Free Ira Brown! - The Gonzaga Hoops Podcast

As conference play begins, Gonzaga’s roster is starting to look like what we all hoped it would, and Free Ira Brown is back to provide a closer look at the return of both Killian Tillie and Geno Crandall. In our latest episode, our heroes revel in smacking aside Santa Clara in the Bulldogs’ West Coast Conference opener. The return of Tillie and Crandall provided the headlines, and we take a look at a full roster might mean moving forward. Those stories, plus did you know it’s been 23 years since Gonzaga lost a WCC opener? Care to take a trip down memory lane? We’ve also got Zykera Rice ripping it up as the Gonzaga women now have their highest national ranking ever (congrats!), we look ahead to Thursday’s matchup against the Pacific (Paper) Tigers and look even further forward to Saturday’s trip to San Francisco. This is a trip which traditionally provides trouble for Gonzaga, and we make a closer examination of just how rude a host the Dons have been in recent seasons. And finally, we end with what will hopef

It’s a new year, a new week and a new episode of Free Ira Brown! That’s right, dear FIBbers, the boys are back from their holiday hiatus and they’re here to welcome you to 2019. In our newest installment, our heroes review the trio of holiday cupcakes that were the Denver, North Alabama and Cal State Bakersfield matchups. Those stories, plus we give some grades to Gonzaga’s non-conference season, review the unexpectedly strong showing by West Coast Conference teams not named Saint Mary’s, check in with the Gonzaga women and look forward to kicking off WCC play against Santa Clara (well, hello, Geno and Killian! Nice to see you again!). We also take some time to chat about why it’s important to remember where the program came from, and why not every non-major conference team who is exceeding expectations is the next Gonzaga. And finally, we finish things off with some New Year’s resolutions which will be 100% strictly adhered to without any semblance of a doubt. Nope, no doubt at all. All this and more on the

As it is the festive season, we felt it only appropriate to give you our own (abbreviated) version of a classic holiday tune – don’t worry, we don’t actually sing on the pod, we’re not monsters. Cracks fingers…OK, here we go: On the 12th day of Christmas, my true love gave to me: 12 Jeremy Joneses 11 Zykeras Riceing 10 More games with Heister 9 B-Mikes at halftime 8 Gaels a-tearing 7 Angry Chris texts 6 Vic-tries in the tourney Perkins passing Stockton! 4 Trips to Cali 3 Bennett blow-bys 2 Limbs a-healing And a brand new podcast from Free Ira Brown! Now that we’ve got that out of the way, in our latest episode, our heroes glance forlornly back at the trip to Chapel Hill, Marty talks Chris off the ledge (well, kinda) and Marty makes a Grosse Pointe Blank(!) reference. Those stories, plus the UT Arlington game happened (Ayayi actually got minutes!), Heister makes fun of Fox for saying something wrong, we get a final clarification on how to pronounce Filip Petrusev’s name and we look ahead at the murderer’s row

As I left my house to go to work Wednesday morning, I discovered someone had broken into my car. Nothing too significant or meaningful stolen -- an old pair of sunglasses, some blue-tooth head phones, etc. Obnoxious, not really life-altering (that I can tell). As I was pilfering through the mess that was the interior of my car, I noticed there was no broken glass. I walked around the car and noticed the locks didn’t appear – to the naked eye, at least – to be damaged. Which likely means I simply forgot to lock the doors, and someone took advantage of my oversight. As I sat half kicking myself, half angry at the perpetrator, I realized something: this was partially my own doing, partially someone else’s doing. It was at least somewhat my own mistake(s) leading to the frustrating result. I felt crummy because things went poorly but also a bit relieved things weren’t worse. Hey, this sounds exactly like Gonzaga’s last two games! And frankly, dear FIBbers, this sounds exactly like most of the Free Ira Brown podca

You ever get a feeling of déjà vu? Where things which just happened feel like they happened already? How about you, Creighton? Ever get that feeling? You know the one: where Zach Norvell has a pretty pedestrian first half, you go into halftime with a seven-point lead, feeling pretty good about yourself. And then, out of nowhere, Norvell starts to eat…and eat…and eat…and eat. And suddenly you’re on the wrong side of a second-half explosion? Well, just in case you forgot, Free Ira Brown is here to remind you. That’s right, dear FIBbers, our heroes are back, and in our latest episode we take a look at Gonzaga’s win over Creighton, from Zach’s second-half dominance, Clarke’s elite efficiency, Perk’s passing (Baby Daddy!) and Rui’s resplendence. Those stories, plus we pop into the polls, prepare for a Wednesday with Washington, preview the tussle with Tennessee and celebrate a Stanford upset with the Gonzaga women. And finally, we finish with a really fun interview with two of the authors of “We Are GU: The Origin

Last night I had a dream. For some reason, I was fighting a dragon. A green one. I had traveled out of town to either chase it or go hiking (it’s unclear which) and noticed it flying around. As I was running to get back to … town? My house? … I passed two people playing tennis without a net. I stopped to jokingly act like a line judge, but they took too long, so I left.  Anyway, I got to my parents house and was hiding out in their basement (despite the fact they don’t have a basement) and something happened to the dragon (maybe it was asleep?) and I was discussing with an unknown person whether we should kill the dragon. Somehow the dragon heard me, got mad(der) and decided to come after me. I ran out of my parents’ house and into the street as the dragon flew overhead. The neighbors were trying to escape by putting their entire family on bikes (no idea why they didn’t use their car). The dragon threw what I think was a garbage can lid and hit one of the moving people, knocking them out over. I turned to the

On this episode of Free Ira Brown, the lads react to the drubbing of SEC "Powerhouse" Texas A&M and preview the upcoming murderer's row of a preseason tournament in this Year's Maui Invitational. 

