Taking control of sports: Whether the sun shines today or not, today's game in the arena will shine in the national spotlight

Sport under control • Today it should be cold and rainy. That's not it. At least in our corner of the Pacific Northwest just before sunrise. I can't vouch for Seattle though. After the events at Lumen Field on Sunday, rain seems to be the only response. When you think about what happens tonight at Spokane Memorial Arena, the sun should be shining in the Lilac City.

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• However, this will not be the case. Radiant, I mean. It's supposed to rain at some point today. Bucket. leaves. Or maybe just a drizzle. It's almost impossible to predict this time of year. Just as it's almost impossible to predict what will happen when sixth-seeded Gonzaga hosts Baylor, ranked two poll spots lower by America's sportswriters, at the arena tonight. After all, it's opening day of the college basketball season and that just means more in this economy.

It means more movement and not just for players who have free rein to play where they want, when they want and seemingly for as long as they want. That means more movement for the schools, with about a dozen wearing new conference patches on their uniforms that will be sold to the highest bidder. And as always, it means more exercise for the trainers.

However, only one of these three new items is in play tonight north of the Spokane River.

Mark Few has seemingly been coaching at Gonzaga forever. Won 716 games there. And the Zags have been the absolute most solid program in the West Coast Conference all along. Baylor's Scott Drew? He has lived in Waco, near Joanna and Chip Gaines, for almost as long. He also helped the Bears ascend to Big 12 heaven during that time, winning 446 games in 21 years. And a national title – at the expense of Few and Gonzaga.

Both remain key players in their respective conferences this season, although the Zags are expected to leave for the newly reconfigured Pac-12 in 2026.

The actual players? Few's team returns all but a significant portion of last year's 27-8 Sweet Sixteen squad. Some key weapons have been added. Looking good and ready to compete not only on the court but also in the Name, Image and Likeness arena. Baylor also has deep pockets, and Drew has used them to supplement a roster that needed a refresh after last season's disappointing 24-11 finish.

Tonight's game tips are available way too late at 8:30 a.m. on ESPN2 and only when the Monday Night Football show isn't on for long. Doesn't matter. Whenever it starts and ends, it will be the best opening night match for the men. It should be entertaining. Fun. Up and down. And give the gift of some sunshine for the coming season.

• I'm not sure there was much entertainment about the Seahawks' 26-20 overtime loss to the Rams on Sunday. Unless you find Geno Smith's decision-making process laughable these days. Or the hilarious nature of the Three Stooges offensive line. Or Mike Macdonald's Hamlet-like stoicism to stardom.

This critic's thoughts? Macdonald's Seahawks are just good enough to lose. And that makes many people watching at home want to skip their lunch.

If the two-tap gut punch in overtime didn't leave you with a blast of disappointment, maybe it's time to hand in your 12-card. Or maybe you've just gotten used to the torture.

Fourth-and-1 from the Rams' 16 to start overtime. Shoot a field goal and hope the defense doesn't give up a game-winning touchdown? Or do you try and keep the dream of your own TD at the end of the game alive?

Macdonald, facing the election for the first time, chose the latter. He probably factored Jason Myers' point after the first-half miss into his equation. Maybe how well the maligned offensive line had performed during the drive — even though they and Kenneth Walker III had been stoned on third down.

Be that as it may, a Walker run up the middle did absolutely nothing. Four plays later, Los Angeles celebrated in the north end zone.

Worst part of Sunday? If any of the torrential errors had been avoided, Seattle would win in regulation. All three of Smith's picks were momentous, the first two costing the Hawks points and the last resulting in seven for LA. And all 12 of Seattle's penalties hurt, especially the five that led to Rams first downs.

Then again, in the final weeks of this 4-5 season, there were some pregame predictions that were accurate. Seattle will compete. Smith is knocked over. The defense will bend a lot, but only occasionally break.

And anyone watching at home will not be happy with the result.

