SPOKANE, Wash. — "He's always gonna be little to me. Maybe because I weigh so much more than him," said Matt Gregg with a laugh.
It's become a fan favorite.
"It's a funny way to start the day. (He) always finds a different embarrassing picture of me. I don't think he's ever going to run out," said Ben Gregg.
A little smack talk between father and son.
"He thinks he's bigger than me and I want to make sure that he knows he's not," said Matt Gregg.
Every Gonzaga game day, Ben Gregg's father, Matt, tweets ahead of the game with the phrase "Little Ben Gregg", often accompanied by an old picture of the now not so little Ben.
"I was doing it primarily to let my family members know there were games coming on and what channel to watch on. That was basically it. Then I'm like, 'let me just throw some goofy pictures of him in,' which is not hard to find. We have a lot of those. So yeah, that's kind of how it all started," said Matt Gregg.
The nickname has caught on with more than just the family.
"He loves it. The fans love it, obviously. But yeah, it's it's pretty fun," said Ben Gregg.
A fun reminder from dad to "clean the glass" or that he's "ready to eat." Something Ben has done this season.
The 6'10" sophomore forward has been Gonzaga's spark plug coming off the bench. He's provided gritty minutes for the Bulldogs, averaging 5.5 points and 3.1 rebounds per game in his brief 12.3 minute average on the floor.
He's carved out a role for himself on one of the top teams in the country.
"It wasn't easy. I mean, you're surrounded by so much talent every day," said Ben Gregg. "Practice is super competitive. You're going against Drew Timme every day. So, it's kind of hard to stand out. But you know, that's how I was able to do it. You know, just crashing offensive boards diving on loose balls, you know, doing the dirty work."
"I never thought I would say he's a hustle guy and a defensive guy. Never ever thought I would say that. He was always that offensive guy. So, it's been incredible," said Matt Gregg.
While most of the tweets between the two are poking fun at each other, there's still the serious times.
Matt coached his final game as the women's basketball head coach at Warner Pacific this season and Ben left Dad a heartfelt message.
"That was tough. When he sent that out with a photo of when he was, I don't even know how old he was probably three, when we were holding hands during a basketball practice. And he sent that out that we've been holding hands this whole time kind of thing," said Matt Gregg. "I think I may have got a little misty for sure."
Now, dad is ready to proudly watch his son in March Madness, but rest assured he's still the big man in the family.
"It's just been a blessing to watch him grow," said Matt Gregg. "But he's never going to outgrow me."
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