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Texas' post game interview

Posted by Joe at 5:28 PM on Mar 18    Comments (0)
Filed under: Spokane, Multimedia
Tags: Audio

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A few minutes with Texas coach Rick Barnes, Kevin Durant and A.J. Abrams after their loss to Southern Cal at the Spokane Arena Sunday, March 18, 2007.

Southern Cal's post game intervikew

Posted by Joe at 4:59 PM on Mar 18    Comments (0)
Filed under: Multimedia
Tags: Audio

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A few minutes with Tim Floyd, Nick Young, Lodrick Stewart and Daniel Hackett after Southern Cal's victory over Texas at the Spokane Arena Sunday, March 18, 2007.

Trojans conquer Texas

Posted by Jeff at 4:35 PM on Mar 18    Comments (0)

Led by Nick Young's 22 points, unranked Southern California downed No. 15 Texas 87-68 on Sunday in NCAA subregional play at the Arena.

USC (25-11) advances to the Sweet Sixteen and the East Regional next weekend in East Rutherford, N.J. and will meet North Carolina.

Fifth-seeded USC led early in the game and built a double-digit lead that was cut to 34-27 on a 3-pointer at the end of the first half by Texas' A.J. Abrams.

The Trojans came out strong to start the second half and extended their lead to 50-33 with 15:47 remaining on a dunk by Young. Two minutes and three free throws later, USC had its biggest lead at 53-33.

Fourth-seededed Texas (25-10) never got the Longhorns' lead below double digits after that point. They were led in scoring by Kevin Durant with 30 points.

Southern Cal vs. Texas

Posted by Joe at 4:17 PM on Mar 18    Comments (0)
Filed under: Spokane, Multimedia
Tags: Slideshows

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Game action from the Southern Cal vs. Texas game at the Spokane Arena Sunday, March 18, 2007.

Winthrop post game interview

Posted by Joe at 2:37 PM on Mar 18    Comments (0)
Filed under: Spokane, Multimedia
Tags: Audio

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A few minutes with Winthrop's Gregg Marshall, Craig Bradshaw and Torrell Martin after losing to Oregon at the Spokane Arena Sunday, March 18, 2007.

Oregon post game interview

Posted by Joe at 2:15 PM on Mar 18    Comments (0)
Filed under: Spokane, Multimedia
Tags: Audio

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This is a few questions with Oregon's Ernie Kent, Tajuan Porter, Aaron Brooks and Adam Zahn after their win over Winthrop at the Spokane Arena Sunday, March 18, 2007.

Oregon win as Kent envisioned it Saturday

Posted by Mike V. at 2:02 PM on Mar 18    Comments (0)

During Saturday's press conference Oregon coach Ernie Kent spoke about how he allows his players the green light to shoot at any time and that they don't have to worry about looking at the bench wondering if it was a bad decision. He prefers putting his emphasis on defense.

"I'm defensive minded, really," he said. "That's where I put my attention. You have to defend otherwise they're going to take you out of that ball game."

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Oregon vs. Winthrop

Posted by Joe at 1:57 PM on Mar 18    Comments (0)
Filed under: Multimedia
Tags: Slideshows

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Game action from the Oregon vs. Winthrop Sunday, March 18, 2007.

Ducks ground Eagles

Posted by Jeff at 1:50 PM on Mar 18    Comments (0)

The No. 16 Oregon Ducks used a barrage of 3-pointers from guards Tajuan Porter and Aaron Brooks early in the second half to defeat No. 24 Winthrop 75-61 in the opening NCAA subregional game on Sunday at the Arena.

Oregon led 33-29 at halftime, then pulled away from the Eagles on three 3-pointers and another two-pointer by Porter during a 15-8 run over the first four minutes. Marty Leunen had the other four points and his dunk gave Oregon a 48-37 lead. Then, with his team leading 51-40 three minutes later, Brooks hit back-to-back 3-pointers as Oregon pulled away.

Brooks had 22 points for Oregon as the No. 3 seed Ducks (28-7) advanced to the Sweet Sixteen and the Midwest Regional next weekend in St. Louis. They will meet UNLV, an upset winner over Wisconsin.

