A rivalry gone wrong
Tonights UW/Gonzaga game is a big deal in Seattle and Spokane and across the state of Washington. And, its become an increasingly big deal nationally with both teams ranked in the top 25 over the past 2 meetings. Andy Katz of ESPN.com contributed a solid article on the state of in-state out of conference rivalries, that I highly recommend reading.
It’s unfortunate that the decision makers at UW don’t see the value in such an in-state rivalry played once a year. The disgustingly pro-husky sports radio station here in Seattle has made the arguements that the UW is better off playing teams like Pittsburgh and LSU and can’t afford to front load their schedule with all the tough pac 10 games coming up in January and February. It’s not a big deal for Gonzaga either - they have no problem going on the road and playing and beating the likes of North Carolina, Texas, Georgia Tech, Oklahoma State, Virginia, Georgia, and Duke.
It is a big deal for the fans, as they are the ones who lose the privaledge of seeing high quality, intense basketball games, with that edge that Mr Katz calls out.
Go Zags!