First of Two: The Arizona Wildcats (No. 9 USA Today/ESPN) kick off their
two-game exhibition season, facing a professional team from Lithuania
Alytus Alita this Sunday, Nov. 7, at 3:07 p.m. in McKale Center.
Currently taking a break from its Lithuanian Basketball League regular
season schedule to travel in the United States, Alytus Alita has compiled a
record of 3-6 in its league so far. The Cats are coming off their annual
Red/Blue scrimmage last Tuesday night, an intrasquad game that was played
before 8,824 fans in McKale Center. Following this outing against the
Lithuanian team, Arizona will have one more exhibition game, hosting the
California All-Stars on Sunday, Nov. 14, at 3:07 p.m. The Wildcats, who
welcome back eight letterwinners and three starters from last year's 22-7
team, will open the 1999-2000 regular season campaign at home on Tuesday,
Nov. 16, taking on Kansas State in the first round of the Preseason NIT.
Tip-off is set for 8:30 p.m. and it will be televised nationally on ESPN2.
Television & Radio for Sunday: The game against Alytus Alita will be
televised on KWBA (channel 58) in Tucson and on Cox cable channel 9 in
Phoenix. Dave Sitton will handle the play-by-play for the television
broadcast and former Arizona basketball All-America Bob Elliott will do the
color commentary... The contest can also be heard on KNST radio in Tucson
(790 AM) and on each of the 11 other Arizona Wildcat Network affiliates
across the Southwest.
Arizona In Exhibitions: The Wildcats have an all-time record of 234-58
against non-collegiate competition in its 95-year hoops history... Arizona
has won its past 19 exhibitions in a row, last suffering a defeat on Nov.
9, 1989, losing to the Australian National Team 71-60... Last season,
Arizona opened up its exhibition season against another team from
Lithuania, Sakalai, and won 72-64.
The Cats' Last Action: Last Tuesday night was Arizona's annual Red/Blue
intrasquad scrimmage and it was an evening that saw the Blue squad defeat
the Red, 93-86. The winning team was led by the high-flying exploits of
sophomore three-man Richard Jefferson and freshman guard Gilbert Arenas.
Jefferson, one of three returning starters this season, went for a
game-high 24 points on an 8-of-11 shooting performance from the field
(helped in part by four dunks) and was 8-of-11 from the free throw line as
well. As for Arenas, he scored 22 points and grabbed eight rebounds.
Another frosh, 6-foot-10 center Robertas Javtokas hit all six of his shots
on the way to a 12-point night for the victors. The Red team was led by
sophomore forward Michael Wright, who had the only double-double of the
game with 23 points and 12 rebounds, while hitting 9-of-10 shots. Junior
center Loren Woods netted 20 points (8-of-11 FG) to go with six boards and
four blocks. Sophomore three-man Rick Anderson was effective from the
outside, hitting all four of his three-point attempts on the way to a
19-point, six rebound, three assist evening.
WILDCAT CALENDAR
Sun., Nov. 7 - Exhibition vs. Alytus Alita, 3:07 p.m.,
McKale Center, KWBA televises.
Wed., Nov. 10 - Press Conference; Lute Olson at 1 p.m. in
SID office; Players at 1:30 p.m. on the floor.
Thurs., Nov. 11 - UA Men's Basketball Tip-Off Luncheon Noon,
La Paloma Resort. Tickets are $26 per person and can be
purchased by calling 621-6133.
Sun., Nov. 14 - Exhibition vs. California All Stars,
3:07 p.m., McKale Center, KWBA televises
Tues., Nov. 16 - Preseason NIT vs. Kansas State, 8:30 p.m.,
McKale Center/ESPN2
Fri., Nov. 19 - Possible Second Round Preseason NIT game if
UA beats Kansas State; Cats would host winner of Hofstra/New
Mexico State; 9:30 p.m./ESPN2
Wed/Fri., Nov. 24/26 - Preseason NIT Semi-Finals and Finals;
New York City; Madison Square Garden; ESPN televises
Preseason Rankings: Arizona is drawing a lot of attention in the preseason
rankings and magazines that have come out so far. The Cats have been
anywhere from No. 5 (The Sporting News) to No. 18 (Lindy's). They were No.
9 in the USA Today/ESPN Coach's Poll, which was released on Thursday... A
complete listing of all the preseason polls and individual accolades are
listed later on this release.
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, who 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.
