Weekly Six Pac: Mad Dog 2023

1. Cal introduced Mark Madsen as its new Head Men’s Basketball Coach this week. The former Stanford Cardinal and Los Angeles Laker quickly endeared himself to the Bears fans with plenty of tributes to more enjoyable times for the program. He also emphasized playing a style that will be more enticing to recruits. My favorite memory of Mark Madsen will always be the time the Timberwolves needed to lose the final game of the regular season and deployed the full Mad Dog offense. After not attempting a three for over three seasons, he went 0/7 in a nine-minute span and ended the game shooting 1/15 overall. It takes a lot to top his celebratory dancing performance, but he pulled it off.

Photo By Craig Lassig/NBAE via Getty Images

2. UCLA hasn’t been able to transition out of the basketball season after bowing out of the tournament due to ongoing drama over the program’s partnership with an NIL collective. The Mighty Bruin provides a detailed summary of the problems created by a too-friendly partnership between school boosters and journalists who are supposed to cover the program objectively. For all the criticism about pay-for-play, the impact on school “partners” often falls by the wayside, but it is a worthwhile topic to consider.

3. Washington State baseball was a feel-good story at the start of the season with a 13-2 record and a spot in the national top 25. It looked like the wheels were falling off when the Cougs dropped seven of the next eight. They might have found their way back on track over the weekend, though. WSU took two from UCLA before shutting down BYU for a perfect weekend.

4. Neither Oregon nor Oregon State have been among the best softball teams in the Pac this year. That didn’t matter for the rivalry showdown between the two programs over the weekend. Both teams came into the series with only two wins from nine played in the conference. Oregon swept the Beavers for the second time in a row to get back to a respectable 5-7. Shout out to Addicted to Quack for some thorough coverage of their softball team- it provides a great feel for the game.

5. Colorado has been in the headlines for recruiting this winter, but it has mostly been on the football side. This week, the basketball team got a recruiting coup of its own. TCU big man Eddie Lampkin committed to the Buffs on Sunday. He has been an interior force at 300 lbs, but dealt with injuries and disagreements with the program that put him on the outside of the team’s core last year. Lampkin chose Colorado over strong interest from Michigan State and Georgetown.

6. It might not be the most positive thing for UW fans to relive, but ASU’s House of Sparky has a nice photo gallery of the Sun Devils’ win over UW in softball over the weekend.