Gonzaga's rough road to NCAAs

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Mechanical problems delayed their flight by almost five hours Tuesday.

Their bus on Wednesday fell victim to traffic and a passive sheriff's escort, causing them to show up for practice at Arco Arena about 20 minutes late.

But eventually, the Gonzaga Bulldogs got to the NCAA men's basketball tournament.

It was a fitting arrival in what's been a season of fits and starts for the Bulldogs, but one that ultimately ended right where they intended — with a date in the first round today against Indiana at approximately 6:45 p.m.

Not that they won't look a little different.

"We'll be wearing dark uniforms [signifying the lower seed] in the first round for the first time in a while," noted Gonzaga athletic director Mike Roth.

Left their dance shoes in the closet


SEC, 1989: 0-5

Teams: No. 6 seed Alabama, No. 7 seed Florida, No. 10 LSU, No. 10 Tennessee, No. 12 South Carolina.

Comment: The Crimson Tide came the closest at winning as they lost 86-84 to South Alabama.

Big Ten, 1995: 1-6

Teams: No. 3 seed Purdue, No. 3 Michigan State, No. 8 Minnesota, No. 9 Indiana, No. 9 Michigan, No. 11 Illinois

Comment: The Boilermakers were the only squad to advance as they edged No. 14 seed Wisconsin-Green Bay, 49-48.

WAC, 1990: 0-3

Teams: No. 10 seed Colorado State, No. 11 UTEP, No. 12 BYU.

Comment: All three teams were underdogs, and all three lost.

Conference USA, 2000: 1-4

Teams: No. 2 seed Cincinnati, No. 7 Louisville, No. 9 DePaul, No. 9 St. Louis.

Comment: The Bearcats, 28-3 prior to the tournament, were eliminated in the second round by Tulsa, 69-61.

Gary Dougherty

In fact, it's only the second time since 2001 that Gonzaga will play a first-round game as a lower-seeded team — they are a No. 10 seed today against the No. 7 Hoosiers.

"We had a pretty good record wearing those," Roth said, remembering the three straight Sweet 16s (including one Elite Eight) as a lower seed from 1999-2001. "Maybe it'll be just fine here, too."

Keeping the faith has worked so far, from unaccustomed early season losing streaks built on a brutal schedule and adjusting to life without Adam Morrison and J.P. Batista, to the Josh Heytvelt saga in February.

"It's been kind of a roller-coaster," said guard Derek Raivio of a 23-10 season. The 10 losses were the most for Gonzaga since 1998, before it became a perennial tournament entry.

Heytvelt's arrest for possession of hallucinogenic mushrooms and subsequent suspension was the unquestioned low. Losing the 6-foot-11 Heytvelt and his 15.5 points and his 7.7 rebounds a game was devastating, but almost as bad was the bad press for a program often portrayed as all that's right about college basketball.

"For all of us, that was something we'd never dealt with before," Roth said.

When the Bulldogs lost two of their next three games, March Madness figured to go on without them.

But in the last of those defeats, against No. 8 Memphis at the Spokane Arena, the Bulldogs rallied from a 13-point deficit with 14 minutes left to force overtime.

"That was when we found out we could play a team like that with this group of guys we had," said junior guard David Pendergraft.

They haven't lost since, winning five in a row to clinch another tournament bid.

"It reinforced to me that the program is bigger than any one thing or one player," coach Mark Few said. "That's what makes me most proud."

Along the way, new roles were found and old ones defined more clearly. JC transfer Abdullahi Kuso moved into the starting lineup and began grabbing rebounds the way Matt Leinart attracts starlets. Pendergraft started taking, and making, more shots than he ever had. And sophomore Micah Downs became a regular in the rotation and averaged better than 15 points the past five games.

"I think we are playing better [than before Heytvelt was arrested]," Raivio said. "Josh is talented and has strong numbers, but I think collectively we are playing well."

Heytvelt's absence, however, could be felt more deeply today against the Hoosiers, whose biggest weapon is 6-9, 251-pound junior forward D.J. White. The key for Gonzaga will be negating White and Indiana inside enough to exploit its apparent advantages outside.

"We're a well-balanced team on the perimeter," Raivio said, a something that has tipped even more that way since the loss of Heytvelt. "A lot of our game plan is using our mismatches out there."

It's a switch from a year ago when these teams met in the first round and Gonzaga depended on Morrison and Batista. Indiana thought it matched up just fine with GU's guards but couldn't handle Morrison and Batista, who combined for 42 points in Gonzaga's 90-80 win in what was the last game for Hoosiers coach Mike Davis. Former Washington State coach Kelvin Sampson took his place.

That the teams have had so much turnover in coaches and key personnel has lessened the revenge angle just a bit.

"It's going to come down to defense and rebounding," White predicted. "We feel we match up really good that way. They probably feel the same."

Certainly they do, but they're fine if others don't.

"We still thrive on that underdog mentality," Pendergraft said. "Especially with this group. That's one thing we kind of fed on was everybody was knocking us out and pushing us under the rug, and we went out there to prove everyone wrong and do it for ourselves."

Bob Condotta: 206-515-5699 or bcondotta@seattletimes.com