While in the Inland Northwest for the NCAA Tournament, the Utah women’s basketball team experienced incidents involving racial slurs directed at players and staff, prompting them to move their hotels from Coeur d’Alene to Spokane.
“We’ve had several instances of racial hate crimes against our program,” Utah head coach Lynne Roberts said in a postgame interview.
Roberts did not give specific details about her team’s experience, but according to an incident report filed by police Thursday, the team was harassed in separate incidents during a team dinner at Crafted Tap House in downtown Coeur d’Alene.
The report alleged that two pickup trucks were “revving their engines and speeding alongside the team” as players, staff and family members walked down Sherman Avenue. Elsewhere in the report, it is alleged that “the trucks then turned around and came back toward the crew and yelled the ‘N’ word at them.”
“This tournament should be positive for everyone involved,” Roberts said. “This should be a joyful time for our program and to have a black eye on this experience is unfortunate.”
According to the Kootenai County Human Relations Task Force, “reinforcements of other racists” then followed the Utah women’s contingent to their team hotel.
The Gonzaga University athletic department released a statement regarding the events that occurred, condemning the hateful rhetoric and behavior directed at the Utah women’s basketball team.
“We are frustrated and deeply saddened to know that what should always be an incredible experience for visitors and the championship has been compromised in any way by this situation,” the statement said.
The three visiting teams for the first and second rounds of the tournaments were placed in hotels more than 30 miles from GU and the McCarthey Athletic Center due to the lack of accommodations in Spokane. The NCAA men’s basketball tournament and a volleyball tournament were both held in Spokane last week, leading to a shortage of available hotel rooms in the city.
Additionally, all of the athletic departments involved were unable to make arrangements until last Sunday, as they waited for tournament seedings and host venues to be announced on Selection Sunday.
One of those teams, UC Irvine, also remained in Coeur d’Alene and, although it did not experience a similar event, requested to move. Michael Uhlenkamp, UC Irvine assistant vice chancellor for communications and media relations, said the request came “for the well-being and safety of our student-athletes.”
GU and the NCAA worked with Utah immediately after the damage they suffered, finding new hotel reservations for the team in Spokane. According to Utah athletic director Mark Harlan, the team shouldn’t even have been in the Idaho resort in the first place.
“We shouldn’t have been there,” Harlan told KSL News. “I appreciate the NCAA and Gonzaga getting us out of this situation, but we shouldn’t have been here in the first place. So a lot of people need to go home and heal from this whole thing.
Lisa Gardner, president of the Spokane chapter of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, said incidents like those involving the Utah women’s basketball team harm the game and have a negative impact on the playing abilities and general mental well-being of athletes.
“It puts them in a bad situation, coming to a game knowing they’re in racist territory, receiving racist slurs before a very important game,” Gardner said in an interview with KREM.
Jim Hammond, Mayor of Coeur d’Alene, apologized on behalf of the city.
“To the young women who experienced racist abuse during their visit, I offer my sincere apologies,” Hammond said. “We are all on your side. We kiss you. We celebrate your achievements and strongly denounce any malicious treatment of you.
Idaho Governor Brad Little also issued a statement denouncing the behavior of these individuals, saying Idaho has a zero-tolerance policy toward racism and intolerance.
“I will continue the tradition of past Idaho governors in supporting our local leaders in their efforts to eradicate hatred and bigotry from our communities,” Little’s statement said.
On the day of GU’s second-round game against Utah in the NCAA tournament, the day before Little released his statement, he announced on X that he had signed a bill banning “diversity statements” in public higher education establishments. He said this bill would ensure that hiring and admission decisions are made based on merit and skills.
The law will take effect in July, per Senate Bill 1274. The full text of the bill can be found on the Idaho Legislature website.
