By Maxx Wolfson
Arizona Daily Wildcat
Saturday February 22, 2003
TEMPE - Last season the Wildcats came to Tempe and lost by 20.
This year, it was a little payback.
No. 1 Arizona (21-2, 13-1) held ASU (17-8, 9-5) without a field for the first 5:35 of the second half in a 92-72 victory in Wells Fargo Arena Saturday night.
It was a little of Channing Frye early and a lot of Luke Walton and Rick Anderson late offensively as the three of them all finished with a double-double.
"I have never had a team with three guys who had double-double in the same night before, in the whole front line," UA head coach Lute Olson said.
Frye, playing in front of his hometown fans, had 17 points in the first half and limited ASU's Ike Diogu to only 8.
"People say that I'm soft and I can't bang, but I tried to go out and prove that I'm a force inside," said Frye who finished with 23 points, 10 rebounds and four blocks. "Just as Kobe says, 'the shots are just going in.'"
Walton, who said he is feeling the best he has all season, finished with a season-high 23 points, 10 rebounds and 4 assists. Fellow senior Anderson finished with 19 points and a game-high 12 rebounds.
"It was fun out there," Anderson said.
UA senior point guard Jason Gardner played pass first, shoot second as he let the offense run through him as he took only five shots but dished out 10 assists.
"Jason was as critical to us as anyone on the floor," Olson said.
Sun Devil Tommy Smith led the way for the home team with 18 points.
The Wildcats opened the game with a 1-3-1 defense trying to limit the touches to Diogu. But Jamal Hill and Smith kept the game close in the first half with Hill on the perimeter and Smith inside.
But as good as they were in the first half, the Sun Devils couldn't continue their hot shooting in the second as they were held to 32.4 percent from the field."