 Are you excited about Brandon Clarke yet? Of course you are. You are, your parents are, and so is Free Ira Brown. Yes, dear FIBbers, we’re back again. And in our latest episode, our heroes run the gamut reviewing the win over Texas Southern. From new fan favorite Brandon Clarke’s speed and explosiveness to the steady excellence of Josh Perkins (11 assists!). Those stories, plus we hop around in a news recap stuffed to the brim, we say hello to Heister and we take a look ahead to Thursday’s clash with a Texas A&M who’s hobbled by injuries. Could they still pose a formidable threat? And finally, what’s in a name? We’ll find out as we finish with a game testing Marty and Adam’s ability to decipher between a real player and a made up character. All that and more on the latest episode of Free Ira Brown, THE Gonzaga Hoops podcast. Do join us in the game of names, won’t you?

Finally! The rock has come back to Spokane! Because, see, the basketball is sometimes called “the rock,” and basketball is back and The Rock was a wrestler who used to say…you know what, never mind. Basketball is back! Gonzaga basketball is back! Real, live, actual basketball! And you know what that means: A full and proper Free Ira Brown is back! That’s right, dear FIBbers, in our most recent episode, our heroes react to the Tillie injury in a timely manner, revisit our own expectations for the season and break down the win over the Bengals…Bangles…Ben-gals of Idaho State. Those stories, plus we have a Texas Southern preview, listen in on Mark Few turning down the role of fly fishing instructor and warmly embrace the return of some time with Heister. All that and more on the latest episode of Free Ira Brown, THE Gonzaga Hoops Podcast. Do come into the kitchen and smell what we’re cooking, won’t you?

OK, let’s get this out of the way at the top: We recorded this week’s episode before Killian Tillie’s injury was announced. We didn’t ignore it. You can’t accuse us of being in denial. Mostly. You know…ish. So what CAN you accuse us of? How about a high level of excitement as we help you count down the days until Thursday’s exhibition season-opener? That’s right, dear FIBbers, Free Ira Brown is back with part two of our season preview. In our latest episode, our heroes go over what little info we have from GU’s victory over Michigan State in the “secret” scrimmage, take a peek at the polls and exalt at the most important news of the day. Those stories, plus we pick our starting lineups for the first game (seriously, you couldn’t announce Tillie’s injury before we recorded? Sigh), have a festive Italian dinner with our non-conference schedule, take 90 seconds to discuss the other relevant non-conference matchups across the WCC and make our predictions for the season. And finally, we end the episode with a rive

*Scrolls through old posts* ”Good God, That’s Free Ira Brown’s music!” No, no, we did that one already. *Scrolls further* “From the depths of the darkness of despair rises a podcast…” Nope, did that one already, too. *Looks closer* “We’re baaaaaccck!” Did that one, as well (note to self: Still use the Randy Quaid GIF from Independence Day on Twitter). Maybe just go back to basics: Hey, everybody! Free Ira Brown is back! That’s right, as the calendar switches into God’s season (college basketball season, of course), our heroes are back for another season of podcasting (our fifth!). With Kraziness in the Kennel in the books, it’s time for the first of our two-part season preview. In this episode, we'll discuss Larsen leaving, Geno joining and a bevy Bulldogs on preseason award lists. Those stories, plus, we take a quick look back at Kraziness, breakdown the individual players and our expectations for them and opine for more Rem/Dakich twitter beefs. All this and more on the season-opening episode of Free Ira Br

OK, just hear us out. It’s late-August. We know. Lots of things happened since we last podded. We know. We’re sorry. We were trying to find a Chik-Fil-A. But. Much like that one terrifying week after that foam party you don’t like to talk about, we’re late…but we’re finally here! That’s right, Free Ira Brown is back with a mid- … er … late-summer night’s pod! In our offseason recap, our heroes … well, it’s fair to say our heroes are a little rusty. We’ve got premature beer openings, computer/audio issues and a tease in the open we never bothered to revisit. Those stories, plus we’ve got incomings (like Geno) and outgoings (like Jesse), surgeries (get well soon, Baby Daddy!) and scheduling (Maui!). We take a look at the NCAA’s new metric for evaluating Saint Mary’s crappy schedule and make a quick hop across the Atlantic to check in on FIBA’s Under-18 European Championships. Oh yeah, one more thing: Courtney Vandersloot? Still a badass. All that and more on the summer episode of Free Ira Brown, THE Gonzaga Hoo