Winthrop, the No. 11 seed, was led by the 15 points of Torrell Martin. The Eagles ended their season at 29-5.

Friday action

Posted by Joe at 11:07 AM on Mar 18    Comments (0)
Filed under: Spokane, Multimedia
Tags: Slideshows

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The real fun in college basketball for me are the sounds. The bands and the athletes putting it all out there for the fans and some glory...good times. This is a collection of images and sound from the first round at the Spokane Arena Friday, March 16, 2007.

Women: news and notes

Posted by Dave Trimmer at 9:19 PM on Mar 17    Comments (0)
Filed under: Zags

Gonzaga coach Kelly Graves has his name in the Final Four record book, as coach for St. Mary’s in the 1999 tournament. The record book lists all appearances. St. Mary’s went back two years later, the year Graves started at Gonzaga, and won a game under Michelle Jacoby. That was the last win for a WCC team in the tournament.
Graves’ team was a 12 seed and lost to Notre Dame, 61-57. Jacoby’s team, a nine seed, beat Texas 68-64 and lost to Tennessee 92-75.
The Zags went 0-14 in the WCC in Graves’ first season and his losses to the team he recruited at St. Mary’s were 62-36 and 63-50, plus 84-59 in the league tournament.
Graves also went to the tournament four straight years as an assistant at Portland.
Gonzaga had never played at Stanford before Saturday but Graves has coached at Maples Pavilion. In the 1999-00 season St. Mary’s lost 77-65.
Local ties
The Bulldogs are the last area team to make the dance. Idaho went in 1985, Eastern Washington went in 1987 and Washington State in 1991. The Vandals, under Pat Dobratz, lost to USC, lost 74-51; the Eagles, under Bill Smithpeters, lost to Oregon 77-56; and the Cougars, under Harold Rhodes, lost to Northwestern, 82-62. All the games were at the winners’ school.
A regional tournament – that’s the Sweet 16 and Elite Eight – is scheduled for Spokane next year. The dates are March 29-31 or March 30-April 1. The other three regionals are Greensboro, N.C., New Orleans and Oklahoma City.
Spokane, with the seating capacity listed at 12,000, is ranked seventh in all-time attendance for a regional with 22,092 attending the West Regional in 2001. That regional included a championship game of Washington against Missouri State, which included All-American Jackie Stiles. The Huskies lost 104-87. The other two teams were Duke and Oklahoma.
The six sites with higher attendance, with only two coming after 2001, are Nashville, Hartford, Albuquerque, Greensboro, Knoxville and Austin.
Tip ins
Boise State, with former GU assistants J.R. Payne and Toriano Towns on the staff,
reached the tournament for the second time in school history. The Broncos are coached by Graves’ good friend Gordy Presnell. Their first appearance came in 1994 under current Husky coach June Daugherty. BSU lost that game 89-61 – to the Huskies in Seattle. BSU lost 76-67 to 14th-ranked George Washington in Greensboro, N.C., on Saturday. … Big Sky Conference champion Idaho State had the difficult task of facing home-standing Stanford, losing 96-58. Pullman grad Christa Brossman, a former Bengal player, is an assistant for ISU. … That puts two PHS grads here with GU assistant ticket manager Alison Keck accompanying the Bulldogs. … Former Brewster and North Idaho College player Jeni Boesel ended her career at ISU with nine points. … Another connection is Stanford senior Clare Bodensteiner from Ruppert, Idaho. She played a tournament with the Spokane Stars and was reported to be headed to Gonzaga before the Cardinal grabbed her late in the recruiting process.

