The University of Washington and Gonzaga University will resume their men’s basketball rivalry on a home-and-home basis starting with the 2016-17 season. The schools agreed to a four-year contract Monday that will have campus games alternating between Seattle and Spokane. The site of the the first game has yet to be determined.
The Huskies and Zags have not met since Dec. 9, 2006. Bad blood between the coaching staffs of both programs, largely over recruiting issues, prevented the continuation of the rivalry.
“This series is great for the fans of our state,” Huskies coach Lorenzo Romar said in a UW statement. “The fans have shown that they really appreciate the game with Washington and Gonzaga. I mean, every one of them since we’ve been here has been a sellout, or close to it. There’s a lot of enthusiasm and hype centered around the game when these two teams meet.”
Resuming the series has to wait until the 2016-17 season because both teams already had schedules set for 2014-15, and because the Huskies have international, non-conference commitments for 2015-16. Washington and Texas will become the first American teams in any sport to play a regular-season game in China Nov. 13, 2015.
Washington leads the all-time series 29-14, but the Zags dominated from 1997-06, winning eight of nine. The Huskies last defeated Gonzaga Dec. 4, 2005, 99-95, at Alaska Airlines Arena.
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“’This series is great for the fans of our state,’ Huskies coach Lorenzo Romar said in a UW statement.”
This one’s too easy, like watching a man slip on a banana peel and then extolling the virtues of potassium.