Free Ira Brown! - The Gonzaga Hoops Podcast

It’s the time of year when we all give thanks: for family, friends, health, a comfy couch and a tryptophan-induced nap. This year, in the year to end all years, we get to give thanks not just for Gonzaga basketball, but while watching Gonzaga basketball. And what better way to prepare yourself for some mid-morning holiday hoops than the latest episode of Free Ira Brown? Yes, the FIB crew is back, and we thought given the excitement around the game with Kansas (Kansas!) we’d bring in someone smarter than us to lend a hand. Enter: Steven Karr from The Slipper Still Fits. Karr helps us break down how Gonzaga matched up with the Jayhawks and what we can expect from a team which lost two second-team All Americans and is still ranked in the top 5 (a note: we recorded this before the news broke about Tennessee and Andrew Nembhard). We’ll also turn our attention to a re-tooling Auburn team, Gonzaga’s second matchup in Fort Myers, and look ahead to the Gonzaga women taking on the nation’s top-ranked team, the South Ca

It’s out with the old(er) players and with the new on the latest episode of Free Ira Brown. The guys are back to complete the season preview of Gonzaga’s players, focusing on player transfers and the incoming freshmen. Is Cook the latest in the long line of impact grad transfers? How much will Strawther play (please don’t be really hurt)? Will Dominick dominate? Who is Colby Brooks? We also got a chance to see real, honest-to-goodness basketball! Well, sort of: we had Kraziness in the Kennel, which gave us our first glimpse at the players, new and old alike. We’ll glean what we can from the first 16 minutes of the season and definitely not overreact in any way. And finally, we’ll have a little fun, setting up a 3-on-3, Hoopfest style draft with this year’s team and leave it to you to decide which team of four is best-suited to win a 3 v 3 tournament. Oh yeah, there’s the small matter of our schedule, too. All that and more on the latest episode of Free Ira Brown, THE Gonzaga Hoops Podcast. Do come quarantine

You ready for the best news you’ve heard in months? Something about which no one could possibly have any reservations? Marty’s back with a brand-new song. No, it’s true. And oh yeah, Free Ira Brown is back! That’s right, dear friends, after months of turmoil and frustration, indecision and uncertainty, claustrophobia and exasperation, the FIB crew is here to provide our normal dose of aural pleasure. And we’ll talk about basketball. A lot. No, really: actual, honest-to-goodness basketball. And Marty has a new song. And it’s great. We’ll touch on some other news here and there (uniforms, preseason award lists, and the like), but the heart of kick-off pod is a deep-dive into our returning players. Kispert, Timme, Ayayi, Watson, we spare no one (except in this abbreviated list here). Who is going to get major minutes? Who is going to have to make the most of their limited time? Can Ballo channel his inner Tsang Tsung? Oh yeah, did we mention Marty has his best song to date? And one more treat: in an attempt to r

In this, the longest of Summers, we here at Free Ira Brown masterly debated long and hard about when we should release our annual bundle of summertime love. Then Petrusev dropped his bomb and we realized Ayayi (who since announced his return) and Kispert's decisions were just around the corner. There is no time then, like the present (or the present as it was nearly a week ago when we recorded this, big whoop wanna fight about it?) for Adam, Chris and Marty to come together and regale you with our COVID summer tales. Who gained weight? Who lost it? Who looks like an extra on the "Boogie Nights" set? (it's Chris). The answers to all these questions and more await you on this episode of Free Ira Brown: THE Gonzaga Hoops Podcast!

College basketball always has the most abrupt ends to its season, but this…this is something else entirely. One of the weirdest, gut-punching-est 24 hours in sports history culminated with the cancellation of the men’s and women’s NCAA Tournaments. The most fun weekend of the year, the weekend Free Ira Brown actually gets to see each other in person, the most fun annual sporting event just…gone. And thus, dear FIBber, the tone in our final episode of the season starts out expectantly somber. But with the help of each other, a little perspective and quite a large amount of alcohol, our heroes find the energy to discuss the first time (some of us) haven’t been in a bar watching games together in over a decade, give tribute to our seniors and whether this season finishes as a success. Those stories, plus we have a mailbag! You had questions! We had answers! Some of them even applied to the questions! Well…ish. It was late in the pod and we, uh, may have had a few. We also decided, since we simply couldn’t go wit