Young Zags expect to return

Posted by Dave Trimmer at 9:18 PM on Mar 17    Comments (0)
Filed under: Zags

STANFORD, Calif. – In their first appearance in the NCAA tournament the Gonzaga Bulldogs played like it was their first appearance in the NCAA tournament.
They were tentative in an 85-46 loss to Middle Tennessee State and shellshocked afterwards.
About the only good thing to come out of the game was the way the younger Bulldogs talked about what the experience they gained for their next appearance.
“Where do I start?” freshman Heather Bowman said. “I learned you have to come out intense from the beginning. They’re definitely very good (but) we’ve played teams like this before. Next time we’ll remember this game, prepare better and come out more intense.”
Sophomore Sasha Polischuck added, “It was so amazing, I realize experience does matter. When we come back next year, we’re going to know what it takes, we going to know details really do matter. … We learned you can’t play scared, you have to be confident. When you’re scared they can see it in your eyes.”
At halftime, when the 17th-ranked and fifth-seeded Blue Raiders were leading 44-20, Gonzaga had more turnovers, 21, that shots attempted, 17. By the end of the game the Zags had 37 turnovers and 39 shots.
“They are a great basketball team that we made look a lot better,” GU coach Kelly Graves said.
He, too, expects this game is the first of many.
“This has been coming,” he said. “We’ve been building it. We’ve put ourselves in a position now to dictate our success year-in and year-out. People forget that experience matters. This is our first time here and we played like it.
“Our recruiting has certainly been excellent. … I anticipate that this isn’t going to be the last people see of Gonzaga. I’m proud of us, this is just a stepping stone.”

Zags wilt under pressure

Posted by Dave Trimmer at 9:17 PM on Mar 17    Comments (0)
Filed under: Zags

STANFORD, Calif. – Gonzaga women’s basketball team finally made it to the Big Dance – and forgot their shoes.
Hounded by relentless pressure and buried under an avalanche of turnovers, the 12th-seeded Bulldogs were steamrolled 85-46 by fifth-seeded and 17th-ranked Middle Tennessee Saturday night in the first-round of the NCAA tournament at Stanford’s Maples Pavilion.
“That’s a bad matchup for us,” GU coach Kelly Graves said. “We’ve always struggled against pressure. I’m surprised we didn’t have more teams this year pressure us. It’s been one of our deficiencies and it showed tonight.”
The Blue Raiders (30-3) tied up Gonzaga (24-10) on the first possession and proceeded to force 37 turnovers, which they turned into 43 points.

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GU women fall hard

Posted by Dave Trimmer at 7:52 PM on Mar 17    Comments (0)
Filed under: Zags

The Gonzaga women's team fell and fell hard in their maiden run in the NCAA Tournament.

It was 85-46, Middle Tennessee State and it wasn't that close.

GU was out of the game early, buried under a season-high 37 turnovers the Blue Raiders turned into 43 points.

The Bulldogs were impressed with MTSU and disappointed in themselves but vowed to do better next time.

The story of the Cougars' loss can be found here

Posted by Vince at 6:42 PM on Mar 17    Comments (0)
Filed under: Cougs

SACRAMENTO

Before I start writing my thoughts on the season-ending loss, here's the link to the game story. We'll be back soon after reading your comments here and on Glenn Kasses' blog.

Kent, Marshall have individual styles

Posted by Jason Shoot at 6:11 PM on Mar 17    Comments (0)
Filed under: Spokane

Ernie Kent speaks quickly as if his mouth is a machine gun that never runs out of ammunition.

“I like to feel like I'm still playing,” Oregon's head coach said a day before his Ducks play Winthrop in the second round of the NCAA Men's Basketball Championship at the Spokane Arena. “So I like to stand and move, although this year with bad shoulders and bad hips, I sat down quite a bit. And now you're at tournament time, I think it's important that you have the intensity that is needed.”

There is no shortage of intensity with Oregon's demonstrative coach.

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Oregon guards force action

Posted by Jason Shoot at 5:42 PM on Mar 17    Comments (0)
Filed under: Spokane

Oregon's Bryce Taylor drove the lane and challenged his opponent with a right-handed floater.

Swatted.

In the same game Friday, Ducks teammate Tajuan Porter knifed into the lane and tried to loft a shot over a Miami (Ohio) player.

Rejected.

Same result for Oregon guard Aaron Brooks late in the second half when Miami's Michael Bramos blocked Brooks' layup attempt.

The Ducks (27-7) aren't about to abandon their penchant for attacking the lane, however, when they suit up against Winthrop (29-4) tonight in the second round of the NCAA Men's Basketball Championship at the Spokane Arena (11:50 a.m., KREM).

