Staff Reports
Arizona Daily Wildcat
April 14, 1998

Tuesday's Tidbits

So much attention has been focused on Mike Bibby's departure for the NBA Draft that some people might have forgotten that UA has a women's basketball team with players who are eligible for the professional ranks too.

Case and point. A press conference will be held today in the McKale Room starting at 1 p.m. to announce the signing of Wildcat senior Adia Barnes with a professional league.

Barnes is UA's all-time leading scorer and a second-team All-America selection this year.

The forward from San Diego, Calif., is one of only three athletes in Wildcat history to break the 2,000-point mark. Sean Elliott holds the record with a total of 2,555 points and Bob Elliott scored 2,131 points during his career at Arizona.

Both Barnes and UA head coach Joan Bonvicini will be on hand for comments.

Arizona designated hitter/pitcher Rob Shabansky returned to action over the weekend and pulled off a surprisingly-rare feat. Shabansky, who had been out since injuring his elbow against Cal in late February, hit a two-run home run at UCLA on Sunday. This was the first Wildcat home run at Jackie Robinson Stadium since Diego Rico went deep in April 1995. Despite the stadium's reputation as a hitter's park, the Wildcats had gone three years without a homer. UA head coach Jerry Stitt said Shabansky, who was 5-1 on the mound before the injury, will only DH for the next couple of series, as Shabansky is only starting to throw again on a limited pitch count.

Josh Pastner found an easy way to get a date. Gain a little popularity among the fans while you play for a Division I basketball team and you can do what he did.

Pastner, though, did not cooperate with the plan of the contest.

At halftime of the annual "Lame for a Game" Thursday night at the Tucson Convention Center, the guard was called out to the three-point line by Mojo and Betsy of KRQ (93.7 FM). Also called out were about 25 random ladies who were instructed to stand in the paint.

The object: Pastner was to shoot a three-pointer. If he missed, the girl who gave her best impersonation of Dennis Rodman and got the rebound won a date with the beloved sophomore from Texas.

However, there was a problem with the situation. Although Pastner, who is also regarded as an honorary assistant coach to Lute Olson, wanted to miss, he ended up hitting three in a row. He winged it up there, threw it like a baseball and even tried his normal shot once.

After hitting the second shot that he was supposed to miss, Mojo brought out sophomore forward and non-sharp shooter Eugene Edgerson to give Josh some advice.

"Hey Josh, why don't you try shooting it a little to the left," Edgerson said.

Josh replied with, "Nah, why don't I just try my normal shot. The chances are good that I'll miss."

Well, that is what he did.

After hitting one normally, Josh took Edgerson's advice and finally missed the shot from the top of the key. The ball caromed off the rim and after a few elbows were thrown, Josh had his date.

And by the smile etched on his face, he was not unhappy about his new lady from the stands.

On Saturday, Bonvicini hosted the second annual "Girl Power" day. The event is dedicated to helping teen girls develop self-esteem by encouraging them to rise above obstacles to achieve their goals. Bonvicini was on hand the entire day, speaking to the more than 150 young women at the Boys and Girls Club of Tucson.