On the Bayou: After winning at Arizona State on Wednesday night, the
Arizona Wildcats (17-3, 6-1 Pac-10; No. 5 AP/No. 4 USA Today/ESPN) will
play the fourth and final part of a four-game roadswing when they travel to
Louisiana State (15-3; 3-3 SEC) for a game on Saturday, Jan. 29. The
contest is set to tip-off at 2:07 p.m. CST (1:07 p.m. MST) in the
14,164-seat Pete Maravich Assembly Center and it will be televised on Fox
Sports Net Arizona. Dave Sitton will do the play-by-play and Bob Elliott
will handle the color analysis. The Tigers will enter the game on the heels
win as well, as they beat Arkansas at home on Wednesday night by a 96-75
margin. Following this final non-conference outing of the regular season,
Arizona will return home next week and host Oregon on Thursday, Feb. 3, and
Oregon State on Saturday, Feb. 5.
Series History: Arizona leads the all-time series with Louisiana State,
2-1... This will be the second year in a row that the schools have met and
they are scheduled to play again next season (Dec. 22, 2000) in Tucson...
UA has won the past two games... This will be the first time Arizona has
played in Baton Rouge since the 1990-91 season... The teams played each
other last year in Tucson with the Wildcats winning 78-71... Arizona was
led by Jason Terry, who tied a school record by hitting seven three-point
shots, helping him score a game-high 25 points to go with five assists and
three steals... The other win for the Cats was on Dec. 7, 1991 a 87-67
victory in Tucson... In that victory, the UA frontline of Chris Mills, Sean
Rooks and Ed Stokes help limit LSU's Shaquille O'Neal to just 10 points
(4-6 FGA) and four rebounds before he fouled out... Mills pumped in a
game-high 23 points to go with 12 boards... That game marked win No. 65 in
Arizona's infamous 71-game homecourt winning streak... The lone LSU triumph
was on Dec. 8, 1990 (92-82) in Baton Rouge... The Shaq-Daddy had a tad bit
better night on that occasion, scoring 29 points with 14 boards, six blocks
and five steals in just 28 minutes of play... Sean Rooks scored 18 and had
11 rebounds, while Chris Mills went for 17 points and nine boards.
UA's Probable Starting Lineup: 1999-00 Stats
Ht. Wt. Yr-Exp. PPG RPG APG/BPG/SPG
F 21 Michael Wright 6-7 238 So.-1L 13.9 8.4 0.7 spg
F 4 Luke Walton 6-8 228 Fr.-RS 3 2 3.5 2.6 apg
C 3 Loren Woods 7-1 230 Jr.-TR 15.3 6.9 3.7 bpg
G 0 Gilbert Arenas 6-3 191 Fr.-HS 13.4 4.2 2.3 spg
G 22 Jason Gardner 5-10 178 Fr.-HS 13.4 3.3 5.3 apg
Arizona's Last Action: Helped in part by its best shooting performance of
the season, Arizona beat Arizona State, 82-55, on Wednesday night up in
Tempe. The Wildcats hit on 55.9% of their shots (33-of-59) and limited the
Sun Devils to a 32.8% field goal mark and coasted to the 27-point victory.
The game was close through the first 13 minutes -- but the Wildcats then
went wild and outscored the Devils 47-14 from there and on into the second
half to go up 70-33 lead with 9:15 left in the game. The lead would hit 37
points on two other occasions before the benches emptied, allowing every
Wildcat player to get into the box score. The UA freshman backcourt of
Gilbert Arenas and Jason Gardner was sensational, as the duo combined for
40 points on 15-of-21 shooting, while grabbing 12 rebounds to go with nine
assists and seven steals. Arenas scored a career and game-high 24 points to
go with a career-best eight rebounds, while Gardner scored 16, handed out
seven assists and had four steals. The Arizona defensive effort was led by
Loren Woods, who in addition to altering numerous shots in the lane, had
seven boards, three blocks and scored 10 points. Luke Walton and Rick
Anderson had the bust-out games that were to be expected, as each scored 10
points and were a combined 9-of-14 from the floor. The defense on ASU's
Eddie House was big as well, as the Arenas-Gardner tandem took turns
defending him and limited the Pac-10's leading scorer to just eight points
on 4-of-11 shooting from the floor (0-6 from 3PT land).
LSU Notes: The Tigers bring a 15-3 mark into Saturday's game and are 3-3 in
the Southeastern Conference... They started the season 13-0 before falling
at home to Tennessee on Jan. 8... They then proceeded to lose two more
after that at Florida and at Vanderbilt... LSU broke that three game
losing streak by beating Georgia at home a week ago Wednesday... Six-foot-9
sophomore forward Stromile Swift is the team's leading scorer (16.7 ppg)
and rebounder (7.7 rpg)... He has a field goal percentage of 62.8%
(115-of-183)... He has five double-doubles on the season and scored 33
points to go with 13 boards against Wyoming earlier this season... He is
coming off a 16-point, 5-rebound outing against Arkansas on Wednesday...
