Gonzaga's Mark Few wouldn't mind pulling plug on 'live look-ins' on arena videoboards

Mar. 22—SALT LAKE CITY — Gonzaga was miles ahead of McNeese State on the scoreboard in the second half, but Bulldogs coach Mark Few wasn't pleased when he looked up at the giant videoboard.

While the Zags were coasting to the finish line of an 86-65 blowout win Thursday, the last minutes of third-seeded Kentucky's first-round exit against No. 14 Oakland was piped onto the jumbotron for a "live look-in."

The 17,404 on hand at the Delta Center naturally started cheering loudly for underdog Oakland to close out Kentucky — yet another reminder that the opening weekend of March Madness never fails to deliver memorable games. Few has repeatedly said the NCAA Tournament is unmatched on the sporting calendar, but he's not a fan of live look-ins on the big screen of a contest 2,000 miles away while his players are, well, playing.

He voiced his opinion at the scorer's table, though it might not have been received with the crowd losing its mind rooting for Oakland. It's not uncommon to see players on the bench and tournament officials joining thousands of fans sneaking a peek at the videoboard instead of the on-court action.

"I know, I guess it's protocol," Few said. "We don't need that. It's the NCAA Tournament. These kids are involved. It's the biggest game of their lives. Those officials, you know, it's a big moment for them. Everybody just needs to enjoy the game at hand.

"It doesn't need to be like the Few house where we're flipping channels every 15 seconds and not watching the show we're supposed to be watching. I really think that needs to change. It was impacting the game."

It happened a year ago when Gonzaga was leading by 20-plus points against Grand Canyon and the videoboards at Ball Arena in Denver were showing Fairleigh Dickinson's stunning win over No. 1 seed Purdue.

Another eerie similarity: GU guard Nolan Hickman was the one hearing the boos last year and again Thursday when the crowd reacted to the feeds being shut down briefly during the Purdue and Kentucky games.

"Purdue was on the jumbotron, too, and I think I was at the free-throw line when they booed, too," Hickman said. "It is insane. I wish they wouldn't do that, especially during free throws or when things are silent for a little bit, but things happen."

"It definitely got loud," said senior forward Anton Watson, recalling the atmosphere in Denver when Purdue suffered one of the biggest upsets in tournament history. "It's pretty distracting, but it's March. You have to expect that to happen."

It took freshman wing Dusty Stromer a few seconds to figure out why the crowd was so intense when Gonzaga's lead was nearly 30 points.

"I didn't know that was a thing that happened in March," Stromer said. "The gym was getting so loud, I couldn't hear coach (Few) or any of my teammates. It was wild, maybe a little (distracting), but we were able to stay dialed in."

"I had no idea what was going on. I thought somebody did something crazy on the floor but no, I looked up and saw the game on the screen."

Junior point guard Ryan Nembhard recalled live look-ins last year when he was helping Creighton reach the Elite Eight.

"I think that's just part of the tournament," he said. "I think that's what makes it so much fun. You see that on the big screen, it's crazy. It's kind of cool to me, it's part of the tournament. I don't think coach loved it."

Correct.

"Everybody just needs to enjoy the game at hand," Few said. "I mean, the McNeese people were there to watch McNeese; Gonzaga people were there to watch Gonzaga. If you can't get entertained, then get out and let's get somebody else in your seat. Plain and simple."