SALT LAKE CITY —The slipper is officially on the other foot, with former Cinderella Gonzaga getting its first-ever No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament, facing Southern in Wednesday’s West Region second-round game at EnergySolutions Arena (4:10 pm, TBS).
Kelly Olynyk, a 7-foot-1 Canadian, is the best player on what is probably coach Mark Few’s best Zags team at 31-2. The junior All-American is averaging 17.5 points and 7.4 rebounds despite playing just 25.7 minutes on a team that goes 10 players deep.
“It’s a great honor to be [No. 1]. There are a lot of teams they could have slotted in there. Nice to have that respect and we still have to go out and play basketball and still have to go out and win,’’ said Olynyk.
“We believe we belong and there’s no pressure. We’re just going to go play and have fun out there,’’ said fellow Canadian Kevin Pangos. “We feel like we’re ready to prove ourselves. We believe in our team and we’re confident going in.’’
* The contractual status of two of the coaches who have teams here has been a talking point.
New Mexico’s Steve Alford just signed a 10-year deal that could pay up to $2 million annually. “This is a very special place. … We’ve got it going in a positive direction, and I signed long-term.’’
Meanwhile, reports continue linking Pitt coach Jamie Dixon with the USC job. Coach Kevin O’Neill was fired in January and replaced, on an interim basis, by associated head coach Bob Cantu.
“We don’t talk about other jobs. I don’t think it’s the right thing to do. We’re used to it, I guess, and it happens to everybody this time of year and it’s speculation,’’ said Dixon. “You can’t keep [your players] from talking about it. It’s out there, written, there are more blogs and writers, and it’s part of college basketball.
“[But] we know the task at hand and we can tell by their commitment and my commitment they’re pretty sure of what’s going on.’’