ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1997, Roanoke Times
DATE: Wednesday, April 2, 1997 TAG: 9704020048
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B-1 EDITION: METRO
DATELINE: INDIANAPOLIS
SOURCE: JACK BOGACZYK THE ROANOKE TIMES
An NCAA Tournament full of surprises ended that way, too, as Arizona took its first title.|
Coppin State felt it for a day. Chattanooga more than that.
After Arizona's third 1-upmanship of the 59th NCAA Tournament on Monday night, the Final Four's best player tried to put his surprising experience into words.
``There's nothing like how this feels,'' said Miles Simon, whose guile, quickness and 30 points helped the Wildcats to their first NCAA crown. ``When I was shooting my last free throws, I had chills running through my body.''
It wasn't because of the breezy atmosphere under the teflon bubble of the RCA Dome. It was because Simon had just played the game of his life in the game of his life.
And what a game it was.
``At the end, I just knelt down on the ball,'' Simon said. ``It was such a war.''
Some guys come up huge on the only Monday night of March Madness. Danny Manning had 31 points and 18 rebounds to lift underdog Kansas over Oklahoma in 1988. Bill Walton was 21-for-22 for UCLA against Memphis State in '73. Jack Givens goosed Kentucky to the '78 crown with 41 points against Duke.
Add Simon to the list.
Arizona's 84-79 overtime victory - it was closer than that, really - over 1996 champ Kentucky was something of a redemption as well as a coronation. The winning Wildcats' reputation had been rooted mostly in first-round upset losses earlier in the '90s.
By eliminating top-ranked Kansas and then two other No.1 seeds in North Carolina and Kentucky, coach Lute Olson's program can look in the mirror and see a facelift. So can the Pacific 10 Conference.
In NCAA history, the Pacific rims haven't been known for anything startling except UCLA's string of seven straight titles, nine in 10 years and 11 in 13.
The Pac-10 had its most successful NCAA, compiling a 13-4 record. Of the five entrants, only Southern Cal lost before the Sweet Sixteen. Arizona was 11-7 and fifth in the league. .
Arizona was a No.4 seed because of its strength of schedule. But the Wildcats had the perfect team to pull off those bracket-busting victories because of quickness at all five spots on the floor.
Hard to believe these were the same 'Cats who struggled to beat South Alabama and the College of Charleston in the first two rounds, or the confused club that wasted a 10-point lead with 3:40 left in regulation in the Southeast Regional final against Providence before winning in overtime.
Olson had to re-tool his lineup twice when his only returning starter from last year, Simon, was academically ineligible for the first 11 games.
Without a senior in his eight-man rotation, Olson thought his best shot at a fourth Final Four trip (including one at Iowa) would be next season.
``I don't think people knew, until the tournament, how good the Pac-10 was,'' said Kentucky coach Rick Pitino. ``It was better than anticipated, and maybe that throws people off a little about Arizona.''
Arizona (25-9) also didn't blink at Kentucky's pressure defense, although Pitino backed off the heat considerably because he feared being beaten by quick big men behind the traps. Arizona's exceptional guard play was the reason.
``We thought we had a chance next year, but not this year,'' said freshman guard Mike Bibby, the son of three-time NCAA titlist and former UCLA guard Henry Bibby. ``We approached it like we had nothing to lose.''
The Wildcats didn't. They entered the Final Four as the worst among the semifinals quartet at the free-throw line, then made a championship-game record 34-of-41, including a perfect 10 in OT, to beat the other Wildcats.
Kentucky tried, starting with Pitino and his aides watching parts of 22 Arizona game tapes until 4:45 a.m. the night-morning after beating Minnesota. What Pitino saw was quickness he hadn't seen during the season.
For Kentucky (35-5), it was the same disappointment as Ohio State in 1961, Georgetown in '85 and Arkansas in '95. The Southeastern Conference champs just couldn't repeat.
UK launched an NCAA championship-record 30 3-pointers (making 10), but lost because it couldn't be stifling defensively.
``I'm not even a bit disappointed,'' Pitino said of a team with little resemblance to the veteran talent that won the 1996 title. ``I'm proud of our guys, the way they battled the whole night and all season.
``We don't have a first-place trophy, but I'm just as proud of this team as I was last year's team, maybe even more. It was a terrific ride ... And I want to congratulate Lute. I know what it is to win a championship. It's a lifelong dream, and he's a man who has worked hard and earned this.''
Olson never expected such success from his 14th Arizona team. Five others have won more games, and he's had clubs with more talent, more size.
``It's been a fun year,'' Olson said. ``There were times when you'd see me covering my eyes on the bench in terms of what we did during parts of games, but it's been a satisfying year.
``I don't recall a team that came into a year with so many question marks that could get as far as this one did.''
If Simon sticks to his decision to play his senior season, teaming with Bibby, the Wildcats could be next year's Kentucky, trying to repeat in the Alamodome.
``Winning is kind of like a dream,'' Olson said.
Simon said so, too.
LENGTH: Long : 103 lines ILLUSTRATION: PHOTO: ASSOCIATED PRESS. Miles Simon holds up Arizona'sby CNBchampionship trophy and Mike Bibby greets fans as the Wildcats
returned to Tucson, Ariz., Tuesday. More than 45,000 fans attended a
rally at Arizona Stadium. color.