Lithuanian Connection: Arizona freshman center Robertas Javtokas
(YAHV-toe-kus) is a native of Lithuania and was born in Siauliai, Lithuania
(pronounced SHAW-lay). He has a brother, Arturas, who currently plays on
the Clemson basketball team... He has been in the United States for the
past two years, first coming to Winston-Salem, N.C., where he attended
Bishop McGuiness High School... He spent last year in Akron, Ohio,
attending St. Vincent/St. Mary's High School... Lists his favorite NBA
teams as Portland and Cleveland, because of fellow countrymen Arvydas
Sabonis and Zydrunas Illgauskas, who play for the Blazers and Cavs.
Arizona Basketball On TV This Year: Each of Arizona's 29 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 twice, ESPN2
twice, CBS once, ABC once and on Tucson's KWBA five times. Should Arizona
advance to the Preseason NIT's second round, semi-finals and final, it
would make one more showing on ESPN2 and have two more ESPN games.
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 77 minutes in his three year career is the lone
"playing" senior)... After that, there are five juniors two of which have
never played in a game for the Cats (Wake Forest transfer Loren Woods &
junior college transfer Lamont Frazier) and one who can't play this season
because he is a transfer (Luke Recker)... Then there are four sophomores,
one redshirt freshman and four true freshman... In all, the 16 players on
this year rosters have combined to play in an average of only 19 career
games for the Wildcats.
The UA's record of 320-74 over the course of the past 12 years gives it the
nation's best winning percentage during that span (.812).
Who's Back: Heading the group of three returning starters and eight
letterwinners is last year's Freshman All-American and Pac-10 Freshman of
the Year, Michael Wright. A 6-foot-7, 238-pound sophomore from Chicago,
Ill. (Farragut Academy), he has received preseason acclaim as being one the
top power forwards in the country for 1999-2000. He is the team's leading
returning scorer (13. 9 ppg) and rebounder (8.8 rpg) after posting the best
rebounding average by a freshman in Pac-10 history last season. The other
two returning starters from last year are also sophomores this year, and
they are Richard Jefferson (F, 6-7, 222, Phoenix, Ariz.) and Ruben Douglas
(G, 6-4, 192, Altadena, Calif.). Jefferson was an All-Pac-10 Freshman team
performer last season after averaging 11.3 ppg, 4.8 rpg and 2.9 apg, while
Douglas was named to the All-Pac-10 Freshman honorable mention team in
1998-99. Among the other returning letterwinners are Justin Wessel (F, 6-8
, 225, Jr., Cedar Rapids, Iowa), Rick Anderson (F, 6-8 , 221, So., Long
Beach, Calif.), John Ash (G, 5-10, 177, Jr., Tucson, Ariz.) and probably
the most valuable player in the country who has averaged 2.8 minutes per
game during his three-year career, Josh Pastner (G, 5-11, 182, Kingwood,
Texas).
A Redshirt Year: Another face that is returning this season, but will not
be playing is Eugene Edgerson... He will redshirt this season 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... Depending on his teaching
schedule, he will still practice with the team but will miss Wednesday
practices during the fall semester.
University of Arizona
1999-2000 Preseason Rankings
The Sporting News - 5th
Basketball News - 7th
Blue Ribbon College Yearbook - 7th
ESPN/USA Today - 9th
Street & Smith's - 9th
Sport Magazine - 9th
Playboy - 11th
ESPN.com - 13th
Basketball Times - 13th
Lindy's College Sports - 18th
Picked to finish first in the Pac-10 - The Sporting News
Picked to finish first in the Pac-10 - Basketball News
Picked to finish first in the Pac-10 - Athlon Sports
Picked to finish first in the Pac-10 - Street & Smith's
Picked to finish first in the Pac-10 - Sport Magazine
The Sporting News No. 3 Frontcourt in the Country
Lindy's College Basketball No. 5 Frontcourt in the Country
Street & Smith's No. 2 Frontcourt in the Country
Individual Rankings
Michael Wright
* The Sporting News No. 2 Power Forward in the Country
* The Sporting News Pac-10 All-Conference First Team
* Pac-10's Best NBA Prospect - The Sporting News
* Street & Smith's No. 3 Power Forward in the Country
* Street & Smith's All-Pac-10 Team
* Basketball News All-Pac-10 First Team
* Basketball News No. 6 "Banger" in the Country
* Athlon Sports All-Pac-10 First Team
* Lindy's No. 8 Power Forward in the Country
* "All Class of 2002" (Sophomores Who May Be Raw But
Have Serious Skills), Sport Magazine
Loren Woods
* The Sporting News No. 6 Center in the Country
* The Sporting News Pac-10 All-Conference Team
* The Sporting News Pac-10 Newcomer of the Year
* Athlon Sports All-Pac-10 Second Team
* Athlon Sports Pac-10 Newcomer of the Year
* Lindy's No. 8 Center in the Country
* "All-Witness Protection" (Impact Transfers Whose
Time is Now), Sport Magazine
Richard Jefferson
* Athlon Sports All-Pac-10 Third Team
* Lindy's No. 14 Small Forward in the Country
Jason Gardner
* Basketball News Pac-10 Newcomer of the Year
* Street & Smith's Pac-10 Newcomer of the Year
The (Kind Of) New Faces: There are eight players on this season's roster
who have never played in a game for the Wildcats before, although two of
them were with the program last year and sat out either as a transfer or
with a redshirt season. The transfer is junior center Loren Woods (7-1,
251, St. Louis, Mo.), who came to Arizona from Wake Forest. The former
McDonald's All-American had to sit out last year, but is eligible to play
in 1999-00 and will establish his presence right away. He did practice with
the Cats in 1998-99, so he has a good knowledge of the system. The redshirt
is Luke Walton (F, 6-8, 228, Fr., San Diego, Calif.). He missed last season
with a medical redshirt after suffering a stress fracture in his right
foot. He was healthy towards the end of last year and was able to practice
with the team towards the end of February and coaches were impressed with
his progress.