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WSU: The Cougars didn't play a football game over the weekend. But many of their former opponents did. As well as others in their AP Top 25 neighborhood. The result? Washington state moved up a few spots in this week's poll, coming in at 20th place. Greg Woods reported this news. … Recruiting never stops. Greg also gives us the latest example of this for WSU. … The Cougar men host Portland State in their season opener tonight. …Elsewhere in the Pac-12 (new and old), the Mountain West and the nation, we for some reason were unable to read some of Jon Wilner's usual columns on the Mercury News website yesterday morning. We found her today. Like his Saturday Night Five. And its updated Best of the West rankings, although that may be more of a Sunday afternoon thing. … The first CFP rankings, a TV-only event, will be announced Tuesday evening. …John Canzano's Sunday Thoughts cover this and many other points. … Oregon State is a slight favorite at home against San Jose State this week. The Beavers need two more wins to play in a bowl game. … Beating USC is always nice for Washington, even the day after. … Oregon's win at Michigan helped the Ducks defeat Wilner and earn him the No. 1 spot in the poll. Next up is Maryland at Autzen. … Idle Colorado has risen in the rankings and could just about find its way into the playoffs. …Looking forward, should USC make a quarterback change? …The future at UCLA looks surprisingly brighter. …Not in Arizona. Not the way the Wildcats play. … In the Mountain West, a crazy kickoff return was the highlight of Colorado State's win over Nevada. … What should the expectations be for New Mexico? … How about San Diego State? …Hawaii seems to be developing into a respectable team. … Boise State will be a CFP participant if they win. … San Jose State's volleyball problem isn't going away. … In basketball news, the upcoming men's season looks to be about 20 great points. … Among women, a new generation of players is waiting to become stars. … Oregon State welcomed a local product.

Gonzaga: We had some thoughts on today's game above. Jim Meehan provides a preview of the competition on this website. … He also has his key matchup focusing on the bigs in the middle, which seems appropriate. … Elsewhere in the WCC, as the basketball season begins today, we are able to offer season previews for the men's programs at Saint Mary's, USF and Santa Clara. And a feature on the Gaels' most important player.

Idaho: Atlanta linebacker Kaden Elliss, a former Vandal, has been stuffing the stat sheet lately and did it again on Sunday as the Falcons beat Dallas. With this news, Ethan Myers begins his weekly look at local players in the NFL. …Elsewhere in the Big Sky, there are at least three things to take away from Montana's stunning win at Cal Poly. The Mustangs were playing well until a key special teams error occurred. … Montana State's defense was up and down in the win at Eastern.

Preparations: Washington's football playoffs begin next weekend, with matchups set yesterday. Dave Nichols lists them all and adds the day and time they are already available.

Street racing: Tekoa native Susannah Scaroni won her second New York Marathon, besting the wheelchair race with a winning time of 1 hour, 48 minutes and 5 seconds. Madison McCord has more to this story.

Seahawks: Dave Boling found Sunday's game entertaining, but then again, as a professional journalist, he has no real interest in it. However, he expressed his thoughts in this well-crafted column. … The 26:20 defeat was caused by far too many penalties and three murderous turnovers. … There are always grades. And things to learn. …Add in the usual mea culpas from Smith, who simply wasn't good enough, and the defeat trifecta is complete. … Others also think the Seahawks are simply not good enough to win consistently. … A couple of receivers, one expected, one not, picked up the slack for the injured DK Metcalf. Nobody did that for the O-line.

Sounder: Hey, the last two minutes of an NBA game have nothing to do with the build-up to an MLS playoff game because it involves shootouts. I watched them all on Apple+ last night. Saw Stefan Frei lose a stop because of a VAR review. Saw his left leg come out big in the game-winning save, a save confirmed by VAR. The second shootout win without star scorer Jordan Morris brought the Sounders into the Western Conference semifinals.

Sailors: When Cal Raleigh joined the Mariners a few years ago, the power of his bat was his best attribute. His defense? Good. Not great. But last season it was clear that Raleigh's hard work in that area had paid off. He was one of the best catchers in baseball. And now he has a gold glove to prove it. As did Dylan Moore, who was named the best utility glove – or rather gloves – in the American League.

Octopus: The offense has been out of place on this road trip. Seattle lost again on Sunday, 2-0 in Boston. The Kraken finish the five-game trip on Tuesday in Colorado.

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• I wanted to thank everyone who read my thoughts about our dog Junior on Sunday. All of you who shared your feelings via X, email or text. I will respond to all of them at some point today. If I can. … If you missed Sunday's outstanding SR college basketball preview, check out all the stories here. Just thought I'd share this again too. See you later …