Jabari Smith, a 6-foot-11 senior center, is second with a 13.3 ppg average
and a 7.6 rpg mark...The team is shooting 49.3% from the floor... In the
86-75 win over Arkansas, junior 6-foot-8 forward Brian Beshara had a
game-high 23 points and was 5-of-7 from the 3PT line... Freshman
guard/forward Ronald Dupree came off the bench to record a double-double
with 14 points and 16 boards in just 24 minutes... As a team, LSU was
10-of-19 from the 3PT line and outrebounded the Razorbacks 52-to-37... The
Tigers' head coach is John Brady, who is in his third year as the head
man... He has compiled a mark of 36-36 at LSU... It's his ninth year as a
head coach (125-113).
The Last Arizona/LSU Meeting: Last season, Arizona beat Louisiana State in
McKale Center on Feb. 13, 1999, by a score of 78-71. The Cats used another
headline-grabbing performance from Jason Terry, as he tied a school record
by hitting seven three-point shots, a display that helped him score a
game-high 25 points to go with five assists and three steals. Freshman
Michael Wright added his ninth double-double of the season with 15 points
and 11 rebounds, while Eugene Edgerson had his second straight double-digit
scoring total (first time in his career that has happened) with 12 points
and eight boards off the bench. As a team, the UA shot 50% from the floor
against a LSU team that had been holding its opponents to a FG% of only
39.2%. For the Tigers, Stromile Swift and Maurice Carter each scored 21
points in the loss.
A New UA Streak to Chart: With North Carolina dropping out of the
Associated Press top-25 poll this week, Arizona now has the nation's
longest active streak of consecutive weeks ranked in the AP top-25... The
Wildcats streak stands at 83 weeks in row, dating back to the first regular
season poll of the 1995-96 season... Arizona was not ranked in that year's
preseason poll, but after winning its first two games of the preseason NIT,
the Cats moved up to No.19, and would then rise to No. 4 on Nov. 27 after
winning the tournament... That preseason poll was the only time since the
1987-88 preseason poll that Arizona was not ranked in the AP poll...
Stanford and Duke are second with 66 straight weeks in the AP top-25...
North Carolina had been ranked in the AP poll for 172 consecutive weeks
before falling out of it this week... That was the second-longest streak in
history, trailing only UCLA's 221 weeks from 1966-80... Earlier this
season, Kentucky saw its run of 164 consecutive weeks ranked in the AP
top-25 come to an end as well... Overall, Arizona has been ranked in the
regular season Top-25 rankings for 210 straight weeks.
Lute Olson has reached a pair of coaching milestones this season... He
recorded career win No. 600 with the victory at top-ranked Stanford on Jan.
8, and has also achieved win No. 400 at Arizona... Here is a look at his
milestone career victories:
Win Date Team Opponent Score
1 12-1-73 LBSU Puget Sound 84-55
100 2-3-79 Iowa Minnesota 97-71
200 2-25-84 Arizona Oregon St. 69-58
300 3-27-88 Arizona North Carolina 70-52
400 2-13-93 Arizona Washington St. 94-72
500 2-11-96 Arizona Cincinnati 79-76
600 1-8-00 Arizona Stanford 65-68
Coach Olson: Lute Olson (Augsburg '56) is his 17th season as the head coach
at Arizona and his 27th overall as a head coach... This season has already
seen him reach two major milestones in what has become a Hall of Fame type
coaching career -- he has recorded his 600th career win and his 400th
victory at Arizona... With his win at Stanford on Jan. 8, he became the
33rd coach in NCAA history to win 600 or more games... He now has a career
record of 604-215 (.737), while his mark at the at the University of
Arizona stands at 412-123 (.770)... His Pac-10 record is 229-66 (.776) and
he is one of just six coaches in league history to win 200 or more
conference games... He has the second-best conference winning percentage in
Pac-10 history (minimum three years), trailing only John Wooden
(.810/304-74)... With the win over BYU this season, he reached 400
victories for his Arizona career victories for his Arizona career (these
numbers may differ from what the NCAA coaching totals list, because as
opposed to the Pac-10 Conference, the NCAA does not count forfeits as wins
on head coaching records, as the case is with two UA losses to Cal in 1995
and 1996, which were later changed to wins... the same holds true with a
game when Olson was at Iowa, when there was a forfeit by Wisconsin in 1983
that changed a loss into a win)... He is 2-1 all-time against LSU... The
season's opener against Kansas State was the 800th of his collegiate
Division IA career... For his entire coaching career, including 11 years in
high school (157-86 from 1956-69) and three in the junior college ranks
(Long Beach City College, 104-20), he has coached in 1,186 games... During
his 17-year tenure at Arizona, the Wildcats have won one national
championship (1997), gone to three Final Fours (1988, 1994, 1997), won
eight Pac-10 Conference titles and been to the NCAA Tournament for the past
15 years in a row, which is the second longest streak in NCAA history
(North Carolina, 25)... He also led Iowa to the 1980 Final Four... He has
been named the Pac-10 Coach of the Year six times (1986, 88, 89, 93,
94, 98), the Big-10 Coach of the Year twice (1979 & 81) and directed the
UA program to the nation's best winning percentage over the past 12
years... Prior to coming to the UA, he was at Iowa for nine years and went
168-90... Before that, he was at Long Beach State for one season (1973-74),
where he was 24-2... In his collegiate career, he has produced 35 NBA Draft
picks, including 20 at Arizona 15 alone on the 1990s... He has led
Arizona to 12 consecutive 20-win seasons and has 21 overall in his
career... Under Olson, the Cats are 252-26 (.906) in McKale Center and have
won 181 of their last 192 home games.
