SLC NCAA Tourney blog: What Mark Few said about BYU's first year in the Big 12

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SALT LAKE CITY — The NCAA Tournament will make the Delta Center home for the weekend, with several entertaining games slated for action.

Follow along as the KSL.com Sports team documents all that takes place this weekend for the first and second rounds of the men's basketball tournament.

The schedule of games played at the Delta Center are as followed (all games will be broadcast live on TBS):

No. 15 Long Beach State v. No. 2 Arizona (Thurs., 12 p.m. MDT)
No. 10 Nevada v. No. 7 Dayton (Thurs., 2:30 p.m. MDT)
No. 12 McNeese v. No. 5 Gonzaga (Thurs., 5:25 p.m. MDT)
No. 13 Samford v. No. 4 Kansas (Thurs., 7:55 p.m. MDT)

Wednesday, 10:21 pm

What Mark Few said about BYU's first year in the Big 12

Things will be at least a little familiar for Gonzaga and coach Mark Few this weekend in Salt Lake City.The team had plenty of battles in Provo against BYU during the Cougars' West Coast Conference years, and that meant annual trips to Utah."The only thing I'd say is we're very used to what we did today," Few said. "We stay in Salt Lake when we play BYU, so we're used to kind of practicing at Utah hotels, restaurants, everything around here."So what are his thoughts on his former conference rivals' first season in the Big 12?"Man, they've had a heck of a year," Few said. "They've been just exceptional. Basically the same team that was in our league last year. They've done a great job just on the national spectrum, but also just grinding it out in that league night in, night out."— Ryan Miller, KSL.com

Wednesday, 8:51 pm

No 'Barbie' for Kansas

They're just Ken — sas?Sorry ... I tried.Anyway, Kansas head coach Bill Self chose the movie 'Boys in the Boat' for his team to watch in the days before the tournament.The rags-to-riches story of the University of Washington rowing team that went on to win the gold medal at the 1936 Summer Olympics felt appropriate for such a moment (especially, considering the Huskies won't be in the Jayhawks' path in the NCAA Tournament).But was there a specific reason why he chose that film?"I have a buddy that is the sports psychologist for the Cowboys and the Yankees. I think he knows far better than me what to watch. It was that or 'Barbie.' I went with 'Boys in the Boat'."I guess Kansas isn't too big into Mojo Dojo Casa Houses. We know of one neighborhood that will no-doubt be cheering for Samford on Thursday.— Ryan Miller, KSL.com

Wednesday, 06:11 pm

Potential NBA draft picks playing in the SLC pod

The Salt Lake City pod is filled with some of the marquee college basketball brands. With big brands often comes major talent.Kansas and Arizona have both had nine first-round draft picks over the last 10 years, and Gonzaga is not far behind with eight.So who are the potential future pros playing this weekend in Salt Lake City?Potential first-round picks

Johnny Furphy, wing, Kansas

Furphy enters the tournament on a shooting slump — going 3-for-17 in his last two games — but the freshman's emergence since entering the starting lineup in early January has quickly risen him up NBA draft boards.The 6-foot-9 wing has exploded on the prospect scene over the last 18 months due to his size and athletic ability. In what is widely considered a weak draft, Furphy could be a potential lottery upside swing.

DaRron Holmes, PF/C, Dayton

Holmes has an extremely well-rounded skill set. Since early December, he's averaged 22.1 points, 9.1 rebounds, 2.4 assists and 2.3 blocks. In that span, he's shooting 58.1% from the field and 38.5% from 3 on over three attempts per game.He can pass out of short rolls, can pick and pop and is a good weakside help defender. His NBA floor looks like a solid backup big, and he could hear his name called in the first round come June.Other potential draftees

Pelle Larsson, SG, Arizona

The former Utah Utes guard is a stabilizer for Arizona, serving as a secondary playmaker, floor spacer, and defender. A strong tournament showing might push the Swedish guard up draft boards; especially if he can show some improved consistency.

Kylan Boswell, PG, Arizona

A good defender who shoots 39% from 3-point range. The 18-year-old point guard has struggled with consistency this season and would likely be better served with another year in college.

