Zags Basketball Insiders Podcast (episode 12): The evolution of Mark Few, bracket projections and a big matchup on Thursday
Jan. 22—From staff reports
Richard Fox figures he's witnessed most of Gonzaga coach Mark Few's 701 victories — either as a player, spectator or TV analyst.
In the latest Zags Basketball Insiders Podcast on Monday, Fox and Spokesman-Review reporter Jim Meehan discuss Few's 700th victory, his legacy and his evolution as a coach, while looking ahead to Thursday's big matchup with San Francisco.
They also discuss the latest NET rankings, in which GU is 30th — behind Saint Mary's at 22 but ahead of USF at 57 — and the most recent bracket projections, two of which still have the Zags on the outside looking in.
Some highlights, edited for brevity:
Fox, on Few's evolution: "I think he's just a better coach, and he was awfully good when I was there. He's more at ease with the players, he's got a more intimate relationship with them while they're here. I think for a lot of us early on, it was after we were done, it became more peer-to-peer than it did maybe when you played for him when he was a younger coach. What we did was a lot simpler. We had that old-school flex offense. I still think it's a tremendous offense and you could win in today's game with it, but it helped smooth out the talent differences that we might have come up against some more highly touted, highly ranked teams in that early part of that run."
Meehan, on GU's climb to elite status under Few: "You can't point to another program that's done this kind of rise onto the national stage, from not much tradition or history in a lot of ways, to what they've done in 25 years and they've never stepped back and continually gotten better."
Fox, on bracket projections: "I don't think they have any room for error with respect to being an at-large. If you drop another one, or frankly maybe even two to the right teams in the league, but you went and got one on the road at Kentucky then you might still be OK. That Kentucky team is awfully good. That kind of staple win that might just be enough to get you in. They're certainly playing better but I think they've got some real tests coming up, that's for sure."
Listen to the episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and Google Podcasts or wherever you listen to podcasts.