Through all the frustration and pain and tears; through all the rage and alibi hours and beers, it’s important to keep perspective. It’s important to not let one game ruin the whole season. Except, that’s what the NCAA Tournament does, right? It builds you up, it gives you hope, only to have your (and 66 other) seasons come to a sudden, crashing halt. The excitement and enthusiasm of a(nother) Sweet 16 appearance dissipates into regret and hand-wringing, students and alums alike becoming vessels of dull, empty fandom. And yet…through the darkness, a light flickers. From deep in the void now within all our hearts, our heroes stir. There’s one final podcast left, one final time for us to rise above the heartache, soar past the missed free throws and open 3-pointers to bring to you, dear FIBbers, a season-ending podcast worthy of our highest of standards. The loss to Florida State may be a few days old now, but the sting is still fresh and our heroes break everything down. From the unexpected absence of Killian

There will come a time when your heroes, brave and mighty, will return from an in-person meetup with their bodies and brains fully intact. There will come a time when Free Ira Brown, borne of strength and purity, returns from its annual NCAA first-weekend meetup full of voice, vigor and vivacity. This, dear FIBbers, is not one of those times. And yet, despite being on limited sleep and voice quality, our heroes -- showing the type of intestinal fortitude, sheer force of will and cojones to rival one young Zach Norvell, Jr. -- somehow manage to muster up the energy and raw strength to take a deep and devoted dive into Gonzaga’s fourth straight Sweet 16 appearance (!).  We celebrate the giant…basketballs owned by the aforementioned Mr. Norvell. We discuss the decided lack of quality free throw shooting (until the last 8 minutes against Ohio State, that is). We give props to Rui’s massive performance. And Chris fawns over his Baby Daddy, the good sir Josh Perkins himself. Oh yeah, did we mention we hung out with

Free Ira Brown and special guests share some pints and relish in another Sweet Sixteen. Regular Pod back this week. (If our voices recover).

Gonzaga Moves on. For now, that's enough.

How do we feel about Gonzaga’s draw (hint: we’re not upset)? Where can UNC-Greensboro cause us trouble? What concerns do we have? What’s our dream path to San Antonio? How is Saint Mary’s going to do? We’ve got it all covered. Those stories, plus we take a quick look at the other regions and what intrigues us in each, we check in with the Gonzaga women (They got hosed! They were robbed!), we throw some (listener-fed) crazy statements at you and we share some of our favorite tournament facts. And finally, we finish with the Top 3 matchups we hope to see this tournament. All this and more on the latest episode of Free Ira Brown, THE Gonzaga Hoops Podcast. Do come join the dance, won’t you?

It’s important to peak at the right time. College basketball seasons are marathons, not sprints, after all. What no one wants is to be the Champion of November (ahemsaintmarysahem).  It’s with this in mind we here at Free Ira Brown, much like a certain set of basketball teams from Spokane, primed ourselves to be at our best when March rolls around. And in our latest episode, our heroes are in postseason (read: possibly beer-aided) form as we break down Gonzaga’s victories in the WCC Tournament. After the slow start against LMU (blame Vegas, if you must) to the Killian Tillie hitting anything and everything (oui, oui!) to Saint Mary’s losing to BYU (hahahahahahaha) to those thoroughly enjoyable and dominating minutes on either side of halftime, we have it all covered. Those stories, plus we check in on the Gonzaga women (congratulations, champs!), take a look at the WCC postseason awards as well as their all-Decade in the Desert Team and laugh (yet again) at the absurdity of the RPI. And finally, in honor of t

Complacency in fandom can be tough. When the exceptional becomes routine fans run the risk of being spoiled. That’s why, here at Free Ira Brown, we take care to point out: winning the WCC regular season title never gets old! And in our latest episode, our heroes break down the wins over San Diego and BYU that secured Gonzaga’s 17th regular season title in the last 18 years. From the late-game heroics we’ve come to expect this season (We have a Rui!) in Southern California to the outstanding play of Josh Perkins (Baby Daddy!) in the domination of the Cougars in the mountains of Utah, we’ve got it all covered. Those stories, plus we take a look ahead to the WCC Tournament, who we might play and how much easier the one seed is. Wait, who’s the one seed again? Oh yeah, we are.   All that and more on the latest episode of Free Ira Brown, THE Gonzaga Hoops Podcast. Do come join in the fun, won’t you?

These kinds of podcasts are always bittersweet. First, the sweet: A pair of conference wins (one comfortable, one relatively so), Saint Mary’s losing and Gonzaga where it belongs, alone atop the WCC standings. Then, the bitter: beginning to say goodbye to seniors who have meant so much to the Gonzaga program. And so, in the latest episode of Free Ira Brown, our heroes begin that process, recapping the wins over LMU and Pepperdine (hey, we actually won on Senior Night!) while taking a look back at the careers of Jonathan Williams III, Silas Melson and yes, even Brian Pete. Those stories, plus we check in with the WCC Champion Gonzaga women, we take a look at the latest bracketology projections, Chris has a belated Valentine’s Day present for everyone and Marty’s preview of BYU is something to behold. We also check in to see if people are going to get a little crazy and give you a couple bits of information we think you should know before finishing with a Top 3 sure to make you even more appreciative of Gonzaga