The New Guys: The six fresh faces on the team are comprised of a talented
group... There are two transfers and four true freshmen... Junior college
guard Lamont Frazier (6-3, 182, Jr.) comes to Tucson from Lon Morris Junior
College in Jacksonville, Texas and is originally from Los Angeles... His
has missed most of the practices so far due to a recurrent medical
condition, but returned to practice on Oct. 28 -- his first time on the
floor with the team since Oct. 17... The second high-profile transfer in
two years to come to Arizona is Indiana transfer Luke Recker (G/F, 6-6,
190, Jr., Auburn, Ind.)... Just as the case was with Loren Woods last
season, he must sit out this season as a result of NCAA transfer rules, but
will be allowed to practice with the team... As a result of the broken left
wrist he suffered in a car wreck back in early July, he has been held out
of some drills to avoid contact, but was able to play in last Tuesday's
Pepsi Red/Blue Scrimmage... His rehab process is going extremely well and
his progress has been much better than first expected... The four true
freshmen on the squad include McDonald's All-American Jason Gardner (G,
5-10, 178, Indianapolis, Ind.), Gilbert Arenas (G, 6-3, 191, North
Hollywood, Calif.), Robertas Javtokas it's pronounced YAHV-toe-kus (C,
6-10, 229, Siauliai, Lithuania) and walk-on Michael Schwertley (F, 6-5,
214, Phoenix, Ariz.).
Coach O: Lute Olson (Augsburg '56) begins his 17th season as the head coach
at Arizona and his 27th overall as a head coach... This season will see him
reach of number of milestones in what has become a Hall of Fame type
coaching career... He has a career record of 587-212 (.735), while his mark
in Tucson stands at 395-120 (.767) and he has made Arizona one the dominant
programs in the country... The first game of the season will be his 800th
career game as a head coach and he needs just 13 more wins for career win
No. 600, which would make him one of just 33 coaches in NCAA history to win
600 or more games... With five more wins, he will reach 400 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)... During his
16-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 has been named the Pac-10 Coach of the Year six times (1986, 88,
89, 93, 94, 98) and directed the program to the nation's best winning
percentage over the past 12 years... His Pac-10 record stands at 223-65
(.774) 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)... Prior to coming to Arizona, he was at Iowa for nine
years where he owned a 168-90 mark and before that, he was at Long Beach
State for one season (1973-74), where he went 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 have gone 243-25
during his career in McKale Center and have won 172 of their last 182 home
games.
The Coach's Show: Once again this season, KNST will air the Lute Olson
Coach's Show and it is hosted by Brian Jeffries... Due to Arizona travel
conflicts during the non-conference season, the show will air just once
prior to Pac-10 play... The first show is on Monday, Nov. 29, at 6:30 p.m.
It is broadcast live from Bob's at 6350 East Tanque Verde Road... The show
will then be aired for the television portion of the Lute Olson Show,
showing on Tuesday, Nov. 30, at 10:30 p.m. on UPN channel 18... The next
Lute Olson Show after this will be on Monday, Jan. 3, at 6:30 p.m. and the
TV show will be shown Wednesday, Jan. 5 at 10:30 p.m.
Final 1998-99 Pac-10 Standings
Pac-10 Overall
1. Stanford 15-3 26-7
2. Arizona 13-5 22-7
3. UCLA 12-6 22-9
4. Washington 10-8 17-12
5. California 8-10 22-11
Oregon 8-10 19-13
7. USC 7-11 15-13
Oregon State 7-11 13-14
9. Arizona State 6-12 14-16
10. Washington St. 4-14 10-19
Pac-10 Team of the Decade???: Arizona has the most wins of any Pac-10 team
in the 1990s (256) and was won five Pac-10 Conference crowns and tied for
one other... UCLA is second with four conference titles this decade...