The numbers are staggering: 17 titles 22 years, 23 straight WCC Tournament final appearances and now 22 straight NCAA Tournament appearances. And yet, beating Saint Mary’s in the final never ceases to be fun. Good, ol’ fashioned, virus-free fun. You could see what it meant to the players in their celebrations after, and you can hear what it means to (at least some) Gonzaga fans on the latest offering from Free Ira Brown! In our latest episode, our heroes welcome Jack Ferris from the Sac and Jack podcast to help us break down the WCC Tournament, from the closer than was comfortable victory over USF to the weirdness that was BYU vs. Saint Mary’s, finishing with a little bit of revenge for last year’s WCC final. Those stories, plus we discuss what might be the best number in Gonzaga history, we go into the background of Sac and Jack got off the ground, we look ahead to Selection Sunday and go over some of the teams we would like to play and would like to avoid. And finally, a couple weeks ago we ran through some

It was a Senior Night properly celebrated, as Gonzaga honored five seniors before beating Saint Mary’s en route to its eighth straight WCC regular season title. Wait, I can hear you asking, five seniors? Aren’t there only three? There are three ON the court, but the Bulldogs pulled a pair of spectacular surprises, brining student manager Mac Graff out for celebration before bringing out NBA lottery pick and former Bulldog Rui Hachimura (WE HAVE A RUI!!) to enjoy what would have been his senior night. Yes, dear FIBber, by that point, the game was a formality but we here at Free Ira Brown won’t let that stop us. And in our latest episode, our heroes react to the Senior Night festivities before breaking down the win over the Gaels (and all was right with the world). Those stories, plus with the end of the regular season we turn our attention to Vegas and the WCC Tournament. To help us, we brought in someone who has some experience (and expertise) in postseason tournaments: Kerry Keating! The former Santa Clara c

The world is clearly ending. Human sacrifice, dogs and cats living together - mass hysteria. Gonzaga has lost a conference road game! Well, OK, so it’s obviously not that bad, and we here at Free Ira Brown try to take Saturday’s loss to BYU in stride and focus on the positives: the loss doesn’t affect our seeding much if at all, it wasn’t in March and we still have a chance to get a bit of revenge in the WCC Tournament. We also run through Thursday’s win over USF, which featured one of the worst first halves in quite a long time but it’s pretty safe to say a solid second half. Those stories, plus: it’s Senior Night! Or, it will be on Saturday against those mugs from Moraga. To help us prepare for that and Thursday’s game against USD we welcome FIB Patreon Ryan Lambert. Ryan also helps answer some questions from Chris, there are derps galore and we’ll have an extensive investigation into just who Brook Steppe is. And finally, we run through some things at which we’re randomly good, much of which resorts to old

The Pepperdine student section was loud and proud last week, but ultimately waved goodbye to their upset chances when Filip Petrusev showed his mettle, dominating the home team inside. This being the only game last week you might think this will be a quick show, but nay sir, do not underestimate your humble heroes’ ability to wax on about Filip’s continued improvement, Corey’s samurai like assassination skills and the Houston Asstrholes. We also mention the NBA All-Star game (Behold the Thickening) and dig deep into the upcoming match-ups against USF and BYU. Speaking of BYU, they’re ranked in the top 25 this week and Ding-Dong! Hello! This is a massive match-up between two top 25 heavyweights. Marty introduces us to our formidable opponent the only way he knows best, through song. All this and a discussion of those sports figures who, well, who may be compensating for something. This week on Free Ira Brown! THE Gonzaga Hoops Podcast. @freeirabrown freeirabrown@gmail.com patreon.com/freeirabrown

Laughing. Guffawing. Chortling. ROFL…uh…ing. Schadenfreude is rarely so much freude as when it’s Saint Mary’s on the schaden end. And it just so happens, dear FIBbers, we here at Free Ira Brown are all about the schadenfreude. So in our latest episode, our heroes bring in a reinforcement to help us soak in all the joy of that mauling in Moraga. Free Ira Brown fan Connor Coombs joins us as we shower Drew Timme with love, bathe in that glorious first half and  give Randy Bennett some good, clean advice. Those stories, plus, apparently we also played against LMU? We’ll investigate that, take a look ahead to  Peck…uh…Pepperdine and review the NCAA’s mid-season bracket release which has us (perhaps surprisingly) as a 1 seed in the West region, ahead of undefeated San Diego State. And finally, we finish by sharing some of our own unpopular opinions. All this and more on the latest episode of Free Ira Brown, THE Gonzaga Hoops Podcast. Do come share the schadenfreude with us, won’t you?

