A HANDFUL OF SPORT • Where were we? Exactly. Who was the biggest idiot of the weekend, those of us who expected Cinderella to keep dancing, the other people in Seattle who came up with the idea that the M roster was built differently, or the entire country, which just hoped the NCAA would have the right dimensions in the tournament. It’s up to you.
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• A silly question, we know. The correct answer, all of the above. And let’s start with the one with the worst optics. That is, it’s bad that the NCAA vendor not only installed a faulty box for the Portland regional venues, likely painted with the old ladies’ three-point line arc, but it took five games to figure it out. And that only happened until three hundred fans found out.
At least that’s what we think. NCAA regional election officials declined to answer questions. Let’s measure the court’s shortcomings. Or get up and settle for the buffoonery.
Don’t you think that shooting on a course with the wrong line could affect the results of the fites?Well, Baylor coach Nikki Collen did. “I guess that’s why we shot better on the court. 2nd half,” he wrote on X, “decent 3-point distance!!FYI, with 8 groups in the same place, you have very little preparation time in the main draw and can focus on making proper and fair plans. Taking shots! The Bears lost 74-70 to USC on Saturday.
Maybe the numbers will help. Gonzaga entered his Sweet Sixteen game with Texas as the most sensible three-point shooting team in the country at 40. 1 percent. Shooting is a component of GU’s offense. The Zags came out of their loss with the lowest score of the season and, after a performance of 4 out of 22, a mark of 39. 6% from beyond the arc. Trying to figure out cause and effect is a silly task, but it’s not hard to realize one truth: It would never have happened on a men-only site. .
• Speaking of men, there’s a Cendrillon. Eh, well, so to speak. It’s imagining, in the context of an NCAA tournament, a Cinderella story that includes two championship trophies at home and a stream of winnings for the Power Five conference.
The 11th-seeded state of North Carolina could well qualify, given that the school raced in 1983 with Jim Valvano the last time the Wolfpack reached the Final Four. Since? Nothing. Nothing. Talk about stupid consistency. But the Raleigh pack has attacked with ferocity in recent weeks. They’ve bitten the prince, the depraved mother-in-law, and even the car, because they refuse to let the clock strike midnight. And thanks, basketball gods, for DJ. Burns.
Is there now a way to guarantee that Zach Edey will win at least when the whistle blows in Phoenix?That’s a lot to ask, we know, but please?
• Another question? The Mariners are making a little more contact. Ryan Divish of the Seattle Times documented during the offseason how the front office, led by Jerry Dipoto, sought to combine a roster that hit less than last year’s swing-and-miss team that sniffed 29 percent of the time.
In 4 games, that number comes to about 0. 33 at-bats. Precocious, of course, and in a small sample. We’re not going to stop the countdown. But don’t be fooled. Trends have to start somewhere.
• We saw a fun statistic on our TV screen this weekend when defending champion UConn made it to the Final Four again. Their 77-52 rout of Illinois sent the Huskies to the Phoenix Metroplex with 14 straight wins in Sweet Sixteen games or later. In other words, recently, if they succeed in Sweet Sixteen, they don’t lose.
According to the program, this is a record. That’s great. But there’s a caveat in the fine print. (Isn’t there always?) The record only dates back to 1995, when the final 16 groups became known as Sweet Sixteen. Huh.
Then we understood why. In another era, UCLA won 36 games outright against the last 16 organizations in the tournament. This organization didn’t have a cool nickname, but the Bruins’ winning streak was really nice. The streak ended in 1974 against a school that may in all likelihood do the same at UConn in next Monday’s final: North Carolina State.
What do you mean that’s irony?
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WSU: Well, we want to catch up a bit as we took Sunday off to regroup and reset the front of the house a bit. We fast forward to this afternoon first. When the Cougars face Illinois in the women’s basketball invitational tournament in Indianapolis. The game starts at 2 p. m. m. (PDT) and will be on ESPNU. Greg Lee previews how the Cougs attempt to win the NCAA-sponsored tournament in their first round. …Now we can look back. Greg Woods shared Jim Shaw’s emotions at not being named to upgrade Kyle Smith, anything Shaw said disappointed him. As are many Washington State fans. Who will be the new men’s basketball coach? We deserve to know soon. Array. . There has already been a lot of movement on the roster, anything that is ubiquitous in school sports. That was the topic of this column via Dave Boling. Array. . Switching between sports, Greg Woods also covered Saturday’s spring football practice, focusing on running back Djouvensky Schlenbaker and his fit within the offense. Array. . Former WSU wide receiver Dezmon Patmon misses Mike Leach. Array. . Elsewhere in the Pac-12 and on the other side of the field, Jon Wilner has done the math. And the members of the Pac-2 (Washington State and Orepassn State) will have $222 million to use over the next two years to try to resurrect the Pac-8, 10, 12 or more. Array. Wilner also has his NCAA winners and losers so far in the Mercury News. Array. . . Colorado’s roster is undergoing a restructure this offseason because that’s the way the world is these days. Array. . . The same is at play with Arizona. Array. . . Like us I have said more than once that the Final Four is in Phoenix. Glendale, in fact. We have some stories to share. Array. . The Orepassn State women battled top-ranked South Carolina for a spot in the Final Four on Sunday, but fell 70-58. And we use the words “battle” and “fall” because that’s what occasionally happened to the Beavers in a physical game. Array. . . USC will face all-time powerhouse Connecticut today for a spot in the Final Four. Array. . . Although Stanford’s season ended early on an uneven field, the Cardinal women hope next year, their first in the ACC, goes very well. Array. Colorado feels the same way as JR Payne and the Buffs move to the Big 12. Array. All UCLA feels is sadness as it sees another season approaching. Aside from the miscarriage of justice (and the other people in Portland had nothing to do with it), the Orepassn regionals were great, as John Canzano shares. … From the query “what was all this anguish due to? » archive, the story via Kim Mulkey of the Washington Post turns out to be quite banal. Array. . In football news, with Kyle Whittingham leading Utah, the secondary will be tough. Array. . Arizona wants to fill a big hole in the offensive line . Array. . Orepassn will soon have one on his list.
Gonzaga: We weren’t here to tell you about Jim Meehan’s look back at the Purdue loss, but we broadcast it today, along with some insights from Matt Calkins. . . Now, the future. If the medium holds, Zag’s men deserve to have a strong core around which to build. Theo Lawson takes a closer look. . . We also tell some stories from the loss to Texas, with Greg Lee looking into the season itself and Jim Allen putting the team’s accomplishments in an ancient context.
EWU and Idaho: Around Big Sky, the state of Montana has already attracted a basketball transfer.
Mariners: The M’s struck out in their attempts to pass the Red Sox on Sunday, losing 5-1. The game would possibly have been based on a failed check-swing decision. . . Still, the M’s want better ball hitters. . . . Perhaps Julio Rodríguez’s new technique is worth celebrating.
Kraken: Teens can make a difference at the end of the season.
Seahawks: The draft is still 4 weeks away. But it’s never too early for projects, right?
Sounders: Seattle overcame a 1-0 loss to the LA Galaxy, as the game took place in a swamp on Saturday night.
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• Thank you for understanding that we were not here yesterday. I had other obligations at Easter. Delivery of 2,344,729,432 eggs according to the official count. And thanks to Santa Claus for his sleigh. By the way, have you noticed how many times the word idiot appears in the column?After all, it’s April 1st. See you later. . .