Canzano: "Gonzaga is deeper than one or two people -- it’s a place."
Part 2 in a series on the new-world Pac-12.
SPOKANE — The men’s basketball locker room at Gonzaga University was a raging mess on Monday morning. There were piles of sneakers and discarded socks spilled across the carpet. Granola bar wrappers and empty plastic bottles from protein drinks were scattered about the floor.
A line of black suitcases was parked near the door after the team’s return flight from Wichita. The Zags were eliminated from the NCAA Tournament in the second round by No. 1-seed Houston, 81-76, on Saturday. Gonzaga Athletic Director Chris Standiford must have expected the mess in the locker room.
“I don’t know what we’re going to find,” he warned me as we walked through the doors.
This is Part 2 of an ongoing series on the new-world Pac-12 Conference. Part 1 took readers to campus at Boise State. The project’s mission is to introduce Pac-12 fans to the newest members of the 110-year-old conference. Gonzaga will join the league on July 1, 2026.
What is the school about? What makes Gonzaga… Gonzaga? And how does the city of Spokane factor in its identity?
I spent a couple of days in the city in search of answers. I spoke with residents, visited businesses, and talked 1-on-1 with the Mayor. I toured the athletic department with Standiford, who grew up just a few miles away from campus. The AD attended Zags basketball games as as kid and played beneath the pull-out bleachers.
“Gonzaga is deeper than one or two people,” Standiford told me, “it’s a place.”