Spokane consumed by March Madness

 

SPOKANE, Wash. -- Spokane is awash in March Madness this week.

The Gonzaga men's and women's teams are both playing in the NCAA tournament. Washington State University, based in nearby Pullman, is making its first appearance in the tournament in 13 years.

In addition, eight men's teams are coming to the Spokane Arena to play first- and second-round games this Friday and Sunday.

If that isn't enough hoops fever, Whitworth College of Spokane advanced to the second round of the NCAA Division III men's basketball tournament before losing. In the prep ranks, Ferris High of Spokane won the boy's state Class 4A title, representing the state's largest schools, while Lewis and Clark High of Spokane won the girl's state 4A title.

That's not all. Both the Gonzaga men (23-10) and Washington State (25-7) will play their first-round games in Sacramento, Calif., on Thursday.

That had Washington State coach Tony Bennett looking for some Eastern Washington synergy.

Gonzaga is there, and UCLA, and hopefully we'll cheer for each other as long as we are not playing each other," Bennett said Sunday.

In the world of the Six Degrees of College Basketball, Gonzaga's first-round opponent is Indiana (20-10), who the Zags beat last year in the second round of the tournament. That loss ended the tenure of Indiana coach Mike Davis, who was replaced this season by Kelvin Sampson.

Sampson is the former Washington State coach who took the Cougars to the NCAAs the last time the team qualified, in 1993-94.

Sampson is also harshly remembered in Gonzaga circles for ending the annual Gonzaga-WSU game after a Gonzaga win in 1988. The series was resumed after Sampson's seven year stint at WSU ended.

Gonzaga is 12-9 in nine previous trips to the NCAAs. Nine teams the Zags played this season made the NCAA tournament field, and another went to the NIT.

Washington State, meanwhile will face Oral Roberts (23-10) on Thursday. It is the fourth appearance by the Golden Eagles in the tournament, and only the fifth by WSU.

Oral Roberts made the tournament by winning the Mid-Continent Conference. That was the league where Tony Bennett was a star player for his father at Wisconsin-Green Bay.

"I know that league," Bennett, who still holds numerous scoring records, said Sunday.

Oral Roberts is coached by Scott Sutton, son of retired basketball coaching legend Eddie Sutton. Bennett is the son of retired basketball coaching legend Dick Bennett.

The Gonzaga women, who qualified for their first NCAA tournament by winning the West Coast Conference tournament, play their first-round matches in Palo Alto, Calif., some two hours from Sacramento.

The 12th-seeded Gonzaga women (24-9) will play Saturday against 5th-seeded Middle Tennessee State (29-3), which is riding a 26-game winning streak.

Gonzaga is one of 23 schools that is sending both men's and women's basketball teams to this year's tournaments. The Bulldogs are one of only three schools west of the Mississippi River to qualify for both tournaments. The others are Stanford and Brigham Young.

---

SPOKANE-BOUND: Eight teams will play first-round games in the Spokane Arena this Friday and Sunday.

Under NCAA geography, Spokane is hosting two first-round games in the East Regional, as Texas (24-9) plays New Mexico State (25-8), followed by Southern California (23-11) against Arkansas (21-13). The winners will play Sunday.

Texas is led by super freshman Kevin Durant, who scored 29 points when his team lost to Gonzaga 87-77 in December. Southern Cal, meanwhile, beat Washington State in the semifinals of the Pac-10 tournament.

Spokane is also hosting first-round games in the Midwest Regional on Friday, with Notre Dame (24-7) playing Winthrop (28-4), followed by Oregon (26-7) against Miami (Ohio) (18-14). The winners will also play Sunday.

Spokane is a big Irish Catholic town, with Notre Dame a perennial favorite. Oregon, meanwhile, beat WSU twice this season.

The Spokane games have long been sold out.

---

TONY WINS AGAIN: Washington State coach Tony Bennett, a candidate for national coach of the year, has been named the Sporting News Coach of the Year. That came a week after Bennett was named Pacific-10 Conference, United States Basketball Writers Association District 9, National Association of Basketball Coaches District 14, Collegeinsider.com and Basketball Times National Coach of the Year.

Bennett has led the Cougars to 25 wins this season, tied for the second most in school history and one shy of the WSU record set in 1940-41.

See more at http://seattlepi.nwsource.com