Hansen's Sunday Notebook: Fans critical of Sean Miller's tournament performance doubted Lute, too
- Updated
Star sports columnist Greg Hansen offers his opinion on recent sports news.
In the first 10 years of his Arizona career, before the NCAA placed charter jets on standby to whisk the losers home 90 minutes after an exit loss,ย Lute Olsonย would invite the newspaper guys to his hotel suite a day after the game.
Olson would put the season in context, good or bad, and invariably let off some steam.
Once, after losing a first-round game to East Tennessee State in Atlanta, he bellowed that those questioning his coaching ability should first โshow me their rรฉsumรฉ.โ
A year later, after another first-round loss, to Santa Clara, Olson was skewered on a Tucson sports-talk radio program so roundly that assistant coach Jim Rosboroughย ย encouraged Olson to phone in and defend himself.
He defiantly remained silent. Did not UA fans appreciate six Pac-10 championships in eight years, two seasons ranked No. 1, a Final Four appearance and a collection of victories over Duke, Syracuse, North Carolina and Michigan?
His record would speak. Olson would not apologize.
A year later, Arizona went to another Final Four. Olson ceased the post-NCAA Tournament meetings in his suite. Thereafter, the critics seemed to get it: Getting through the minefield of March would not always lead to a happy ending.
Now, 20 years later, the process is repeating. Arizona lost in the Sweet 16 and the chorus of unhappy fans swelled.
Sean Millerย is a micromanager, said one. Miller doesnโt know how to beat a zone defense, said another. March has become Arizonaโs personal Groundhog Day, with one deflating exit after another.
Some suggest Miller should hire better assistant coaches. Change his offense. Learn how to manage time-outs.
Fans are so unhappy that there wonโt be an empty seat when the Wildcats stage their Red and Blue Scrimmage in October.
Miller took the blame late Thursday night in San Jose. โItโs on me,โ he said. Thatโs enough. Move on. Miller is 48. When Olson was 48, Arizona fired head coachย Fred Snowdenย and had difficulty filling 5,000 seats at McKale Center.
Millerโs best basketball is surely ahead, in 2018 and 2021 and down the line.
I thought the best perspective of Arizonaโs basketball season came not from Millerโs post-game concession, but by watching his father,ย John Miller, during the loss to Xavier.
John Miller is 73. He coached four state championship teams in Pennsylvania high school basketball, won more than 600 games, and has since watched his sons, Sean andย Archieย โ the younger Miller was named Indianaโs new head coach on Saturday โ win a combined 479 college games and reach a cumulative 14 NCAA tournaments.
He knows how it goes.
John Miller sat with Archie three rows behind Arizonaโs bench at the SAP Center. I couldnโt help but watch their reaction as the game seemed to be won, then lost.
Neither changed expression. John Miller didnโt pump a fist, yell at the refs or grimace in horror. He folded his arms across his chest, remained in his seat and took it in.
There will be another season. Arizona has never recruited at a higher level than now, even in the Olson years. There is not a crack in the foundation of UA basketball.
Losing to Xavier was neither a calamity nor a cue to wonder if Sean Miller has lost it. It was one bad night in the gym after months of good ones.
Only a handful of Tucson athletes have become notable Arizona State Sun Devils, none more than Tucson High and UA gradย Billy Mann, who died last week in Phoenix at 93. For 15ย years ASUโs golf coach, and also a basketball assistant coach underย Ned Wulk, Mann graduated from Tucson High in 1943 and earned letters in football, basketball and baseball. He played a season of football at Arizona before being drafted into the Army, where he awarded bronze star for action with the 7thย Infantry (tank corps).
After the war, Mann played four seasons of basketball for coachย Fred Enkeย and was an infielder on the baseball team. From 1946-49, Mann played basketball for Arizona as it won 80 games and four straight Border Conference titles and played in the first postseason game in school history. He was a second-team All-Border Conference pick in 1948.
After graduating from Arizona, he coached basketball at two Phoenix high schools, then replaced former Wildcats teammate and future UA head basketball coachย Bruce Larsonย as head coach at Weber State in 1959.
The only other Tucsonan/Arizona Wildcat standout who in later years became a Sun Devils coach was All-America tennis playerย Bill Lenoirย of Tucson High.
Mann is not yet a member of the Pima County Sports Hall of Fame, a notable oversight. That should be corrected soon.
- Greg Hansen Arizona Daily Star
- Updated
One day last April, after Salpointe Catholic guardย Cameron Millerย played in a weekend AAU showcase, he was offered seven scholarships in one day.
