SAN JOSE, Calif. β If Chris Mack and Xavier pull off an upset tonight over Arizona, heβll have mixed emotions.
Same will happen if he loses, because Sean Miller is on the other bench.
βI donβt think itβs enjoyable or difficult. It just is what it is,β Mack said of playing his longtime friend and former boss. βI donβt have feelings on way or another. After the game, Iβm gonna be either sad for him or happy for him. Thatβs just sort of how it works.β
Eight years removed from leaving Cincinnati, Miller said he still watches Xavier as often as he can.
βA big, big fan. Love that place,β Miller said. βThe friendships that my family and I have, we still have today. I don't get back to that area very often, only because it's not easy to being that we now live in Arizona.
βBut, first of all, Chris Mack has led Xavier to four Sweet 16s in the last eight years. There aren't many coaches that can say that. And our players, and I'm sure you got this when you talked to them, they know that Xavier has been to 11 of the last 12 NCAA Tournaments. They know that a year ago Xavier was a No. 2 seed; that right now they're closer to being in, like, three or four Sweet 16s in a row than they are any other way.β
Having received plenty of praise for the way he steered UA through an adversity filled year, Miller heaped it on Mack, too.
βChris Mack is one of our game's bright coaches, great coaches. He's not my former assistant. He stands on his own two feet and his record and what he's done speaks for itself,β Miller said. βI don't know if I've seen a coach take a team that had lost a number in a row and lost such a terrific player, and now flip it and have them playing at such a high level.
βWe're playing against one of the hottest teams that's remaining in the tournament. And if last weekend is any indication of where they're at, it's scary for anybody that's going to play against them.
βSo I give a lot of credit to Chris and his staff, their team and players, but also Xavier. It's a special place who loves college basketball. And it just seems like they bring out the best in everybody.β
Las Vegas has Arizona a 7.5-point favorite while Kenpom gives the Wildcats a 65 percent chance of winning. However, hereβs one forecast thatΒ picks the Musketeers.
Looks like tickets for the West Sweet 16 may be overpriced, especially considering that no participating team is from within an easy drive: There were nearly 1,300 tickets still available through the NCAA channel as of late morning but they were $151 plus fees for upper-deck seating. StubHub listed prices for lower corner seats that were under $200.
Couple of compelling Sweet 16 matchups to watch before UA tips off: Oregon-Michigan (4:09 p.m. on CBS) and Gonzaga-West Virginia (4:39 p.m. on TBS).
While talking about the blue-collar work ethic he wants to instill in the Huskies, new Washington coach Mike Hopkins predictably lost Michael Porter Jr. from his 2017-18 roster.
Big man Matthew Atewe also said he's taking off.
Looks like Hopkins is trying to lure assistant Jason Hart over from USC but the Trojans are countering.
Tyson Alger of the Oregonian has a good look at how Dillon Brooks has learned to live in the spotlight since the "Coach K incident" last season.
A year after UCLA fans were calling for his head, Steve Alford appears to be in a pretty good position with Indiana appearing to be interested in him.
Arizona Desert Swarm has a long look at the Arizona-Xavier matchup. Daily Wildcat staffers weigh in on keys to the game.
UA could be back in the mix for Chase Jeter, who announced he is transferring from Duke.
With six staffers here in San Jose (by far the most of anybody, I believe), we have gobs of coverage on our Wildcats page and if you're able to get a print edition today, we have a Sweet 16 special section, too.
