|
 |   |
|
EVENTS Fantasy Central Inside Game Multimedia Central Statitudes Your Turn Message Boards Email Newsletters Golf Guide Cities Work in Sports
CNNSI.com GROUP
COMMERCE |  |
Arizona's greatest backcourt yet?
Posted: Tuesday November 30, 1999 01:49 PM
By Jim Moore, Special to CNN/SI The ball went flying into the seats at Madison Square Garden. Gilbert Arenas came over to take a look, cupping his hands over his eyebrows, wondering where the rejected shot went. At the same moment, college basketball fans were wondering where he came from. The 17-year-old freshman guard not only knocked that basketball out of bounds, he led Arizona to the championship in the Preseason NIT. Arenas had 20 points, five steals and four rebounds in a 63-51 victory over Kentucky. Arenas was named MVP of the tournament. With the win, the Wildcats leaped to No. 4 in the AP poll. Last year Arenas was playing at North Hollywood High School in Southern California, averaging 33.6 points a game. Now he's lighting everyone up at the next level, drawing praise in the process. "Gilbert surprises a lot of people," said Jason Gardner, another Arizona freshman guard. "But I know how good he is. I just like working with him. He's like my little brother. That's just the relationship we have. And that just carries on the court." The last time Arizona had a pair of guards like this, their names were Miles Simon and Mike Bibby, players who drove Arizona to the 1997 NCAA championship. Given that accomplishment, what coach Lute Olson says about Arenas and Gardner leads observers to believe that the 2000 NCAA championship could be Arizona's as well. "We've had some great guards in our program, but we never had two come in the same year who can play like these two can," Olson said. "They both have great attitudes and are going to get better because they are coachable and they are going to do good things in order for us to win" "They're two of the most confident players on this team," said Luke Walton, a redshirt freshman who is Bill Walton's son. "We don't even think of them as freshmen anymore. They're two of our leaders." Arenas averaged 17.5 points in his final two games at Madison Square Garden. "This was real fun," Arenas said. "They just told me to go out and have fun. And when I have fun, that's when I can go." In the previous game, a more familiar name to Arizona watchers helped defeat Notre Dame 76-60 as Michael Wright scored 22 points, grabbed 11 rebounds and earned one sizeable compliment from the opposing coach, Matt Doherty. "Michael Wright is just a bull," Doherty said. "He's got a unique mix of physical toughness. He can take a pounding and has a soft touch. Michael Wright seems to thrive when he's in traffic and getting beat up a bitt. He's the one dishing out the punishment. He's a tough, tough player." Loren Woods, the 7-foot-1 transfer, also devastated the Irish, recording a double-double of 13 points and 10 rebounds. More impressively, he blocked a school-record-tying seven shots.
The Cardinal connectionApparently Stanford coach Mike Montgomery didn't have any holes that couldn't be filled. A tall freshman from the Seattle area hit a crucial 3-pointer with 1:35 remaining to key Stanford's 67-58 victory over then-ninth-ranked Auburn in the championship game of the Wooden Classic. Curtis Borchardt, the son of former Seattle Seahawks lineman Jon Borchardt, is a 6-11 freshman who nailed a tie-breaking three and scored 15 points overall. Another tall freshman, Jarron Collins, scored 13 points. Stanford is not only 5-0, the Cardinal has won four of its games on the road, three over ranked opponents. As a result, Stanford jumped to No. 3 in the polls. "Sure, you're surprised to be 5-0 with the caliber of competition we've played," Montgomery said. "But as long as you defend and board, you can win games." Stanford will win many this season, and Borchardt figures to have a role in all of them. He's surprisingly confident, lacking the usual hesitation that accompanies first-year players. "I missed one [3-pointer] earlier in the second half and I told myself if I was open, I wouldn't hesitate to shoot again," Borchardt said. "I don't think when I shoot, and that was the key." Stanford played without senior forward Mark Madsen, nursing a hamstring injury.
Bruins cruising earlyWhen you've got the talent, it doesn't seem to matter. Earl Watson had a sore lower back, but the UCLA point guard still had 18 points and seven assists in a 105-73 win over Iona last Saturday at Pauley Pavilion. Ray Young, who is a reserve now but could be a starter soon, had sore right thumb. But he taped it up and made 5 of 6 threes, finishing with 17 points in 17 minutes.The Bruins, by the way, moved to No. 12 in the polls, up one spot. In their opener, UCLA beat Fairfield and unveiled another future star. Freshman Jason Kapono had 16 points and seven rebounds. "What makes him unusual is his poise and composure for his age," said Bruins coach Steve Lavin.
Big comeback in BerkeleyCal won in its first game at Haas Pavilion, defeating Pacific 76-72, improving to 3-1. This is supposed to be a rebuilding year for the Bears, and 2-2 was not out of the question early on. Pacific led the Bears 26-8, 10 minutes into the game. The 18-point comeback was Cal's largest since the Bears trailed Arizona State by 20 in the first half of a 95-78 win on Feb. 10, 1994. Haas Pavilion could provide a hostile atmosphere for visiting teams this season if the first game was any indication. "It was probably the loudest I've ever heard our crowd," said coach Ben Braun. "Our fans really make this place special. With this crowd behind us, it really creates an intimidating factor for our opponents, and it's very uplifting for our players."
Worth notingOregon State proved that it will be difficult to score against this season, snuffing Clemson 53-35 on Sunday in the third-place game of the SoCon Holiday Hoops Tournament at Greenville, S.C. Clemson shot 29 percent and was held to its lowest point total since a 34-33 loss to South Carolina in the 1970 ACC Tournament. ... USC is 2-3 after losing to North Carolina in the Maui Tournament and Duke in the John Wooden Classic. "I don't think we are where we want to be as far as our record and the way we lost these games," said Trojans center Brian Scalabrine. "We're going to have to heal some of our wounds. Before going into the Pac-10, we've got to really find out what we can do. Without a big win in our preseason, we're going to have to do some damage in the Pac-10 to get a big-time [NCAA] Tournament bid. It's not like a fifth-place finish will get us in now. We have to finish in the top three or four."Jim Moore covers the Pac-10 for the Seattle Post-Intelligencier. Check back Dec. 14 for his latest CNN/SI Insider.
| ||||||||||||||