Cat Scratches: Arizona needs just three more wins for its 13th consecutive
20-win season... It would be the 15th time in head coach Lute Olson's 17
years at the UA that the team has won 20 or more games in a season... When
Arizona recorded a field goal percentage of 55.9% against Arizona State on
Wednesday, it was the first time it shot 50% or better from the floor in
the past 10 games... The last time was against Nebraska in the Las Vegas
Showdown on Dec. 18 (31-61/.500)... There was one negative from the ASU
win, however... The Cats committed a season-high tying 26 turnovers...
Arizona is on the final leg of a four-game road trip -- but after this
stretch, seven of its final 11 games will be at home... The Cats have been
to the free throw line 223 more times than the opposition and have scored
177 more points from the charity stripe... Thirteen of the Wildcats' 20
opponents have shot less than 40% from the field this season... Loren Woods
10 blocks versus Washington State on Jan. 13 was both a team and Pac-10
Conference game record, but one short of the McKale Center record of 11,
set by Purdue's Joe Barry Carroll in 1977... The 11 blocks that Arizona had
as a team against Washington State were the most since Nov. 29, 1993, when
the Cats also had 11 versus Baylor... He was 38 blocks in the last eight
games one more than Arizona's top shot blocker had for all of 1998-99
(A.J. Bramlett, 37)... The opponents have 105 more field goal attempts than
UA... Six of Arizona's seven regulars are shooting 70% or better from the
free throw line and the lone exception, Michael Wright is at 67.3%...
Overall, the team is shooting 72.5% from the line... Arizona is 5-1 versus
ranked opponents, beating No. 1 Stanford, No. 5 Michigan State, No. 9
Texas, No. 11 Kentucky, No. 25 UCLA and losing to No. 6 Connecticut...
There are just 1.9 points separating the UA's No. 1 scorer (Loren
Woods/15.3 ppg) from the No. 3 scorer(s) (Gilbert Arenas & Jason
Gardner/13.4 ppg)... In between you have Michael Wright at 13.9 ppg... This
week marks the 74th time in Arizona basketball history that the team has
been ranked in the top-five by the Associated Press -- they have been in
the top-five for the past nine weeks in a row, which is the longest
consecutive span spent in the top five since the 1987-88 team was ranked
anywhere from No. 1 to No. 4 for 15 weeks in a row... Arizona started the
season ranked ninth in both the AP and USA Today/ESPN polls... Of Jason
Gardner's 73 field goals this season, 47 are from three-point land (64.4
%)... Further, 110 of his 179 field goal attempts have been from behind the
three-point line (61.5%)... When junior John Ash started at point guard
last Saturday in the Washington game on Jan. 15, he became the first
walk-on to start for the Wildcats since Jan. 30, 1982 and the first-ever in
the Lute Olson era... John Vlahogeorge was the last to do it, doing so
against California... After winning the Preseason NIT earlier this season,
Arizona joins Kansas as the only three-time winners of the event, winning
it in 1999, 1995 and 1990... Since the start of the 1997 NCAA Tournament,
the Wildcats have a compiled a record of 75-17 (.815 winning %)... Dating
back to the start of the 1997-98 season, Arizona has been ranked in the
top-10 in 42 of the last 48 AP polling periods... Arizona is 37-0 when
senior Josh Pastner plays, hence the term "A Pastner Game" applies whenever
the Wildcats win big -- on his heels, however, is walk-on John Ash... When
John Ash got into the USC game with just under a minute to go, it marked
the first time the UA lost when he played... Up until then, Arizona was
29-0 when he played -- and 1-0 when he starts, something Pastner can not
claim... Pastner and Woods were selected captains for this year's team in
voting that was done by teammates... The UA has not given up 100 points in
regulation since Jan. 27, 1990, at Pittsburgh, a span of 321 games... UA
lost that game 100-92.
Arizona Single Season Block Chart
1. Anthony Cook, 84 1988-89
2. Anthony Cook, 75 1987-88
3. Loren Woods, 73 1999-00
4. Anthony Cook, 69 1986-87
5. Anthony Cook, 50 1985-86
Block Party: Junior center Loren Woods is providing the UA basketball
program with a luxury it has been without for the past few years a
legitimate shot blocker... With 73 blocks already this season (3.65 bpg),
he already has the third-highest single season total in school history...
Anthony Cook has the school record of 84 blocks, but Woods is well ahead
of that pace (he is on track for 116 swats -- the Pac-10 single season
record for blocks is 115, set by ASU's Mario Bennett in 1994-95)... Woods
set the UA record for blocks in a game with 10 against Washington State,
breaking the old mark of seven, which he had done three times this season
(Notre Dame, Nebraska and New Mexico and Anthony Cook did in 1987 against
UTEP)... Last year, the Cats accounted for 93 blocks on the season and this
year, they already have 117... Woods ended a three-week run by Arizona
State's Eddie House when he was named the Pac-10 Conference's Player of the
Week on Jan. 17... In the wins over Washington State and Washington he
averaged 23.5 points, 8.5 rebounds and 7.5 blocks per game... He was
16-of-36 from the floor and 15-of-19 from the free throw line, while
averaging 38.5 minutes per game... In the win over WSU, he scored a
career-high 25 points to go with a school record 10 blocks... He had six
rebounds, one steal and was 9-of-9 from the free throw line... He was 8-19
from the floor... In the win over UW, he scored a game-high 22 points to go
with 11 rebounds and five blocked shots... He played 39 minutes... He was
8-19 from the floor and 6-10 from the FT line... Woods became the second
player from Arizona to win the weekly honor, joining Michael Wright, who
received the award on Dec. 6 for his performances against Brigham Young and
Texas.