Division II and Division III schools from Maine, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, Illinois, Ohio and Indiana offered. All sorts of schools, including Portland State, Dixie State, Santa Clara, Denver and MIT called.
Sean Millerโs son was a hot property not because of his bloodlines, but because of his basketball IQ and steely approach to the game. A few weeks ago, Miller helped Salpointe reach the Class 4A state championship game.
It now seems unlikely heโll sign with some faraway Division II school. Instead, his father last week told radio hostย Jim Romeย that Cameron is likely to join the Arizona organization, either as a walk-on or in another role on the staff.
The Wildcats can always use another winner.
- Greg Hansen Arizona Daily Star
- Updated
Before Central Michigan ADย Dave Heekeย takes office at Arizona next week, heโll transition from one top softball program to another. The Chippewas have gone 17-1 in a recent streak, through Friday, and are favorites to win the Mid-American Conference. CMUโs leading player is probably Tucsonanย Allison Curtis, who played at Salpointe. Curtis was an All-MAC outfielder as a freshman and was batting .397 through Fridayโs games.ย
- Greg Hansen Arizona Daily Star
- Updated
Sahuaro High gradย Alex Verdugoย hit .357 for Team Mexico in the World Baseball Classic, going 5 for 14 as a starting center fielder, batting second in Mexicoโs lineup. Back in the L.A. Dodgersโ spring training camp, Verdugo is hitting .231ย in nineย games and is expected to start the season at the Dodgersโ Triple-A club in Oklahoma City.ย
- Greg Hansen Arizona Daily Star
- Updated
Tucson basketball refereeย Bob Scofieldย advanced to the Sweet 16, working Fridayโs Washington-Mississippi State womenโs game. Scofield mostly works Pac-12 games in the regular season, and missed two weeks last month with a calf injury. This is his eighth straight Sweet 16 and 19th NCAA Tournament. One of his colleagues, ex-UA basketball playerย Brenda Pantoja, also advanced to the womenโs Sweet 16, calling Fridayโs Baylor-Louisville game. NCAA basketball referees advance on a merit system, as evaluated by the NCAA game to game.ย
- Greg Hansen Arizona Daily Star
- Updated
Salpointe and Pima College gradย Ryan Ramsowerย has started seven games for Washington Stateโs baseball team, hitting .207. Ramsower, a second baseman, will face Arizona when the Wildcats play at WSU April 7-9.
- Greg Hansen Arizona Daily Star
- Updated
The Pima College menโs basketball season ended with 22 victories, including one in the NJCAA Division II national finals in Illinois last week. It was the most victories in a season since 1991.ย Brian Peabodyโs team could be even better nextย year. He has recruited well. But one of the better stories of PCCโs Region I championship team was the play of Tucson High gradย Keeganย Biggersย at the NJCAAs. In the opening victory over Waubonsee College, Biggers came off the bench toย score on two offensive rebound putbacks, helping the Aztecs lead 35-24. Biggers finished with four points and eight rebounds in just seven minutes. After the game, as Peabody commended his club, he didnโt immediately see Biggers, who was standing behind Peabody. โI thought he might be out signing autographs,โ said Peabody. โWe couldnโt have won without him.โย
- Greg Hansen Arizona Daily Star
- Updated
The UA athletic administration acted quickly in attempt to lend more visibility toย Rich Rodriguezโs spring football camp. Initially, fans were invited only to an early-March, Thursday-night scrimmage. Crickets. Since then, the school developed a โSpring Showcase Series,โ which continues with a Friday scrimmage at 6 p.m., and a meet-and-greet day next month.ย
- Greg Hansen Arizona Daily Star
- Updated
Ex-NFL receiverย Mike Thomas, who caught more passes than anyone in Arizona history, was arrested in Sandy Springs, Georgia, last week after he allegedly attacked his fiancรฉe in a home in which a childโs birthday party was taking place downstairs. According to an Atlanta TV station, the 29-year-old Thomas was charged with aggravated assault, possession of a firearm in the commission of a felony and third-degree child abuse.ย
- Greg Hansen Arizona Daily Star
- Updated
The Rillito Race Track posted its highest betting handle ever, a record $1.7 million, in the six-week meet that ended a week ago. The total includes simulcast betting at parlors worldwide. According toย Jaye Wells, president of the Rillito Park Foundation, a five-year lease extension from the county, helped to secureย OTB contracts with other gambling sites around the world.ย
- Greg Hansen Arizona Daily Star