Arizona's winning percentage of .793 in the 1990s is the third-best in the
country, trailing only Kansas (.827) and Kentucky (.817)... For conference
games only, Arizona record of 140-40 in the best in the league, with UCLA
at No. 2 with a 134-47 mark... The Cats have been to the NCAA Tournament
each year this decade and won it all in 1997... There have been 18
All-Pac-10 first team selections from Arizona and four Pac-10 Players of
the Year... Arizona has not recorded a double-digit loss total since
1986-87... The Wildcats' seven All-Americans during the 1990s trails only
Duke's 10... UA and North Carolina are tied for second-most All-Americans
in the 1990s.
Where Are You From?: California is the state that can claim the most
members of this year's Wildcats, as five players are from "The Golden State
" (Rick Anderson, Gilbert Arenas, Ruben Douglas, Lamont Frazier and Luke
Walton)... There are three from Arizona (John Ash, Richard Jefferson &
Michael Schwertley) and two from Indiana (Jason Gardner, Luke Recker)...
The rest of the roster contains six players from different states and
countries, as the case is with Robertas Javtokas, who is from Siauliai,
Lithuania... His city is pronounced SHAW-lay.
The Golden Arches: This season's roster has four former McDonald's
All-Americans Jason Gardner, Richard Jefferson, Luke Recker and Loren Woods.
Notes on the 1999-2000 Season: Arizona will take the nation's
fourth-longest home winning streak into the season... The UA has won 32
consecutive home games, trailing only Murray State (42), Duke (35) and Utah
(35)... The Cats have won 172 of their past 182 home games... This will be
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... Look for The Sporting
News to run a story that deals with the influx of transfers in college
basketball a majority of the piece will deal with the Arizona basketball
program and the success it has had with transfers... A cover photo of Lute
Olson and Loren Woods was taken earlier this week... Michael Wright's
jersey will appear in ESPN Magazine's college basketball preview, along
with other jerseys of the top players in the country... The design will be
a take-off of the Blair Witch Project movie, which portrays the nation's
"scariest players"... Please note that Jason Gardner's birthdate is Nov.
14, not Nov. 4, as the personal section in his bio states... Dating back to
the start of the 1997-98 season, Arizona has been ranked in the top-10 in
30 of 36 polling periods... Since the start of the 1997 NCAA Tournament,
the Wildcats own a record of 58-12... Overall, Arizona has been ranked in
the regular season Top-25 rankings for 199 straight weeks.
Then There Were Four: Just four players on this year's roster remain from
Arizona's 1997 NCAA Championship team Eugene Edgerson, Justin Wessel,
John Ash and Josh Pastner.
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).
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 season 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), while winning a national title, a Pac-10 Championship and they went
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 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).
Home Sweet Home: As previously mentioned, Arizona closed the year with a
32-game home winning streak in tact... The streak includes all 14 home
games last season, all 15 in 1997-98 and the final three of the 1996-97
campaign... The last loss was a 66-64 defeat to UCLA on Feb. 13, 1997...
Further, Arizona has won 43 of its last 44 home games and is 172-10 in
McKale Center since the 1987-88 season... During that time, the Cats have
lost just two non-conference games (Arkansas, 1992-93 & Syracuse,
1995-96)... Overall, Arizona has won 18 consecutive non-conference home
games... Last year was the ninth season in history that Arizona went
undefeated at home.
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... Arizona has the most wins of any Pac-10 team in
the 1990s (257)... That averages out to just under 26 wins a year this
decade... Only A.J. Bramlett and Jason Terry started every game for the
Wildcats this season... In all, nine players earned a start this season...
Dating back to the start of the 1997 NCAA Tournament, Arizona owns a record
of 58-12.
Shooting Sets the Tone: Since the 1996-97 season, Arizona is 60-4 in games
when it has a better shooting percentage than its opponent... The Wildcats
were 19-1 last season, 23-2 the year before and 18-1 in 1996-97 campaign.
80s Preservation Society: In the past three years, the UA is 75-8 when it
scores 80 or more points in a game... Further, since the 1992-93 season,
Arizona is 137-15 when it scores 80 or more... The Cats were 15-2 in
1998-99, 26-3 in 1997-98 and 19-2 in 1996-97.
The Century Club: The UA has not given up 100 points in regulation since
Jan. 27, 1990, at Pittsburgh, a span of 302 games. UA lost that game 100-92.