You ever wonder why something is called jam-packed? Is jam have an unusually dense packing? Why is it not peanut butter packed? Or ice cream packed? Mmm, ice cream. It might be time to head to your local grocery store, pick up a pint and throw on the latest offering from Free Ira Brown! Our latest episode is ice cream packed as our heroes take a look back at the more-competitive win over Santa Clara and the nail-biting win over San Francisco. We’ll run through the after-effects of Tillie’s injury, what it means for the lineup going forward and … it’s Saint Mary’s Week! Those stories, pus we take our first real deep-dive into Bracketology, it’s Saint Mary’s Week!, we have a mini-segment of Crazy/Not Crazy, we take a trip into the wonderful world of derps and it’s Saint Mary’s Week! And finally, we finish up with a Top 3 full of love and hate and bits of love-hate. All that and more on the latest episode of Free Ira Brown, THE Gonzaga Hoops Podcast. Do come share some ice cream with us, won’t you?

You ever imagine what a soundtrack to a Gonzaga game would sound like? It would start with Zombie Nation (obviously), but then what? Something more tense, more dramatic (like Filip going down with an ankle injury)? How about something more joyous (like Filip starting the next game)? Or just a straight energy boost (like Tillie throwing one down on the break)? Well, dear FIBber, we here at Free Ira Brown imagine – at least in WCC play – it would be a little something like this: Zombie Nation, followed by It’s The Same Old Song and finishing up with DJ Khaled (All I do is winwinwin, no matter what…). Yeah, that sounds about right. And in our latest episode, our heroes welcome another guest (Lissa Tripp, you may know her as ZagsChick on Twitter) to help us examine the same old story, the same old song and dance as Gonzaga trounces the (paper) Tigers of Pacific. Those stories, plus we extend a tribute Brandon Clarke (and Matt Bouldin), we lament someone other than Heister announcing our game and we touch upon the

Do you have any eligibility left? A spare season or two from your collegiate days? Maybe you’re still in school and feel like lending a hand (or ankle)? It feels like that’s what is needed after yet another injury, this time to Gonzaga’s leading scorer and rebounder. Unfortunately, dear FIBber, we have exhausted all our athletic eligibility. All we can give is the newest episode of Free Ira Brown, in which our heroes discuss the ankle injury to Filip Petrusev, why this was the best time for it to happen (not that there’s ever a good time) and what it means going forward. Those stories, plus we welcome FIB super fan David Jenne to help us enjoy the thumping of BYU, we make fun of Marty relentlessly for believing in Santa Clara and we revel in Killian Tillie’s defense, Ryan Woolridge’s speed and Joel Ayayi’s all-around excellence. And finally, we finish up with a fun discussion of which TV personalities we like and which ones drive us nuts. All that and more on the latest episode of Free Ira Brown, THE Gonzaga

It’s sort of like finding your favorite pair of slippers, right? Maybe they had been lost under the bed, or the dog used one as a chew toy and it was lost for a few weeks. But once you find it, you slip it on and it’s as comfortable as you remember. So it was, watching Gonzaga regain its form in a pair of blow-out conference road wins. A savaging of San Diego? Slipping the right foot in. A mauling of Marymount? Your left foot sliding into an ocean of comfort. It’s nice to see the slippers still fit, isn’t it? And – no surprise here -- with a pair of games comes the latest offering from Free Ira Brown. In our latest episode, our heroes exalt in Ayayi’s excellence, Woolridge’s brilliance and at least one game of moderately passable free throw shooting. Those stories, plus there’s a heated(ish) discussion of the best #13 in Gonzaga history, we have the largest amount discussion of Santa Clara in the history of the pod and we look ahead to a matchup with a dangerous BYU team who will likely be without star forwar

After about six-and-a-half years of putting out the podcast, one thing has become unassailably clear: We have no idea what we’re talking about. So in order to help, we brought in the best possible option, the one person who has the combination of basketball smarts, access to the program and killer, killer hair. That’s right, dear FIBbers, Free Ira Brown is back, and on our latest episode, our heroes interview Dan Dickau! Yes, that Dan Dickau. No, we’re not sure how it happened, either. But he’s here and there’s audio evidence to prove it. We ask the Gonzaga legend his thoughts on this year’s team, what his time was like working as a player development coach with the Portland Trailblazers and who wore the #21 best? Those stories, plus: did you guys hear about this Minnesota kid who committed to Gonzaga? Someone named Jalen Suggs…of course you heard, we all heard and we do a poor job of hiding our excitement about the highest-rated recruit Gonzaga has, uh, recruited (Dickau has some typically intelligent though