Michael Wright
John R. Wooden Award & All-America Candidate
Arizona sophomore forward Michael Wright was named as one of 30 candidates
for the John R. Wooden Award as the nation's top college basketball player.
He is one of two players from the Pacific-10 Conference to be selected,
joining Stanford's Mark Madsen. On the season, Wright is averaging 13.9
ppg, and a team-high 8.4 rpg, while shooting 55.2% from the floor. He has
eight double-doubles, bringing his career total to 20 in 49 career games.
"...Wright played a phenomenal game and won the battle inside. He's a
warrior." Stanford's Mark Madsen
" Wright dominated and played like an experienced veterand player." -- UCLA
head coach Steve Lavin
Pac-10 Team of the Decade???: Arizona had the most wins of any Pac-10 team
in the 1990s (266), won five Pac-10 Conference crowns and tied for one
other... UCLA was second with four Pac-10 conference titles that decade...
For conference games only, Arizona's record of 140-40 was the best in the
league, with UCLA at No. 2 with a 134-46 mark... The Cats went to the NCAA
Tournament each year in the 1990s and won it all in 1997... There were 18
All-Pac-10 first team selections from Arizona, four Pac-10 Players of the
Year and two Pac-10 Freshmen of the Year... Arizona has not recorded a
double-digit loss total since 1986-87... The Wildcats' seven All-Americans
during the 1990s trailed only Duke's 10... UA and North Carolina were tied
for second-most All-Americans in the 1990s.
Injury News: Arizona sophomore forward Richard Jefferson underwent surgery
on his right foot on Jan. 11 to the fractured fifth metatarsal he sustained
during the win at Stanford on Jan. 8... Jefferson will be out of action for
eight weeks with his anticipated return set for the second week of March,
which coincides with the team's regular season finales -- home games
against Stanford (March 9) and California (March 11)... His foot is in a
boot and he will undergo non-weight bearing rehabilitation for the first
four weeks... Should that portion of his rehabilitation progress as
anticipated, he will then progress to weight bearing activities for the
final four weeks of rehab.
Michael Wright's Career Double-Doubles
(20 in 48 career games)
Arizona's record in these games is 14-6
Date Opponent Points Rebounds
12/14/98 UC-Irvine 15 13
1-2-99 at UCLA 14 10
1/4/99 at USC 11 12
1/14/99 at Arizona State 18 12
1/16/99 at New Mexico 15 17
1/23/99 at Oregon State 13 12
1/30/99 California 15 12
2/4/99 at Washington 19 10
2/13/99 Louisiana State 15 11
2/20/99 Oregon 19 13
3/4/99 USC 22 10
3/12/99 Oklahoma 16 12
11/16/99 Kansas State 11 10
11/19/99 New Mexico State 24 13
11/24/99 Notre Dame 22 11
12/1/99 BYU 19 10
12/4/99 Texas 16 13
12/7/99 Connecticut 14 10
12/30/99 Delaware 19 14
1/15/00 Washington 16 12
And Make It A Double: All-America and John Wooden Award candidate Michael
Wright has eight double-doubles in the Wildcats' 20 games this season,
bringing his career double-double total to 20... The sophomore power
forward has 20 double-doubles in 49 career games... On the season, he is
averaging 14.2 ppg and a team-high 8.5 rpg, while shooting 55.7% from the
floor... He is the only player to start in all 20 games this season has
started 43 consecutive games for the Cats dating back to last year...
Wright was named the Pac-10 Player of the Week back on Dec. 6 after
averaging 17.5 ppg and 11.5 rpg in wins over Brigham Young and Texas... His
35 rebounds through the first three games of the Preseason NIT were three
shy of the three-game tournament record of 38, set by Gary Trent (Miami of
Ohio).. His rebounding average of 8.8 rpg last season was the best ever for
a freshman in the Pac-10 Conference.
Roster Additions: A member of Arizona's football team, Peter Hansen, was
added to the Arizona basketball roster last week to help the team out
because of the roster depletions... His first day or practice was Jan. 12,
and at 6-foot-8, 235 pounds, he is able to give the team an extra big body
to go against in practice... The football team's designated "extra point
and field goal blocker", he is a walk-on to the football team who started
his career as a quarterback... He went to Palo Alto HS in Palo Alto,
Calif... A two-year letterman for the hoops team there... In his two-year
career for the Arizona football team, he has blocked three field goals and
two PAT's... Last football season, he blocked field goal attempts against
Oregon State and UCLA, and knocked down a point after attempt against
Washington...In 1998, he blocked an extra point against Washington, and
later altered a field goal attempt by the Husky kicker later in the
game...Blocked a Nebraska field goal attempt in the first quarter of the
1998 Holiday Bowl... One other addition is walk-on Russell Harris, a
5-foot-11, 165-pound freshman guard from Chicago, Ill (Mundelein High School).