Keshad Johnson, PF, Arizona

Johnson helped San Diego State to the national championship last season. Can he do the same with Arizona this time around? And, if so, how much will that improve his stock? Scouts know who the 6-foot-7 wing is at this point — a versatile defender that has proven to impact winning.— Ryan Miller, KSL.com

Wednesday, 03:00 pm

After Monson's Seinfeld-like run, coaches weigh in on in-season firings

Long Beach State coach Dan Monson had quite the analogy for the current state of his life."Did you see the Seinfeld (episode) when George was trying to get fired and couldn't lose his job, still going to work every day? That's me," Monson said. "I'm a Seinfeld episode going on right now in real life!"Hey, who needs a reboot when you have the odd Monson tale at the Beach?The university fired Monson on March 11 ahead of the Big West Tournament but allowed him to coach until the team lost. A week-plus later, Monsoon was answering questions at an NCAA Tournament media session.Funny how life works."I don't have to answer anything I don't want to because I'm working for free today!" Monson joked as he sat down on Wednesday in the bowels of the Delta Center.All of which begs the question: There has to be a better way to fire a coach, right?"Well, I'm an expert in this," quipped McNeese State coach Will Wade, who was fired by LSU in 2022. "When they fired me, they didn't let me coach again. That's probably what Long Beach wishes they'd have done now. They fired him and they let him coach. LSU just fired me and said, 'Get on out of here, we'll let somebody else coach them!' So you don't risk something like that happening."It has, no doubt, put Long Beach State in an awkward spot.A tournament appearance is a dream for a smaller school athletic department, bringing the type of visibility it can't find anywhere else. That's now being overshadowed. The school has already confirmed Monson won't be back, no matter how far the Seinfeld-like run continues."I think you should always let the season play out," Wade said. "I don't know that situation. I don't like to comment on stuff I don't know a ton about, but I think, in general, I don't see any reason to have cut the cord when they did. They could have just waited till after the conference tournament. What were they going to do? Get a jump-start? They should have let it play out and whatever happened happened."What happened has turned into one of the oddest and most fun stories in the lead-up of the tournament, especially considering Long Beach State got put in the same pod as Gonzaga — the school Monson helped bring into the national limelight in the 1990s."Just couldn't be happier," said Gonzaga coach Mark Few, who was Monson's assistant during his time with the Bulldogs.However, Few had a different kind of show in mind for the strange scenario."I think it's a story worthy of a Disney show or something, man, the way it's playing out," Few said. "I'm hoping it's a lesson for all those athletic directors out there to maybe take pause once in a while and realize these jobs are hard; and sometimes, when you've got a good guy there, hang with it."Or, at the very least, wait until the season is actually over.— Ryan Miller, KSL.com

Wednesday, 02:26 pm

Nevada hoping to prove Mountain West is 'real deal'

The entire Mountain West Conference felt a little validation watching Colorado State beat up on Virginia in the First Four on Tuesday night.The conference got served a bad hand on Selection Sunday. Sure, it got six teams into the tournament, but the seeds were a bit lower than expected.One example: Salt Lake City was seen as a possible landing spot for Utah State as either a No. 5 or No. 7 seed. The Aggies got sent to Indianapolis as a No. 8 seed.They weren't the only Mountain West team that felt they were underseeded, either."It's the first time I think in my career that we actually had a group text of the head coaches after the Selection Show," Nevada coach Steve Alford said.The coaches' disgust seemed justified after Colorado State easily dispatched a team that finished third in the ACC."Yeah, I think that we definitely were disrespected as a conference," Nevada guard Jarod Lucas said. "It was great to see Colorado State win last night, and hopefully Boise State does the same (on Wednesday)."Lucas said there's a little added motivation to advance to "prove to the committee that the Mountain West is the real deal."Added guard Kenan Blackshear: "I feel as if we did have a little hate toward the committee with how they treated the Mountain West teams. It's been a good league all year. We wanted to show our league is so good."—Ryan Miller, KSL.com