The holiday season means a much-needed break for the Gonzaga players, giving a chance to rest, heal up some injuries and enjoy some high-quality Christmas music (see our last episode). But fret not, dear FIBbers, we are still here to help you through this most festive of periods. That’s right, Free Ira Brown is back, and in our latest episode, our heroes fight through colds, Disney and whiskey to bring you a brief (well, for us) New Year’s pod. There isn’t too much to cover, but we will review the win over Detroit Mercy, the Gonzaga women roaring back from a 20-point deficit to get a big win and some absolute gold from Greg Heister. Those stories, plus with the new year comes the start of the West Coast Conference season, and we’ll take you through the conference openers against Portland and Pepperdine (ROMAAAARRR!!). And finally, we would like to take a moment to wish you a wonderful, happy and healthy New Year. We wish nothing but the best in the new decade. @freeirabrown    Freeirabrown@gmail.com  

Gonzaga basketball caps off a tough stretch with glorious victories over North Carolina and Eastern Washington. In honor of their sweet, sweet domination, Marty blesses us with a song . . . about Greg Heister? You're in for the yuletide of your life on this episode of Free Ira Brown! @freeirabrown Patreon.com/freeirabrown freeirabrown@gmail.com

Do ever wonder how well Gonzaga would do in a real conference? You know, what that doesn’t include the lumbering lummoxes that are the LMU Lions? Or the ponderous peasants that are the Portland Pilots? What if, and go with us here, what if Gonzaga were in a real, proper conference? Like, for example, the Pac-12? How would Gonzaga do in the Pac-12, where the west coast behemoths that are Washington and Oregon and Arizona live? What’s that, now? They beat all those teams, you say? And not one of the games was at home? And Tucson is six hours from the ocean and shouldn’t be considered the west coast? We hear you, dear FIBber! And since we here at Free Ira Brown are in the truthiness business, in our latest episode our heroes end the discussion on who the best team in the west is (as if there was any doubt) after Gonzaga goes into the McKale Center and comes away with a (mostly) impressive win over Arizona. We’ll take a look back at Ayayi’s brilliance, Angry Filip(!), Mannion’s miscues and what, exactly, precisel

Did you ever do Sunday dinner with the family? Mom and dad, or maybe grandma and grandpa, host as many members of the family as possible, maybe cook up a nice turkey dinner, or –ooh!—maybe a lasagna.   Just out of curiosity, what did you put on your food? Were you a gravy fan for your turkey? Maybe parmesan or Reggiano for your lasagna?   We hear at Free Ira Brown, we prefer Husky tears.   And in the latest episode, our heroes exult in the full supply of Husky tears available after Sunday’s win. Woolridge all over both ends of the floor? Cue Husky tears. Ayayi with a clutch 3-pointer? More Husky tears. Tillie being the best player on the floor? Even MORE Husky tears. We rejoice in it all.   Those stories, plus we give a shout out to the great Frank Burgess, pick an interesting thing from the Texas Southern game, take look at what should be a fun game against Arizona and weigh in on the topic du jour: Gonzaga’s student section.   All that and more on the latest episode of Free Ira Brown, THE Gonzaga

What was it Meatloaf once said? Two out of three aint bad? It seems unlikely he was singing precisely about Gonzaga’s trip to the Bahamas 40+ years in advance, but we’re gonna go with it anyway (seriously, if you haven’t heard the man sing, go find him and treat yourself). And in the latest episode of Free Ira Brown, our heroes dissect the loss to Michigan in the Battle 4 Atlantis final. What went wrong? Mostly everything. What went right? Mostly nothing. Should we freak out? Not yet. We also take some real heart from the gutty, gritty, dig-way-down-deep victory over Oregon, talk about Ayayi’s continuing improvement and see if there’s anything we can do to help our starting backcourt get healthy and effective (just remember: don’t be sad, cause two out of three aint bad). Those stories, plus we have another pod dedication, we mention the words “Texas Southern” and we get ourselves prepped for that small matter of a cross-state trip Sunday to take on Washington. Isaiah Stewart is an elite talent, but is he eno