- Updated
Arizona senior pitcherย Danielle OโTooleโs no-hitter Friday night against No. 6 Washington was the 90th in UA history. How good is that? Arizona Stateโs pitchers have 35 no-hitters in history and Washington has 34. The Wildcats will play at doubleheader against Grand Canyon on Wednesday afternoon-evening at Hillenbrand Stadium and itโll be old home week for four Antelopes, including assistant coachย Kelsey Rodriguez, who in 2014 as a Wildcat standout was the Pac-12 Scholar-Athlete of the Year. The Grand Canyon starting lineup includes Ironwood Ridgeย gradย Loriannย Olson, who is hitting .347, and CDOโsย Niki Gonzalez, who is hitting .324 for a 25-9 team that is favored to win the WAC title.ย
- Greg Hansen Arizona Daily Star
- Updated
Sabino High sophomoreย Maddie Mariani, who has committed to compete for Michigan as a college gymnast, is on an impressive streak. She won the Arizona State championships last week in Phoenix, not only winning the all-around championship, her fifth in succession, but also won the vault, beam and floor exercise competitions. Over a six-week period, Mariani also won the Pikes Peak Challenge in Colorado, the Valley of the Sun meet in Scottsdale and the Long Beach Open.ย
I have been as guilty as anyone in labeling Xavier as something less than an elite basketball school, but much like Wichita State, I now understand that the Musketeers and Shockers are Top 25 programs with a bite.
Xavierโs recruiting Class of 2014 is the reason it beat Arizona last week. In retrospect, it was a Top 10 or 15 class.
The Musketeersโ top player,ย Trevon Bluiettย was a four-star recruit who was offered scholarships by Arizona, Florida and Louisville, and took a recruiting visit to UCLA. Arizona, however, tookย Stanley Johnson, so it didnโt need Bluiett.
Looking back, Arizona wouldโve been better off taking Bluiett than the one-year Johnson, who averaged 13.8ย points and had little impact in the 2015 postseason. A three-year player like Bluiett now looks like a better choice.
Xavier wing manย J.P. Macura, a four-star prospect who gave Arizona a lot of trouble, was offered scholarships by Florida State, Purdue and Butler. And the Xavier big man who sunk Arizona with a last-minute layup,ย Sean OโMara, turned down NCAA teams Virginia, Iowa State and Dayton to become a Musketeer.
The teams like Xavier who sign three- and four-star recruits and keep them for longer periods than schools like Arizona and UCLA, now swing a big stick in March.
Arizona has the bruises to prove it.
- Updated
Star columnist Greg Hansen counts down the year's best Southern Arizona sports figures.
In the first 10 years of his Arizona career, before the NCAA placed charter jets on standby to whisk the losers home 90 minutes after an exit loss,ย Lute Olsonย would invite the newspaper guys to his hotel suite a day after the game.
Olson would put the season in context, good or bad, and invariably let off some steam.
Once, after losing a first-round game to East Tennessee State in Atlanta, he bellowed that those questioning his coaching ability should first โshow me their rรฉsumรฉ.โ
A year later, after another first-round loss, to Santa Clara, Olson was skewered on a Tucson sports-talk radio program so roundly that assistant coach Jim Rosboroughย ย encouraged Olson to phone in and defend himself.
He defiantly remained silent. Did not UA fans appreciate six Pac-10 championships in eight years, two seasons ranked No. 1, a Final Four appearance and a collection of victories over Duke, Syracuse, North Carolina and Michigan?
His record would speak. Olson would not apologize.
A year later, Arizona went to another Final Four. Olson ceased the post-NCAA Tournament meetings in his suite. Thereafter, the critics seemed to get it: Getting through the minefield of March would not always lead to a happy ending.
Now, 20 years later, the process is repeating. Arizona lost in the Sweet 16 and the chorus of unhappy fans swelled.
Sean Millerย is a micromanager, said one. Miller doesnโt know how to beat a zone defense, said another. March has become Arizonaโs personal Groundhog Day, with one deflating exit after another.
Some suggest Miller should hire better assistant coaches. Change his offense. Learn how to manage time-outs.
Fans are so unhappy that there wonโt be an empty seat when the Wildcats stage their Red and Blue Scrimmage in October.
Miller took the blame late Thursday night in San Jose. โItโs on me,โ he said. Thatโs enough. Move on. Miller is 48. When Olson was 48, Arizona fired head coachย Fred Snowdenย and had difficulty filling 5,000 seats at McKale Center.
