Final Four notebook: On living large, a Lute sighting, Walton's return
- Updated
Seen and heard at University of Phoenix Stadium during the Final Four.Β
- Zack Rosenblatt Arizona Daily Star
- Updated
The Final Four is huge. Β At least the stadium is.
University of Phoenix stadium is home of the Arizona Cardinals and, as of this weekend, the host site for the Final Four. Capacity for Saturday's national semifinals was 76,033.Β
McKale Center, by comparison,. needed renovations just to get to a 14,500 capacity.
The football stadium's high ceilings and far back walls prompted some to wonder if players' shooting would be affected. about shooting. This weekend's games also feature a raised floor: The court sits 2 1/2 feet above the ground, meaning players must step down to sit on their benches.
Gonzaga didnβt seem to have any problems Saturday: The Bulldogs shot 57 percent in the first half against South Carolina.
βItβs just about getting used to it,β said Oregon forward Dillon Brooks. βIt didnβt affect me.β
South Carolinaβs Duane Notice was more taken aback by the enormity of the stadium, after spending his entire career playing in regular basketball venues.
βI never fathomed the fact of playing basketball in a football stadium,β he said. βI didn't think that was possible. So the fact that we're here and we're going to have the opportunity to play in front of a whole bunch of people and a whole bunch of fans and family is going to be an amazing experience.βΒ
- Zack Rosenblatt Arizona Daily Star
- Updated
$1.5 billion:Β The economic impact from all the major sporting events at University of Phoenix Stadium in the last 26 months, according to Cardinals vice president of media relations Mark Dalton. The events include the Final Four, the 2016 College Football Playoff and the 2015 Super Bowl and Pro Bowl.Β
- Zack Rosenblatt Arizona Daily Star
- Updated
Arizona didnβt make it to the Final Four this year, but that doesnβt mean the Wildcats werenβt still well-represented.
Legendary UA coach Lute Olson took in Saturday's games with his wife Kelly and former UA star Damon Stoudamire.
Olson and Stoudamire guided the Wildcats to the Final Four in 1994, which took place in Charlotte, North Carolina.
Also in the stands Saturday was another Arizona point guard with Final Four experience. Matt Muehlebach was a member of the 1988 Arizona team that included Steve Kerr and Sean Elliott. That team made a run to the Final Four in Kansas City, Missouri.
Miles Simon was also present. Friday marked the the 20th anniversary of his stellar performance in the 1997 National Championship game.Β
- Zack Rosenblatt Arizona Daily Star
- Updated
The Arizona fans in the crowd on Saturday were treated to unpleasant, recent memories.
Video of the end of Arizonaβs Sweet 16 loss to Xavier was shown on the big screen before Saturday's early game.
Too soon?Β
- Zack Rosenblatt Arizona Daily Star
- Updated
Charles Barkley, Grant Hill and Dikembe Mutombo were among the basketball greats attending Saturday's game.Β
The crowd was also filled with prominent college coaches, including Michiganβs John Beilein, San Diego Stateβs Steve Fisher and ASUβs Bobby Hurley.
The most important basketball name in the stadium, though, was Bill Walton, the basketball legend and prominent Pac-12 broadcaster.
Walton sat on press row, where he helped Clark Kellogg and Kevin Kugler on the Westwood One radio broadcast. Walton provided some analysis at halftime of the Gonzaga-South Carolina game.
In classic Walton fashion, of course, he forgot his cohost's name. (It was Kugler).
Walton was the Final Four MVP when he played at UCLA in 1973, which also happens to be the last time South Carolina won a game in the NCAA Tournament.Β
- Zack Rosenblatt Arizona Daily Star
- Updated
Country music star Darius Rucker was South Carolina's most visible alum during the Gamecocks' run through the NCAA Tournament.
Saturday, South Carolina fans paid their respects for Rucker⦠with selfies.
Rucker, who founded Hootie and the Blowfish while he was a student at South Carolina, obliged, all the way handling a tray of nachos in one hand.
Not bad, Hootie.
- Zack Rosenblatt Arizona Daily Star
The Final Four is huge. Β At least the stadium is.
University of Phoenix stadium is home of the Arizona Cardinals and, as of this weekend, the host site for the Final Four. Capacity for Saturday's national semifinals was 76,033.Β
McKale Center, by comparison,. needed renovations just to get to a 14,500 capacity.
The football stadium's high ceilings and far back walls prompted some to wonder if players' shooting would be affected. about shooting. This weekend's games also feature a raised floor: The court sits 2 1/2 feet above the ground, meaning players must step down to sit on their benches.
Gonzaga didnβt seem to have any problems Saturday: The Bulldogs shot 57 percent in the first half against South Carolina.
βItβs just about getting used to it,β said Oregon forward Dillon Brooks. βIt didnβt affect me.β
South Carolinaβs Duane Notice was more taken aback by the enormity of the stadium, after spending his entire career playing in regular basketball venues.
βI never fathomed the fact of playing basketball in a football stadium,β he said. βI didn't think that was possible. So the fact that we're here and we're going to have the opportunity to play in front of a whole bunch of people and a whole bunch of fans and family is going to be an amazing experience.βΒ
- Zack Rosenblatt Arizona Daily Star
$1.5 billion:Β The economic impact from all the major sporting events at University of Phoenix Stadium in the last 26 months, according to Cardinals vice president of media relations Mark Dalton. The events include the Final Four, the 2016 College Football Playoff and the 2015 Super Bowl and Pro Bowl.Β
- Zack Rosenblatt Arizona Daily Star
Arizona didnβt make it to the Final Four this year, but that doesnβt mean the Wildcats werenβt still well-represented.
Legendary UA coach Lute Olson took in Saturday's games with his wife Kelly and former UA star Damon Stoudamire.
Olson and Stoudamire guided the Wildcats to the Final Four in 1994, which took place in Charlotte, North Carolina.
Also in the stands Saturday was another Arizona point guard with Final Four experience. Matt Muehlebach was a member of the 1988 Arizona team that included Steve Kerr and Sean Elliott. That team made a run to the Final Four in Kansas City, Missouri.
Miles Simon was also present. Friday marked the the 20th anniversary of his stellar performance in the 1997 National Championship game.Β
- Zack Rosenblatt Arizona Daily Star
Charles Barkley, Grant Hill and Dikembe Mutombo were among the basketball greats attending Saturday's game.Β
The crowd was also filled with prominent college coaches, including Michiganβs John Beilein, San Diego Stateβs Steve Fisher and ASUβs Bobby Hurley.
The most important basketball name in the stadium, though, was Bill Walton, the basketball legend and prominent Pac-12 broadcaster.
Walton sat on press row, where he helped Clark Kellogg and Kevin Kugler on the Westwood One radio broadcast. Walton provided some analysis at halftime of the Gonzaga-South Carolina game.
In classic Walton fashion, of course, he forgot his cohost's name. (It was Kugler).
Walton was the Final Four MVP when he played at UCLA in 1973, which also happens to be the last time South Carolina won a game in the NCAA Tournament.Β
- Zack Rosenblatt Arizona Daily Star
Country music star Darius Rucker was South Carolina's most visible alum during the Gamecocks' run through the NCAA Tournament.
Saturday, South Carolina fans paid their respects for Rucker⦠with selfies.
Rucker, who founded Hootie and the Blowfish while he was a student at South Carolina, obliged, all the way handling a tray of nachos in one hand.
Not bad, Hootie.
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