Neal: One of the greatest weeks of the sports calendar has finally arrived

Colorado State men’s basketball coach Niko Medved reportedly has been identified as the man who can save the Gophers program. And Minnesota fans can check him out this week as he walks the sideline during one of the greatest weeks of the sports calendar.

Here’s a suggestion: While checking out Medved’s coaching chops on your 85-inch television, stick around and enjoy the rest of March Madness.

There is nothing like the Big Dance, the NCAA basketball tournament.

Correction.

There is nothing like the first week of the NCAA tournament, when the field of 68 — I begrudgingly acknowledge the silly play-in games that took place on Tuesday and Wednesday — is pared down to 16 teams. There are upsets, last-second shots, borderline chaos and individual brilliance for 13 consecutive hours on Thursday and another 13 hours on Friday.

A national work slowdown/stoppage will take place around 11 a.m. on Thursday, as we face deadlines to enter prediction pools before tipoff of the first game. By 1 p.m., the bracket busting will have started.

The women’s tournament, finally allowed to use the phrase “March Madness” in 2022, gets underway Friday and has become appointment viewing as well. Even with the departures of Caitlin Clark and Angel Reese to the WNBA, star power and powerhouse teams remain.

Colorado State’s first-round game on Friday against Memphis should draw good local ratings, as we get a peek at the man expected to be introduced as the 19th coach in Gophers men’s basketball history.

Dain Dainja, a Park Center product, is with Memphis now following a stint at Illinois, which came following a stint at Baylor. Another local angle.

For those of you who have declined to watch the NCAA hoops tournament since the Gophers last appeared in 2019, there are other reasons to tune in other than to scout Medved:

Eight Big Ten Conference teams made the men’s tournament, led by Michigan State. The Spartans lost only three times in conference play during the regular season. No one wants to draw Tom Izzo in a tournament, where his coaching excellence shines when scheming against opponents on short notice. Guard Tre Holloman (Cretin-Derham Hall) has been vital to their success.

There are five Minnesotans on Wisconsin’s men’s roster, but that might be too tough for Gophers fans to watch. Maryland played well down the stretch, losing only to Michigan State (by three) last month and to Michigan (by one) in the conference tournament. Michigan appears to have found something by pairing two 7-footers. A prediction: Two conference schools will reach the Elite Eight.

Guard Tessa Johnson was a contributor to South Carolina’s women’s national championship last year as a freshman. While she continues to come off the bench for the Gamecocks, the former St. Michael-Albertville star is averaging more minutes and shooting better from the field than a year ago. Will it be Tessa time once again?

UConn could run into USC in the Spokane 4 region final for a trip to Tampa, Fla., for the women’s Final Four. That means another matchup of the current faces of college basketball between Hopkins' own Paige Bueckers and Trojans star JuJu Watkins. Injuries have not stopped Bueckers. She’s shooting over 50% from the field, over 40% from beyond the three-point line and nearly 90% from the free-throw line. Let that sink in.

Not sure if this was done on purpose, but the revitalized St. John’s squad could face Arkansas in the second round of the men’s tournament. That would pit legendary coaches Rick Pitino and John Calipari against each other. Unfortunately for Gophers fans who watched Richard Pitino for eight years, Dad has clearly been the better coach.

Medved certainly will be worth checking out on Friday. But if he either leads the Rams on a tournament run or gets blown out by Memphis, it doesn’t make him a better or worse candidate for the Gophers.

Richard Pitino had one year of head coaching experience when Minnesota hired him. Johnson was a newbie. Medved turned Furman and now Colorado State around. If that’s Gophers athletic director Mark Coyle’s guy, I’m fine with it from the résumé standpoint alone.

So you can check out Rams basketball on Friday and hope Medved comes to get the Gophers dancing sooner than later. But that should be only one small part of your tournament viewing experience.