Roster Moves: After Richard Jefferson's injury, there are now only seven
scholarship players available for action (Rick Anderson, Gilbert Arenas,
Jason Gardner, Luke Walton, Justin Wessel, Loren Woods and Michael
Wright)... There are three non-scholarship/walk-on players (John Ash, Josh
Pastner and Mike Schwertley)... Two additional scholarship players, Eugene
Edgerson and Lamont Frazier, are sitting out this season... Edgerson is out
with a redshirt season so he can work on the student-teaching portion of
his education degree... Frazier has missed the past six games to take care
of academic responsibilities and a medical condition -- and as a result of
all the missed time, the UA coaching staff will look to redshirt him this
season... The deletions from the original roster include freshman center
Robertas Javtokas, who decided to return his native Lithuania and play
professionally... Junior transfer Luke Recker transferred to Iowa he had
come to the UA from Indiana prior to this season, but returned to the
Midwest to be closer to his family and girlfriend (Kelly Craig), who was
injured in a July car crash... Of the transfer, he said, "After what
happened this summer, I feel I need to be closer to my family, Kelly and
Jason (Craig) and their family, and many other important people in my life.
I have been nothing but extremely impressed with coach Lute Olson and the
Arizona program and I will miss them greatly"... The third was sophomore
guard Ruben Douglas, who was granted his request for a release from his
scholarship on Nov. 14... He has transferred to New Mexico.
McKale Magic: When New Mexico beat Arizona on Dec. 21 in McKale Center, it
snapped what was the nation's fourth-longest active home winning streak...
The Wildcats had won 37 consecutive home games... And up until then, only
four players on this year's team had ever experienced a loss in McKale
Center (Justin Wessel, Josh Pastner, John Ash & Eugene Edgerson -- those
four were on teams that were 47-1 at home -- they are now 51-2 at home)...
Prior to the New Mexico game, the last loss for the UA in McKale Center was
a 66-64 defeat to UCLA on Feb. 13, 1997... Arizona has now won 52 of its
last 54 home games and is 181-11 in McKale Center since the 1987-88
season... During that time, the Cats have lost three non-conference games
(New Mexico - Dec. 21, 1999; Syracuse - Dec. 23, 1995; Arkansas - Dec. 6,
1992)... The New Mexico loss also snapped a 23 game home winning streak
against consecutive non-conference opponents... Last year was the ninth
season in history that Arizona went undefeated at home... Arizona owns an
all-time record of 344-65 (.841) in McKale Center... This is the 12th
season Arizona basketball has been sold out in McKale Center on a
season-ticket basis... Only 10 pairs of mid-level tickets and 20 pairs of
upper level tickets were not renewed for this year.
For Starters: Lute Olson has gone with the same starting lineup in 15 of
the 20 games this season... The latest change was against Washington on
Jan. 13, when John Ash started at the point and Justin Wessel started at
the two guard for Jason Gardner and Gilbert Arenas who were both held out
of the starting lineup for being late to practice on Jan. 14... Luke Walton
has been inserted into the lineup in place of the injured Richard
Jefferson... The first two times the starting five was altered was against
Michigan State and IUPUI... Against MSU, an adjustment was made at the
center spot, as Justin Wessel started for Loren Woods... Woods was late to
the game because of a traffic accident he was in while on the way to McKale
Center... He finally got to the arena in the early goings of the first half
and checked into the lineup at the 14:17 mark after warming up on a
stationary bike... He made his first field goal attempt 24 seconds later...
Gilbert Arenas was the other normal starter who did not start against MSU,
as a result of him being late to a scheduled treatment session with
basketball athletic trainer Ed Orr... Rick Anderson started in his place
and Richard Jefferson started at the two-guard... Against IUPUI, Anderson
again started for Arenas and Jefferson went at the two-guard.
Looking Ahead: Following Saturday's game at LSU, Arizona returns home next
week for games against Oregon and Oregon State... The contest against the
Ducks is on Thursday, Feb. 3, at 6:30 p.m., while the game with the Beavers
is set for Saturday, Feb. 5, at 6 p.m... Both games will be televised on
Fox Sports Net Arizona.
Road Warriors: Counting the trip to Baton Rouge, Arizona will have played
in eight different locales and four separate time zones while logging
13,860 travel miles this season... Further, the team will have been through
11 different airports and on 26 different plane flights.
Jefferson's Starship: Prior to going down with the foot injury, sophomore
forward and Phoenix product Richard Jefferson and was a regular on the
various "Plays of the Week" shows... One of the most athletic players in
the country, he has turned in a solid season, while providing more than a
fair share of highlight reel dunks and blocks... Prior to being out with
the injury, he was fourth on the team in scoring (12.2 ppg) and first in
three-point shooting (.452/14-31)... He was third in field goal percentage
(.532) and rebounding (4.9 rpg)... He was second in assists (3.3 apg)...
