I’m not sure who to root for! I can see pros and cons both ways.
The Gaels don’t care. They are inevitable.
SMC romping on the Hilltop.
USF able to grind away and cut the lead to 3 with 4 minutes left, SMC promptly responds with an 8-0 run to snuff out any hopes of a comeback
Zags plays at Wazzu tonight. I expect this will be a beatdown.
Seattle hosts the Toreros. I’m shocked the Redhawks are basically in the WCC cellar with Pepp. I caught the second half of Seattle’s game against Gonzaga and was very impressed. Unfortunately they just ran out of gas and lost in OT.
Huff is out for Gonzaga for an indefinite amount of time with a knee injury. At least 4 weeks but as many as 8. Huge loss for the Zags. Ike is excellent, but the backcourt is merely very good. The tandem of Huff and Ike is what makes these Zags elite.
Based on the longest projected injury recovery period, Huff should be back in time for the Big Dance. Until then, I’m confident they’ll handle their business in the WCC and finish 1st or 2nd place.
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No doubt, but I think the Zags pick up at least one (more) loss in conference without Huff which will make the 1-2 spots more of a heat than expected. Folks on the Gaels message board are already crowning themselves.
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Did you watch any of the Zags-Cougars game last night? Gonzaga smothered WSU. The final score wasn’t indicative of the Zags’ dominance from the last 2 minutes of the 1st half through the entire 2nd half.
I’ll add, one aspect that may be a weakness for the Zags: WSU went 13-28 (46%) from 3.
Graham Ike in a boot, was out for the Seattle U game with ankle soreness
No matter, Zags by 15-20 late
Santa Clara gets both the WCC Player of the Week and Frosh of the Week with Hammond and Graves, respectively, being acknowledged for their play.
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Gonzaga plays Pepperdine today, who they have defeated an astounding 50 consecutive times, dating back to 2002.
The all-time record for most consecutive victories against a single opponent is 52 (UCLA vs. Cal from the 60s into the 80s).
GU likely won’t get a chance to tie or beat that record unless they choose to schedule Pepperdine in the future, this being the last regular season meeting and Pepperdine unlikely to get to GU in the WCC Tournament.
Pretty absurd!
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Hadn’t see this posted here - trying to use a gift link for those who don’t subscribe to the Chronicle.
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@getnashty thank you for sharing. Here is something I am struggling to understand. In Darlan’s case, the NCAA ruled that he could join SCU but would have only 2 years of eligibility because of his two years in the G League. However, Bediako is staking a claim to eligibility even though he spent 2 seasons at Bama, then parts of 3 seasons in the G League on a two-way contract with the Spurs, AND wants more eligibility time with the Crimson Tide? How is this a just application of eligibility decisions? Either Bediako should get ZERO college eligibility, or Darlan should have FOUR years.
Hopefully my use of the gift link doesn’t invalidate it for others.
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I was (and still am) in favor of athletes getting paid. But the NCAA has completely lost the plot with eligibility and transfer rules. How did they not have any oversight to put a plan in place?
I hope it’s just a matter of time where contracts are put in place to hold athletes in place better and rules to more clearly define who is eligible.
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@Midwestbronco14 I’ve been saying this for some time - there should be contracts in place. If professional leagues can have contracts, then why can’t college sports have the same thing? Obviously trades wouldn’t be reasonable, but unified contracts could have clear terminology for opt-outs to transfer. Ideally, transfers would go back to sitting out a year and/or losing a year of eligibility, with exceptions under certain circumstances like a coach leaving or program getting sanctioned.
Or perhaps contracts could be “bought” if all three parties (two schools and player) agree. This would at least reward the schools who find a diamond in the rough and develop the player.
I’m sure there are plenty of ideas out there, but one thing is for sure: the status quo is horrible for fans.
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In a weird parallel universe, it would be similar to European soccer with academies signing players in their youth and then selling them to develop later on. I could see the alabamas and Ohio states of the world offering contracts to every 8yr old with potential in their state. Then smaller schools could buy their rights for a year or two before they transfer back to the power 5 school for their final season or two.
USF was down 14 with about 15 to play, before storming back in the final minutes and losing to Gonzaga by only 2. Granted the zags played without Ike or Huff… but a close call for Gonzaga and a reason to be wary of usf.
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Wazzu won last night and is up to 141 in the NET. The cut-off for a Q2 game (away) is 135. So Washington State is very close to becoming a Q2 opportunity for the Broncos, in addition to at USF and at Pacific which are solidly Q2 and unlikely to change.
Q1 opportunities are just the next 3 (presumably) against SMC/GU, so Santa Clara will want to hoard all its Q2 games the rest of the way (2-4 opportunities remaining).
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I don’t think we’ve discussed this topic, so bringing it up here.
I really like the (mostly) Wednesday/Saturday conference scheduling. Letting the players rest for two full days and three nights (when most tissue repair happens) doesn’t punish players for playing all-out every game.
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