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UA men's basketball notes: On to Anaheim

Photo
KEVIN KLAUS/Arizona Daily Wildcat
Arizona's Luke Walton and Rick Anderson attempt to rebound a missed shot over Gonzaga's Blake Stepp. Arizona defeated Gonzaga 96-95 in double overtime during the second round of the NCAA tournament in Salt Lake City, Sunday, March 22, 2003.
By Brian Penso
Arizona Daily Wildcat
Saturday March 22, 2003

SALT LAKE CITY - The Wildcats didn't have much time to enjoy their 96-95 double overtime victory over Gonzaga as they had to leave immediately and catch a flight back to Tucson.

The West's No. 1 seed Arizona will have Sunday off and it will return to practice on Monday to prepare for No. 5 seed Notre Dame.

The Wildcats will practice on Tuesday before leaving for Anaheim, Calif., the site of the West Regional finals.


Before UA's game with Gonzaga, senior point guard Jason Gardner was in the midst of one of the biggest shooting slumps in his four-year career.

Coming into the game, Gardner was 0-for-17 from behind the arc in his last two games.

Prior to Saturday's game, Gardner asked the ball boy to give him one last three-point shot and he sank it. He wasted no time and hit a three pointer in the first minute of the game.

On the first UA possession the steak ended. He hit the first shot of the game, a 3-pointer. Gardner went on to score 22 points on the night to end his two game slump.

Sophomore Salim Stoudamire may have hit the game winning shot, but it was Gardner, who played clutch in regulation to allow the Wildcats a chance to win the game in double overtime.

Gardner hit three out of four free throws in the final 30 seconds of regulation.

Gardner's last made free throw extended the UA lead to two with 13 seconds to go.

Bulldog guard Tony Skinner tipped in the game-tying basket at the end of regulation and if it wasn't for Gardner's free throw, the Wildcats season would have been over.


Arizona's five starters, Channing Frye, Rick Anderson, Luke Walton, Stoudamire and Gardner each played a minimum of 40 minutes.

The entire UA bench only played a combined 33 minutes.

"It's all up here," said Anderson pointing to his head. "If you think you are tired you will be tired. You just have to tell your self you are not tired. You have to play through it and be a warrior."

Gonzaga guard Tony Skinner played the entire 50 minutes and fellow guard Blake Stepp played 47 minutes.

"Skinner played all 50 minutes," Olson said. "All five of our starters played 40 minutes·that was not a game for guys who were not ready to lay it out on the floor."


Stoudamire bumped knees with one of the Gonzaga players during the second half sending a shooting pain through his knee.

Stoudamire had been suffering from tendonitis in both knees, and that didn't help the cause any.

"I'm hurting right now," said Stoudamire in the locker room after the game with two huge icepacks on his knees.


After the final horn went off, UA's cheerleaders came onto the court and waved a giant Arizona banner on the floor in celebration.

This led to an onslaught of boos from the crowd, which heavily favored the underdog Bulldogs.

The boos immediately turned into cheers when the Gonzaga players and coaches turned to the crowd and all clapped in their honor.

"Our fans are awesome," Gonzaga junior guard Blake Stepp said. " They travel with us throughout our tournaments. They need to be awarded too."

The difference between Gonzaga and Arizona fans was the support that it received from its fellow students.

Gonzaga had an entire section of students, which coordinated cheers with the Gonzaga band and cheer team.

There may have been a few UA students, but not enough to be noticed.


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