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Forecasters could have seen an Arizona-Duke final, but not the way it came about.
By BRIAN LANDMAN
© St. Petersburg Times, published April 2, 2001
MINNEAPOLIS -- Even before coaches first rolled out the racks of basketballs for the start of practice in October, many already had tabbed which two teams should reach the NCAA Tournament finale:
Arizona and Duke.
The pundits fell in line, too. The Wildcats and Blue Devils entered the season No. 1 and No. 2, respectively, in the AP and ESPN/USA Today polls. Now months later, here we are at Championship Monday and here they are:
Arizona and Duke.
"I think it's a great way for another outstanding college basketball season to end," Wildcats coach Lute Olson said Sunday.
But considering the road that the top-ranked Blue Devils and the No. 5-ranked Wildcats traveled to reach the Metrodome, this matchup only could be called "expected" in hindsight.
For despite the preseason accolades, neither Arizona nor Duke were juggernauts, akin to Duke and Connecticut as the preseason No. 1 and No. 2 teams in 1999, who battled in a classic title game at Tropicana Field. Arizona and Duke each faced travails that could have derailed this matchup.
Arizona senior center Loren Woods was suspended for the first six games for an NCAA violation and junior forward Richard Jefferson had to sit out one. Even with both back in the lineup, the team limped to a 7-4 record, including a home loss to Mississippi State in its December holiday tournament.
"We definitely had some historical moments," Woods said.
Days later, Olson's wife, Bobbi, died from ovarian cancer. Olson left the team for two weeks and the players had several meetings to air differences in hopes of ending a free fall. The Wildcats dedicated the season to the memory of Bobbi Olson, whom the players refer to as their "guardian angel" and the reason they are about to play on the grandest of stages.
"A lot of media was talking about how our team was not performing, about how our team was not doing this or that. It really didn't matter to us at that point," said Jefferson, who spoke on behalf of the team at Mrs. Olson's funeral. "I think now we have such a calm about us ... because we've been through everything you could possibly go through."
That perspective also helped them put aside egos and come together. Since Olson returned on Jan. 15, the Wildcats have won 18 of 20. That includes wins against two top-seeded teams in the NCAA Tournament, Illinois in the Midwest Region final and defending national champion Michigan State in Saturday's national semifinal.
"It's really been a work in progress," Olson said.
The Blue Devils are led by senior forward Shane Battier, the consensus national player of the year, and fellow first-team All-American point guard Jason Williams, and never fell below No. 4 in the AP poll. But they looked vulnerable to an early NCAA exit. Especially when sophomore center Carlos Boozer broke a bone in his right foot in their regular-season home finale.
"It really brought our team that much closer together," Williams said. "We had to rely on each other more."
Forced to use more players than before -- former Tampa Prep standout Casey Sanders, Reggie Love, a football player, and Matt Christensen serving as a center-by-committee -- the Blue Devils beat North Carolina in Chapel Hill, won the ACC Tournament , then won two NCAA games without Boozer.
"I think we're peaking at the right time," Battier said. "That's different from my first three years when I felt we had peaked in February."
Now Boozer's back and had his best game Saturday against Maryland to set up the matchup folks anticipated all along:
Arizona and Duke.
"A lot of times people predict things that are going to happen and they don't even come close," Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski said. "This year, those preseason magazines and whatever, turned out that this is the way it is."
"There's no question about Arizona's talent," Battier said. "I think from top to bottom they're the most talented team in the country. It is fitting that the two best teams are meeting to play for the national championship. That's the way it should be. The true champions should have to beat the best teams."
RECORDS: Duke 34-4, Arizona 28-7.
COACHES: Duke -- Mike Krzyzewski (532-164, 21st season; 605-223 overall). Arizona -- Lute Olson (449-134, 18th season; 641-226).
KEY PLAYERS: Duke -- Jason Williams, PG/G, 6-2 So. (21.7 ppg, 6.1 apg, 3.3 rpg); Shane Battier, F, 6-8 Sr. (20.0 ppg, 7.2 rpg, 2.3 bpg, 2.2 spg); Mike Dunleavy, F/G, 6-8 So. (12.4 ppg, 5.8 rpg). Arizona -- Gilbert Arenas, G, 6-3 So. (16.3 ppg, 3.6 rpg); Michael Wright, F, 6-7 Jr. (15.7 ppg, 7.7 rpg); Loren Woods, C, 7-1 Sr. (12.9 ppg, 6.4 rpg, 2.9 bpg).
SERIES HISTORY: Each has won three times, with the Blue Devils winning the most recent meeting 95-87 in the Maui Invitational championship game Nov. 28, 1997.
HOW THEY GOT HERE: Duke, top seed in the East, beat No. 16 Monmouth 95-52, No. 9 Missouri 94-81, No. 4 UCLA 76-63, No. 6 Southern California 79-69 and No. 3 and West Region champ Maryland 95-84. Arizona, No. 2 seed in the Midwest, beat No. 15 E. Illinois 101-76, No. 10 Butler 73-52, No. 3 Mississippi 66-56, No. 1 Illinois 87-81 and No. 1 and South Region champ Michigan State 80-61.
WHAT DUKE HAS TO DO: The Blue Devils, who have shattered the single-season NCAA record for three-pointers (398), were uncharacteristically off the mark against Maryland. They hit 7 of 27. Against a team that wants to push the pace like Arizona, the Blue Devils could shoot as many as 40 threes and, if they do, they better hit a healthier percentage. Watch the long reboundS. Duke needs to get them or Arizona will be off on a break.
WHAT ARIZONA HAS TO DO: The Wildcats have to continue to play the kind of defense they showed against Michigan State when they held guards Charlie Bell and Jason Richardson to a combined 3-of-21 from the floor, 1-of-10 from three-point range. Duke has more shooters, but they can gamble with a shot-blocker like Loren Woods. He must be a force at both ends. -- Compiled by Brian Landman.