Last week, he was a subject of ESPN.com's question of the day on the
college basketball site it asked "who is the best small forward in the
country?"... He garnered 12% of the vote to finish fourth behind Michigan
State's Morris Peterson, Maryland's Terrance Morris and Cincinnati's Pete
Mickeal... He is finally coming into his own as a wing player after
spending his high school career as a back-tothe-basket post player... His
season was highlighted by a 19-point, five rebound, four assist outing at
Texas, that helped lift Arizona to an 88-81 win over the ninth-ranked
Longhorns... All 19 points came in the second half when he was 8-of-10 from
the floor... He was named to the Fiesta Bowl All-Tournament team.
The UA's record of 337-77 over the course of the past 12+ years gives it
the nation's best winning percentage during that span (.814).The Kids are
Alright: The freshman guard tandem of Jason Gardner and Gilbert Arenas have
been big parts of the UA's 17-3 start... They are combining for 26.8 ppg,
7.5 rpg, 7.3 apg and 3.8 spg... They are No. 1 & 2 in steals on the team...
Gardner, who was the top vote getter with 51% of the votes on ESPN.com's
Jan. 27 question "who is the Pac-10's top freshman?", leads the team in
minutes and assists, averaging 35.8 mpg and 5.3 apg (he has played all 40
four times this season)... At Arizona State, he played well beyond his
years, scoring 16 points to go with seven assists, four rebounds and four
steals, while playing a part in the defensive effort on ASU's Eddie
House... As for Arenas, he had the best game of his young career, scoring a
career and game-high 24 points (10-of-13 shooting from the floor) to go
with a career-best eight rebounds and he too was a part of the
"box-and-one" defense that wreaked havoc... Gardner also had an excellent
weekend in Los Angeles last week... In the games against UCLA and USC, he
scored 45 points... He was 11-of-22 from the floor, 17-of-20 from the free
throw line and 6-of-14 from three-point land (he had a career-high 25
points against USC)... The tandem was exceptional at UCLA, as they combined
for 38 points, eight assists, seven rebounds and five steals... Gardner had
20 points, six assists and four rebounds, while Arenas netted 18 and was
7-of-11 from the floor... They backed that up with a 41-point, 8-rebound
night at USC... Gardner had a big performance in the win over Stanford,
scoring 22 points to go with a career-best six rebounds and four assists...
He was 4-of-5 from the three-point line... They enjoyed their time in the
Madison Square Garden limelight for the Preseason NIT, appearing in their
own version of an off-Broadway "CATS" performance... They were both named
to the Preseason NIT All-Tournament team, while Arenas was the tourney's
MVP... Arenas averaged 17.5 ppg, 4.0 rpg, 2.0 apg and 3.5 spg, helping
Arizona beat Notre Dame and Kentucky... He went for a game and career-high
20 points in the title game versus UK... As for Gardner, he averaged 9.5
ppg, 4.0 apg, 2.0 spg and only turned the ball over once while playing in
72 of a possible 80 minutes.
Lower Output, Same Results: Arizona has scored less than 70 points in a
game seven times this season, including five of the past 10 games... In the
past three seasons combined, the Wildcats only had eight games of less than
70 points...The Cats are averaging 75.9 ppg this season... At this rate,
the 1999-00 Arizona team would be the lowest scoring group since the
1986-87 program, which wound up averaging 75.6 ppg... Conversely, this
year's Cats have been playing some pretty stingy defense, allowing only
64.3 ppg... That mark is the best since the 1985-86 club finished the
season giving up just 62.3 ppg... Five teams have scored less than 60 points.
Groovin' & Truckin': Redshirt freshman Luke Walton had the game UC coaches
were expecting last Wednesday at Arizona State... He scored a career-high
10 points and had a career-best six rebounds and was 5-of-8 from the
floor... It would make sense that a "Deadhead" would choose Berkeley -- and
the Bay Area -- to not only come out of a shooting slump, but turn in what
was until the ASU game, his most impressive performances of the season...
Against California, Walton made his first field goal since the IUPUI game
back on Dec. 13 -- breaking a five-game drought without a field goal... He
had a solid all-around game, scoring five points to go with three rebounds
and three assists... His jumper with 2:31 left in the game gave Arizona a
60-58 lead -- an advantage it would never relinquish... Against Stanford,
he filled in for an injured Richard Jefferson and played a career-high 32
minutes, including all 20 in the second half... Although he was only 1-of-6
from the floor, he had a game and career-best seven assists... It was his
defense and heady play that received the most mention from Lute Olson and
Stanford head coach Mike Montgomery... He had another good all around game
against Washington, scoring four points to go with five rebounds, four
assists and two steals.
Arizona in 1999-00 Polls/Week-by-Week
Date Record AP USA Today/ESPN
Pre. 0-0 #9 #9
11/15 1-0 #10 #9
11/22 2-0 #8 #9
11/29 4-0 #4 #4
12/6 6-0 #2 #2
12/13 7-1 #4 #3
12/20 9-1 #3 #2
12/27 9-2 #5 #4
1/3 11-2 #5 #4
1/10 13-2 #2 #2
1/17 15-2 #2 #2
1/24 16-3 #5 #4
Pac-10 Prognostications: The Wildcats were picked to win the 1999-2000
Pac-10 Conference title, according to a poll of media members who regularly
cover the league... The poll showed Arizona getting 32 of the possible 36
first-place votes, edging No. 2 UCLA, which received three first place
votes and No. 3 Stanford, which garnered one first place vote... Following
the top-three were Oregon, Oregon State, California, USC, Arizona State,
Washington and Washington State. This poll has correctly picked the Pac-10
Champion for five years in a row and Arizona has now been the preseason No.
