Gonzaga, Eastern Washington make Spokane area an unlikely hoops hotbed

Originally published March 16, 2015 at 6:07 PM | Page modified March 16, 2015 at 6:57 PM

Eastern Washington coach Jim Hayford already had told the story many times Monday by the time I got to him, but you wouldnt know it from the genuine wonder still to be heard in his voice.

Hayford spoke of intently watching the NCAA tournament selection show for 30 years, of painstakingly making up his own bracket as a youngster so he could fill in the names. How he had to write fast, because in the early days, there was no Internet to double-check the teams once they were read off.

When the name Eastern Washington, the team Im coaching, came up there, it was a surreal moment, Hayford said.

You want to know something else that is surreal? That the two teams from the state of Washington to make the NCAA tournament this year are separated by a mere 18 miles, an unlikely hoops hotbed in eastern Washington.

Seattle might churn out Division I players, but right now, with the Huskies in a rut and Seattle University still trying to make its mark, Spokane County is where its at.

The rise of Gonzaga, of course, is an old story, but no less notable building a basketball powerhouse out of thin air in Spokane and then sustaining it for 17 consecutive NCAA bids.

The Zags story line has shifted over time, from the lovable little upstarts to a team that is perceived as having underachieved in the postseason. Current coach Mark Few has never made a regional final, let alone a Final Four; this year, the Zags have another highly touted squad that will bring a No. 2 seeding into its South Regional game Friday against North Dakota State at KeyArena.

I feel bad for Mark at times, said his good friend, Ray Giacoletti. People always talk about the Final Four, but thats about being fortunate, getting on a run at the right time, other teams getting beat. The landscape of 17 in a row, sustaining something like that, is the most remarkable story in college basketball.

And Eastern, located just a few freeway stops away on I-90, would love to approach that kind of continuity. After racking up a school-record 26 wins and knocking off Montana in the Big Sky final, the Eagles drew a No. 13 seed and will open the tournament Thursday in Portland against fourth-seeded Georgetown.

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Gonzaga, Eastern Washington make Spokane area an unlikely hoops hotbed