Wednesday, 02:00 pm

'Tommy owes me one': Dan Monson fired up for NCAA Tournament after being fired

Long Beach State head coach Dan Monson observes practice with forward Lassina Traore at the Delta Center in preparation for his team's NCAA Tournament matchup with Arizona. (Photo: Carter Williams, KSL.com)

Long Beach State head coach Dan Monson certainly didn't hold anything back in his Wednesday press conference.His players didn't, either, during an impressive Big West Tournament run; and now they're all back together again in the NCAA Tournament.After making the Big Dance as a No. 12 seed in 2012, falling to No. 5 seeded New Mexico in the first round, the Big West tourney champion Long Beach (21-14) now returns as a No. 15 seed to face No. 2 Arizona (25-8) at 12 p.m. MDT Thursday at the Delta Center, with the winner advancing to face either No. 10 Nevada or No. 7 Dayton.The 62-year old Monson, who led Gonzaga to the Elite Eight in 1999, and has spent the last 17 years in southern California, officially parted ways with the program the Monday prior to the Big West Tournament at The Dollar Loan Center in Henderson, Nevada. Long Beach then proceeded to win three games in three days, capped off with back-to-back wins over regular-season champion UC Irvine and UC Davis."It's worth every job I've had to have the experiences I've had this week," Monson said. "It's been a life-changing week in a good way."He wasn't the only one to say the same. Forward Lassina Traore, who was named Big West Tournament MVP, said the announcement of Monson's departure was unexpected, but it fueled the team to play "like we've never done it before."Both he and fellow forward Aboubacar Traore — who are not related — certainly took the reins, with Aboubacar Traore completing the first triple-double in Big West Tournament history in Long Beach State's dominant quarterfinal win over UC Riverside with 12 points, 11 rebounds, and 13 assists."It was the best moment for us to just come together," Aboubacar Traore said. "You're thinking about your next move or your teammate, that's what matters."It also was part of a message Monson delivered last Wednesday at practice in Las Vegas, where he simply told his players "be different today" as they got off the bus, leading to what the coach called "the best practice of the year." It was a moment he knew his team had a shot."He puts a lot of trust in his players," guard Jadon Jones, a Long Beach native, said. "He might correct you, but he's never going to try to take your confidence away."And Monson certainly isn't short on confidence. He took plenty of opportunities in his press conference to take friendly jabs at Arizona head coach Tommy Lloyd, who Monson worked with at Gonzaga.One came where he and Lloyd went to dinner for pizza, and Monson explained he was late because "we were putting in that Princeton offense for three days; it's complicated."But Monson's players have fed off that confidence, especially since Long Beach defeated DePaul, Michigan, and USC earlier this season — all on the road — in nonconference play.Lassina Traore said though Long Beach isn't expecting anything to be easy, they are "coming to win.""A reason why we played so well in the Big West was we were hungry," Jones said. "We know we can play with anyone; it's just on us to go in with the mentality of we still have a lot to prove."There clearly is for this team. If there's any indication, Monson said it out loud as he left his press conference:"I'll see you guys on Friday. Tell Tommy I said that," he said.— Alex Tumalip, KSL.com

SLC NCAA Tourney blog: What Mark Few said about BYU's first year in the Big 12

By KSL Sports | Updated - March 20, 2024 at 10:40 p.m. | Posted - March 20, 2024 at 2:12 p.m.

What Mark Few said about BYU's first year in the Big 12

No 'Barbie' for Kansas

Potential NBA draft picks playing in the SLC pod

After Monson's Seinfeld-like run, coaches weigh in on in-season firings

Nevada hoping to prove Mountain West is 'real deal'

'Tommy owes me one': Dan Monson fired up for NCAA Tournament after being fired

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SLC NCAA Tourney blog: What Mark Few said about BYU's first year in the Big 12

By KSL Sports | Updated - March 20, 2024 at 10:40 p.m. | Posted - March 20, 2024 at 2:12 p.m.

What Mark Few said about BYU's first year in the Big 12

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Potential NBA draft picks playing in the SLC pod

After Monson's Seinfeld-like run, coaches weigh in on in-season firings

Nevada hoping to prove Mountain West is 'real deal'

'Tommy owes me one': Dan Monson fired up for NCAA Tournament after being fired

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