1 pick six times since the poll was started back in 1989.
Ties Count as a Win: With each win by the Arizona basketball team this
year, head coach Lute Olson donates the tie he wore in the game to the
Tucson YMCA , and in turn they auction off that tie to the public, with all
the proceeds going towards their youth programs... So far, his closet is
minus 17 ties on the season - including the one he wore at Stanford, which
was career win No. 600 -- that piece of his wardrobe was shipped to the
Basketball Hall of Fame, where it will be displayed in a temporary display
honoring his 600th victory.
Pretty Good Success: Dating back to the first round loss of the 1986 Big
Apple NIT, Arizona has won 68 of its last 74 games that have been played as
part of an in-season tournament or one-game special event (i.e. Bank One
Fiesta Bowl Classic, Preseason NIT, Maui Invitational, Great Eight Classic,
Las Vegas Showdown, Great Alaska Shootout, Hall of Fame Tip-Off Classic,
etc., etc.)... This season, Arizona is 7-1 in such events, going 4-0 in the
Preseason NIT, losing to Connecticut at the Great Eight, beating Nebraska
in the Las Vegas Showdown and beating UNC-Wilmington and Delaware in the
opening round of the Fiesta Bowl Classic.
Counting Classes:The 1999-2000 Arizona basketball roster is relatively
young... From top-to-bottom, it is comprised of just two seniors, of which
only one will play, due to Eugene Edgerson's redshirt season (Josh Pastner,
who has played just 91 minutes in his four year career is the lone
"playing" senior)... After that, there are four juniors two of whom had
never played in a game for the Cats before the Kansas State season opener
(Wake Forest transfer Loren Woods & junior college transfer Lamont
Frazier)... Then there are three sophomores, one redshirt freshman and
three true freshmen.
Happy Action Graduation Time: If getting your undergraduate degree in just
two-and-a-half years was not enough, Arizona senior Josh Pastner has pushed
the envelope even further with his most recent scholastic accomplishment...
On Dec. 18, he received his master's degree in teaching & teacher
education, taking just three-and-a-half years to do so... He walked in the
University of Arizona's graduation ceremonies on Saturday morning, and then
boarded a plane to Las Vegas to meet up with the team for that night's game
against Nebraska... Last year the road trip and graduation day was exactly
the same as well, when he received his undergraduate degree in family
studies... He walked the morning of Dec. 19, 1998 and then flew to Las
Vegas later that day for the Cats' game in the Las Vegas Shootout versus
Iowa State.
A Redshirt Year: Arizona will be without the services of senior forward
Eugene Edgerson this season, as he will redshirt so he can complete his
degree requirement in his education major... In order to accomplish his
goal of getting his degree and teaching certificate from the UA in four
years, he will student teach during the 2000 spring semester, while
fulfilling other requirements this fall... He is student teaching
kindergarten at Borton Magnet Elementary School in Tucson... He will still
practice with the team but will miss practices on Monday, Wednesday and
Friday.
The Golden Arches: This season's roster contains three former McDonald's
High School All-Americans freshman Jason Gardner, sophomore Richard
Jefferson and junior Loren Woods.
Then There Were Four: Just four players remain from Arizona's 1997 NCAA
Championship team Eugene Edgerson, Justin Wessel, John Ash and Josh Pastner.
Who's Gone From 1998-99: Leading the losses from last season are 1998-99
seniors Jason Terry and A.J. Bramlett... Terry was named the National
Player of the Year in three circles last year and was the Pac-10 Player of
the Year after becoming the first player to lead the league in scoring
(21.9 ppg), assists (5.5) and steals (2.8) in the same season since Gary
Payton of Oregon State did it in 1989-90... He was No. 10 in the NBA Draft
and went to the Atlanta Hawks... Bramlett was an All-Pac-10 selection last
season after averaging 14.2 ppg, 9.4 rpg... He was drafted in the second
round of the NBA Draft by the Cleveland Cavaliers... Both Terry and
Bramlett were members of four Arizona teams that went 103-28 (55-4 at
home), winning a national title (1997), a Pac-10 crown and they were 11-3
in the NCAA Tournament... Jason Stewart was the third senior last year,
while freshman guard Traves Wilson transferred in the off-season.
Arizona's NCAA Tournament History: Last year marked the 18th time Arizona
has made an appearance in the NCAA Tournament and it was the 15th invite
under head coach Lute Olson... UA's current string of 15 consecutive
appearances in the NCAAs is the second longest streak in NCAA history,
trailing only North Carolina's 25 straight invites (UNC's is a current
streak as well)... Last season was the 20th time in the last 21 years that
Olson has taken a team to the NCAAs... He has directed Arizona to 15
tourneys and a 24-14 record -- and when he was the coach at Iowa, he
coached five Hawkeye squads to the NCAAs... With 20 career appearances in
the NCAA Tournament, he is tied for fourth on the NCAA's all-time
tournament appearance list for head coaches with Adolph Rupp and John
Thompson... Over the course of their last 20 NCAA games, the Wildcats own a
record of 15-5... In the last five years, Arizona has played in 21
tournament games... Arizona's all-time record in the NCAA Tournament is now
26-17... The Wildcats have been to three Final Fours -- 1988, 1994 &
1997... Arizona has advanced to the Sweet 16 seven times in the last 12 years.