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Expect the Cougs to win and move on

Posted by Vince at 12:57 PM on Mar 17    Comments (0)
Filed under: Cougs

SACRAMENTO

When assessing the Cougars' chances today against Vanderbilt, Glenn Kasses focused in his story on the Commodores' 3-point shooting and how 3-point shooting as been somewhat of an Achilles' heel for WSU recently

But in his blog, Glenn expands on that.

He and I have talked about this recently, and my point has always been the Cougs defend the 3-pointer well. But they struggle against two types of 3-point shooting teams, both of which are rare in college basketball.

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Lady Zags ready to go

Posted by Dave Trimmer at 10:43 AM on Mar 17    Comments (0)
Filed under: Zags

The Gonzaga women face a tough game in their first appearance in the NCAA tournament.

For basketball fans, think Winthrop, with a higher seed, a mid-major with great numbers, trying to make a splash. For Gonzaga fans, think Bulldogs, when the men had been several times and were starting to get the respect it deserved with a single diget seed.

Winthrop like: Middle Tennessee is a mid-major with a 29-3 record, 26 straight wins, a super star in Chrissy Givens, making its fourth straight appearance, looking to finally get to the Sweet 16.

Zag men-like: A Bulldog win in tonight's game at 5, wouldn't have the same impact as beating a name, like Winthrop's upset of Notre Dame, but it would be a big victory like the first step of the men's first run with they beat Minnesota.

And like that men's run, their second game would provide the opportunity for a big upset against a big name, likely Ohio State.

But first steps first, Middle Tennessee is a tough matchup. If the Zags can handle the fullcourt pressure they'll be in the game, if not, wait till next year.

Survival tactics

Posted by Glenn Kasses at 10:37 AM on Mar 17    Comments (0)
Filed under: Cougs

Good morning, everyone.

Well, if you didn't think this Washington State season was pretty interesting already, it sure should get there today. The Cougars are going for a second-round NCAA Tournament win against Vanderbilt, a team that is seeded sixth in the East region and would seem to pose some real challenges to this Cougar team that has come so far in 2006-07.

So let's cover the stories of the day, and there are quite a few again as the S-R gives you wall-to-wall Cougar coverage. Here's my advance, focusing on the 3-point shooting exploits of Vanderbilt and the challenges that they pose to the Cougars. Next, John Blanchette's column on Daven Harmeling's disappearance and the rotational intrigue of this year's team. Then, Jim Meehan's notebook on the Commodores (plus some Cougar stuff) which talks in depth about Derrick Byars, the SEC player of the year - even if you've probably never heard of him. And from A1, here's Vince Grippi's introduction to the Cougar assistant coaches, which should be of interest to those of you who have wondered what goes on during those timeout chat sessions.

Finally, here's my preview box, which you can read in full using the link or just read on here for some thoughts on today's game.

I say up above here that today's game will be interesting for a couple of reasons. First, this will be the first timeall year that we really get a chance to see the Cougars in action against a top team from another power conference, so we may find out a lot about how the Cougars' success within the Pac-10 really stacks up in some ways.

It'll also be fascinating because, of all the teams for WSU to draw in the second round, these Commodores seem to play a lineup and a style that have given WSU fits. If you're going to draw a comparison in terms of personnel, this Vandy team looks a little bit (at least) like USC and/or Oregon.

The Commodores will start four guards, although a couple of them are really wing players, including the 6-foot-7 Byars. Then, 6-9 Ross Neltner is in the middle as the lone big guy to collect rebounds. This is very similar to what Oregon throws out there, and I don't think you need me to remind you that the Cougars have lost 13 straight to that Duck team.

Having said that, Vanderbilt relies a little less on one-on-one matchups and a little more on team play than either Oregon or USC, so it won't necessarily be a carbon copy of those games.

The Commodores rained in 3s in the first round, taking advantage of a George Washington zone that Karl Hobbs stuck with for almost the entire first half. Well, I can promise you that Vandy won't see anything of the sort today. It'll be WSU's man-to-man all the way, and if that defense can close out on shooters in a hurry and force bad shots, it could be a good day for WSU.

Look also to see if the Cougar pack defense extends out onto the floor a little bit, perhaps risking some inside buckets in order to lock down on the perimeter. That's gotten the Cougars into trouble in the past, but they may have no choice today.

For more keys, more things to watch and a closing thought or two, just keep on reading ...

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