Millerโs best basketball is surely ahead, in 2018 and 2021 and down the line.
I thought the best perspective of Arizonaโs basketball season came not from Millerโs post-game concession, but by watching his father,ย John Miller, during the loss to Xavier.
John Miller is 73. He coached four state championship teams in Pennsylvania high school basketball, won more than 600 games, and has since watched his sons, Sean andย Archieย โ the younger Miller was named Indianaโs new head coach on Saturday โ win a combined 479 college games and reach a cumulative 14 NCAA tournaments.
He knows how it goes.
John Miller sat with Archie three rows behind Arizonaโs bench at the SAP Center. I couldnโt help but watch their reaction as the game seemed to be won, then lost.
Neither changed expression. John Miller didnโt pump a fist, yell at the refs or grimace in horror. He folded his arms across his chest, remained in his seat and took it in.
There will be another season. Arizona has never recruited at a higher level than now, even in the Olson years. There is not a crack in the foundation of UA basketball.
Losing to Xavier was neither a calamity nor a cue to wonder if Sean Miller has lost it. It was one bad night in the gym after months of good ones.
Only a handful of Tucson athletes have become notable Arizona State Sun Devils, none more than Tucson High and UA gradย Billy Mann, who died last week in Phoenix at 93. For 15ย years ASUโs golf coach, and also a basketball assistant coach underย Ned Wulk, Mann graduated from Tucson High in 1943 and earned letters in football, basketball and baseball. He played a season of football at Arizona before being drafted into the Army, where he awarded bronze star for action with the 7thย Infantry (tank corps).
After the war, Mann played four seasons of basketball for coachย Fred Enkeย and was an infielder on the baseball team. From 1946-49, Mann played basketball for Arizona as it won 80 games and four straight Border Conference titles and played in the first postseason game in school history. He was a second-team All-Border Conference pick in 1948.
After graduating from Arizona, he coached basketball at two Phoenix high schools, then replaced former Wildcats teammate and future UA head basketball coachย Bruce Larsonย as head coach at Weber State in 1959.
The only other Tucsonan/Arizona Wildcat standout who in later years became a Sun Devils coach was All-America tennis playerย Bill Lenoirย of Tucson High.
Mann is not yet a member of the Pima County Sports Hall of Fame, a notable oversight. That should be corrected soon.
One day last April, after Salpointe Catholic guardย Cameron Millerย played in a weekend AAU showcase, he was offered seven scholarships in one day.
Division II and Division III schools from Maine, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, Illinois, Ohio and Indiana offered. All sorts of schools, including Portland State, Dixie State, Santa Clara, Denver and MIT called.
Sean Millerโs son was a hot property not because of his bloodlines, but because of his basketball IQ and steely approach to the game. A few weeks ago, Miller helped Salpointe reach the Class 4A state championship game.
It now seems unlikely heโll sign with some faraway Division II school. Instead, his father last week told radio hostย Jim Romeย that Cameron is likely to join the Arizona organization, either as a walk-on or in another role on the staff.
The Wildcats can always use another winner.
Before Central Michigan ADย Dave Heekeย takes office at Arizona next week, heโll transition from one top softball program to another. The Chippewas have gone 17-1 in a recent streak, through Friday, and are favorites to win the Mid-American Conference. CMUโs leading player is probably Tucsonanย Allison Curtis, who played at Salpointe. Curtis was an All-MAC outfielder as a freshman and was batting .397 through Fridayโs games.ย
Sahuaro High gradย Alex Verdugoย hit .357 for Team Mexico in the World Baseball Classic, going 5 for 14 as a starting center fielder, batting second in Mexicoโs lineup. Back in the L.A. Dodgersโ spring training camp, Verdugo is hitting .231ย in nineย games and is expected to start the season at the Dodgersโ Triple-A club in Oklahoma City.ย
Tucson basketball refereeย Bob Scofieldย advanced to the Sweet 16, working Fridayโs Washington-Mississippi State womenโs game. Scofield mostly works Pac-12 games in the regular season, and missed two weeks last month with a calf injury. This is his eighth straight Sweet 16 and 19th NCAA Tournament. One of his colleagues, ex-UA basketball playerย Brenda Pantoja, also advanced to the womenโs Sweet 16, calling Fridayโs Baylor-Louisville game. NCAA basketball referees advance on a merit system, as evaluated by the NCAA game to game.ย
Salpointe and Pima College gradย Ryan Ramsowerย has started seven games for Washington Stateโs baseball team, hitting .207. Ramsower, a second baseman, will face Arizona when the Wildcats play at WSU April 7-9.
