connections.

USL: There is some news on the Spokane Zephyr FC front. Dave Nichols has this story on USA Soccer has designated the United Soccer League’s “Super League” will have Division One – the highest available – status.

Mariners: We ask once again, because this time the story was in the S-R. The Mariners’ roster is different. But is it better? … Ty France has a new swing. Again. … Jorge Polanco is supposed to be the second-base answer. Will he be?

Kraken: The All-Star break is finally over for Seattle. It returns to the ice today.

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• Today is important for WSU, but a road defeat may not be a killer. Not with five of the final – in more ways than one – seven Pac-12 regular season games at home. But keeping the momentum going is crucial. As is knocking Oregon back a notch. For Gonzaga, today is about changing the national narrative. The Zags’ metrics are good enough, but the chatter about their demise is weighing them down. Until later …