Jeff Lund

"We are at our best when people expect the least."

Those were the words of associate head basketball coach Jim Rosborough last season prior to the men's basketball team's first tip-off in New York against Maryland.

As if he knew something we all didn't, Rosborough seemed to have a feeling.

This season, everyone in Tucson has a feeling.

There is no surprise.

There will be no doubts, no question marks and definitely no room for error.

This is what comes with being the No. 1 team in the country.

A huge bull's-eye, and a spot on the cover of Sports Illustrated for senior forward Luke Walton.

In 2000-2001, there was a similar feeling and expectation. The Wildcats were loaded with the likes of Richard Jefferson, Loren Woods and Gilbert Arenas öö all NBA starters now for their respective teams.

But what will really become of this year's squad? There is no question that anything less than a National Championship will be a disappointment.

Because when it comes down to it, success is measured in Final Fours, if not championship banners and there are plenty of other teams that feel they have a shot at cutting down the nets in New Orleans.

But for Arizona to fulfill these expectations, three things must happen, in my opinion.

1. Health. As demonstrated by the UA football team öö a team I believed and still think could have won seven games this season if everyone were healthy. Yes, Arizona is deep, but losing seniors Luke Walton or Jason Gardner would be devastating.

In past years, the team has been able to stay relatively healthy. With Walton dislocating his pinkie, then hurting his ankle öö has the SI jinx started already? öö and sophomore guard Salim Stoudamire's ankle acting up, that could be a bad omen.

Just cross your damn fingers.

2. The third senior. Rick Anderson will play a key role in the team's success. He disappeared at times for the Wildcats last season, which really hurt the young team. After clutch performances in the Coaches vs. Cancer IKON Classic at the beginning of last season, Anderson tapered off, and was overshadowed by pretty much everyone else on the team. He averaged just over 12 points per game last season, but was notorious for starting games slowly, and Olson even joked about having Anderson play for 20 minutes prior to the game so that when tip-off came, Anderson would be ready.

Anderson is a prolific three-point shooter, and has a lot of experience. If he can prove he can be a consistent clutch shooter, he will be able to take some of the pressure off Gardner and the freshmen, much like Kansas senior Jeff Boschee provided for the Jayhawks last season. When the All-Americans were covered, Boschee licked his lips and often delivered three-point daggers. Point is, in order for Arizona to realize its potential, all five players must be capable of scoring on each and every possession.

In the Sweet 16 loss against Oklahoma last year, Anderson, along with the rest of the Wildcat front-court, was brutalized by the Sooners inside; and when shots didn't fall for Gardner or Stoudamire and Walton was smothered, Arizona had no chance.

And if the injury bug becomes a problem, I am sure Olson would much rather depend on a seasoned veteran (Anderson) rather than have a freshman take the final shot.

3. The freshmen. Olson is the best in the business at accelerating his freshmen's learning curve. Look at Khalid Reeves, Mike Bibby, Gilbert Arenas, Stoudamire, the list goes on. All of these players became great players as freshmen and sophomores, and all made it to the NBA, except of course for Stoudamire who is currently a sophomore.

If Olson can get this group of freshmen to understand the offensive and defensive schemes, the Wildcats will be able to utilize their depth and athleticism. If they have trouble filling the lanes and moving on offense as Olson pointed out after the Red-Blue game, the versatility of the team will be limited. Last season Arizona won many games in a not so exciting fashion. The games were close but the Wildcats came away winners by doing just enough to win, and taking other teams out of their games. With this year's squad, Olson has the ability to run over teams and let junior Jason Ranne pad his career stats.

It's 10 days until tip-off against Western Kentucky, and before you know it, it will be the end of March.

There is no question about the talent, ability and expectations; the only question is how long the season will last.