20-Win Campaigns: With its record of 22-7 last season, it marked the 12th
consecutive season that Arizona won 20 or games... Further, it was the 14th
time in Lute Olson's 16 years as UA head coach that the Cats have reached
the 20-win plateau... It marked the 21st time in Olson's career that he has
directed a team to 20 or more victories, making him just the eighth head
coach in NCAA history to reach 20 wins in 21 or more seasons (Dean
Smith-30; Jerry Tarkanian-26; Adolph Rupp-23; Bobby Knight-22; Denny
Crum-21; Jim Boeheim-21; John Chaney-21).
2000 NCAA West Region First/Second Rounds in McKale Center
The University of Arizona will host the first and second rounds of the 2000
NCAA Tournament West Region this March 16 & 18 in McKale Center. Tickets
are currently on sale for each of the three sessions and cost $90. Ticket
orders can be made at the McKale Center ticket office or by calling
520-621-CATS (2287). Media credential applications will be ready in
January. Contact media coordinator Tom Duddleston with any questions
(520-621-4163).
Former Cats in the NBA: This season, there are nine former Arizona players
on NBA rosters -- the list has been cut by three in recent days, as A.J.
Bramlett, Ben Davis and Khalid Reeves have been released in the past
days... The current nine-man list includes, Mike Bibby (Vancouver), Jud
Buechler (Detroit), Michael Dickerson (Vancouver), Sean Elliott (San
Antonio/injured list), Steve Kerr (San Antonio), Chris Mills (Golden
State), Sean Rooks (Dallas), Damon Stoudamire (Portland) and Jason Terry
(Atlanta).
Shooting Sets the Tone: Since the 1996-97 season, Arizona is 76-4 in games
when it has a better shooting percentage than its opponent... The Wildcats
are 15-0 this year, 19-1 last season, 23-2 the year before and 18-1 in
1996-97 campaign.
80s Preservation Society: In the past four years, the UA is 83-8 when it
scores 80 or more points in a game... Further, since the 1992-93 season,
Arizona is 145-15 when it scores 80 or more... The Cats are 8-0 this year,
were 15-2 in 1998-99, 26-3 in 1997-98 and 19-2 in 1996-97.
Prowlin' With the Wildcats:Here's the upcoming broadcast schedule for Fox
Sports Net Arizona's bi-weekly magazine show about University of Arizona
athletics -- "Prowlin' with the Wildcats"... Thurs., Jan. 27, 7:30
p.m./Sat., Jan. 29, 3 p.m. (replay); Wed., Feb. 9, 5 p.m./Fri, Feb. 11, 9
p.m. (replay); Wed., Feb. 23, 9 p.m./Fri. Feb. 25, 9 p.m. (replay).
Surfin' With The Cats: Follow Arizona basketball games on the internet at
www.arizcats.com... Go to the TotalCast portion of the site to see the live
real-time play-by-play updates of each of the Arizona men's basketball games.
Arizona Basketball On TV This Year: Each of Arizona's 32 regular season
games will be televised on either Fox Sports Net, ESPN, ESPN2, ABC, CBS or
KWBA. The Wildcats appear on Fox Sports Net 20 times, ESPN four times,
ESPN2 four times, CBS once, ABC once and on Tucson's KWBA five times.
The Coach's Show: Once again this season, KNST radio will air the Lute
Olson Coach's Show, hosted by Brian Jeffries... It all takes place at Bob's
on Tanque Verde... The next Lute Olson Show will be Monday, Jan. 17, at 6
p.m. and the TV show will be shown Wednesday, Jan. 19 at 10:30 p.m on UPN
channel 18 in Tucson.
Some Notes on Last Season: The Wildcats led the Pac-10 in rebounding (41.6
rpg), scoring (82.2 ppg), free throw shooting (.710) and rebounding margin
(+8.1 rpg)... The Cats completed its home schedule with a 14-0 mark... It
was the ninth time in history the UA has completed its home schedule
undefeated... Last year was the first time since 1989-90 that Arizona
didn't score 100 points or more in at least one game... Arizona started
three freshmen in 22 of its 29 games and used 10 different starting
lineups... Only three teams shot 50% or better against the Wildcats --
UCLA (50%), at Cal (51.6%) and at Stanford (54.0%)... Arizona suffered its
worst shooting performance of the season against Oklahoma in the first
round of the NCAA Tournament (19-of-57/33%)... One offshoot of the UA's
rebounding dominance was the amount of times it went to the free throw
line... The Wildcats attempted 252 more free throws than the opposition...
The three-point field goal percentage of .350 was the lowest in team
history... Arizona's 30 turnovers against Washington State on Jan. 7, were
the most for the program since Dec. 4, 1982, when the Ben Lindsey-coached
Cats had 36 at New Mexico... The University of Arizona retired Steve Kerr's
jersey in a ceremony following the Washington game... He joined Sean
Elliott as the only former Wildcats to have their jersey hung from the
McKale Center rafters.