The Pima College menโs basketball season ended with 22 victories, including one in the NJCAA Division II national finals in Illinois last week. It was the most victories in a season since 1991.ย Brian Peabodyโs team could be even better nextย year. He has recruited well. But one of the better stories of PCCโs Region I championship team was the play of Tucson High gradย Keeganย Biggersย at the NJCAAs. In the opening victory over Waubonsee College, Biggers came off the bench toย score on two offensive rebound putbacks, helping the Aztecs lead 35-24. Biggers finished with four points and eight rebounds in just seven minutes. After the game, as Peabody commended his club, he didnโt immediately see Biggers, who was standing behind Peabody. โI thought he might be out signing autographs,โ said Peabody. โWe couldnโt have won without him.โย
The UA athletic administration acted quickly in attempt to lend more visibility toย Rich Rodriguezโs spring football camp. Initially, fans were invited only to an early-March, Thursday-night scrimmage. Crickets. Since then, the school developed a โSpring Showcase Series,โ which continues with a Friday scrimmage at 6 p.m., and a meet-and-greet day next month.ย
Ex-NFL receiverย Mike Thomas, who caught more passes than anyone in Arizona history, was arrested in Sandy Springs, Georgia, last week after he allegedly attacked his fiancรฉe in a home in which a childโs birthday party was taking place downstairs. According to an Atlanta TV station, the 29-year-old Thomas was charged with aggravated assault, possession of a firearm in the commission of a felony and third-degree child abuse.ย
The Rillito Race Track posted its highest betting handle ever, a record $1.7 million, in the six-week meet that ended a week ago. The total includes simulcast betting at parlors worldwide. According toย Jaye Wells, president of the Rillito Park Foundation, a five-year lease extension from the county, helped to secureย OTB contracts with other gambling sites around the world.ย
Arizona senior pitcherย Danielle OโTooleโs no-hitter Friday night against No. 6 Washington was the 90th in UA history. How good is that? Arizona Stateโs pitchers have 35 no-hitters in history and Washington has 34. The Wildcats will play at doubleheader against Grand Canyon on Wednesday afternoon-evening at Hillenbrand Stadium and itโll be old home week for four Antelopes, including assistant coachย Kelsey Rodriguez, who in 2014 as a Wildcat standout was the Pac-12 Scholar-Athlete of the Year. The Grand Canyon starting lineup includes Ironwood Ridgeย gradย Loriannย Olson, who is hitting .347, and CDOโsย Niki Gonzalez, who is hitting .324 for a 25-9 team that is favored to win the WAC title.ย
Sabino High sophomoreย Maddie Mariani, who has committed to compete for Michigan as a college gymnast, is on an impressive streak. She won the Arizona State championships last week in Phoenix, not only winning the all-around championship, her fifth in succession, but also won the vault, beam and floor exercise competitions. Over a six-week period, Mariani also won the Pikes Peak Challenge in Colorado, the Valley of the Sun meet in Scottsdale and the Long Beach Open.ย
I have been as guilty as anyone in labeling Xavier as something less than an elite basketball school, but much like Wichita State, I now understand that the Musketeers and Shockers are Top 25 programs with a bite.
Xavierโs recruiting Class of 2014 is the reason it beat Arizona last week. In retrospect, it was a Top 10 or 15 class.
The Musketeersโ top player,ย Trevon Bluiettย was a four-star recruit who was offered scholarships by Arizona, Florida and Louisville, and took a recruiting visit to UCLA. Arizona, however, tookย Stanley Johnson, so it didnโt need Bluiett.
Looking back, Arizona wouldโve been better off taking Bluiett than the one-year Johnson, who averaged 13.8ย points and had little impact in the 2015 postseason. A three-year player like Bluiett now looks like a better choice.
Xavier wing manย J.P. Macura, a four-star prospect who gave Arizona a lot of trouble, was offered scholarships by Florida State, Purdue and Butler. And the Xavier big man who sunk Arizona with a last-minute layup,ย Sean OโMara, turned down NCAA teams Virginia, Iowa State and Dayton to become a Musketeer.
The teams like Xavier who sign three- and four-star recruits and keep them for longer periods than schools like Arizona and UCLA, now swing a big stick in March.
Arizona has the bruises to prove it.
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