Despite being a longtime Washington basketball season-ticket holder who graduated from UCLA, Ted Ackerley showed up Saturday wearing a red shirt and an Arizona hat.
He didn't have much of a decision to make, actually. Because his son, Ben, is a walk-on guard for the Wildcats.
"When you’ve got blood on the team, it’s a no-brainer," Ted Ackerley said.
The Ackerley family's ties to UA and sports actually go deeper than that. Ackerley’s twin brother, Chris, is a UA grad who is on the National Board of Advisers for the Eller College of Management — while Chris and Ted are both among the ownership group of the NHL’s Seattle Kraken.
Not surprisingly, Ben tagged along during his youth to Hec Edmundson Pavilion to watch the Huskies.
“This is where Ben grew an appreciation for basketball,” Ted said.
More homecomings
Saturday’s game was also a homecoming for freshman wing Shane Nowell, who played high school ball for nearby Eastside Catholic, and also for UA coach Tommy Lloyd.
Nowell had about 15 friends and family on hand, while Lloyd had a small group travel up from his hometown of Kelso, which is actually about equidistant from the Washington and Oregon State campuses along the I-5 corridor.
Bengal boys
The Wildcats’ international players might not know a whole lot about American football at this point but they do know who they are rooting for in the Super Bowl. Popular equipment manager Brian Brigger just happens to be a diehard Bengals fan who was born and raised in Cincinnati.
“We’re all rooting for the Bengals because of Brigger," UA athletic trainer Justin Kokoskie said.
Brigger said he was just 6 years old the last time the Bengals made the Super Bowl after the 1988 season, so that means he's suffered pretty much ever since.
With that sort of history, it might come as no surprise that Brigger has a friend who secured Super Bowl tickets and plans to attend the game.
Brigger was scheduled to fly back with the Wildcats after Saturday’s game. The team is scheduled to arrive home at 11 p.m.; Brigger plans to wash the team’s uniforms at McKale Center into the early morning hours before heading to Los Angeles by car at 4 a.m.
“Couple hours of sleep, and a couple more in the car,” Brigger said.
The Mathurian
Some Wildcats again were greeted in unfamiliar ways Saturday.
While the Washington public-address announcer managed the difficult “Azuolas” name during Arizona's introductions, UA's point guard was referred to as “Kerry Kriisa” and the Wildcats’ standout Canadian wing introduced as Bennedict “Mathurian.”
Blackout
Another team hosting Arizona tried to pull off a "color-out" of some sort.
The Huskies wore black uniforms as part of the "blackout"; fans received black rally towels and espresso cups.
Naturally, the items were characteristically branded. The espresso cups were stamped with a Starbucks logo, while the black towels had the Huskies’ “Tougher Together” catchphrase.
But while nearly all of the Washington Dawg Pack of student fans wore black, only about half of the Huskies' other fans did. And, as usual, there were smatterings of Arizona red throughout the building.
Seattle talent miner
While UA assistant coach Steve Robinson had never traveled to Seattle to coach in a game before Saturday, he has been in the area to earn a victory of sorts.
In 2003, Robinson played a key role as five-star forward Marvin Williams of Bremerton, Washington, committed to North Carolina.
“Spent a few times taking the ferry over to see him,” Robinson said.
Robinson said he didn’t have any recruiting ties to the Seattle area, but North Carolina recruits nationally Robinson said UNC would go after players who were open to the idea of leaving home.
“If they seem to be a little receptive to that, you follow up and see if you can get them,” Robinson said.
Williams played only one season (2004-05) with the Tar Heels, but it worked out pretty well for both sides. North Carolina won the 2005 NCAA Tournament and Williams became the No. 2 overall pick in that year's NBA Draft.
On a podcast in 2020, Williams said playing for the Tar Heels “was the most fun I've ever had playing basketball.”
Robinson said he also spent plenty of time in Seattle recruiting 7-footer Spencer Hawes and forward Martell Webster, but Hawes went to Washington and Webster skipped college basketball entirely.
Shoe game
As part of the Pac-12’s annual “Zero-Waste Challenge,” Washington held a shoe and clothing drive at Saturday’s game.
Inside the arena, there was also an “Adidas Give Back” booth, where rewards were offered for fans who reuse gear and reduce plastic waste.
Quotable
“I believe they’re the best team in the country. I’ve watched a lot of college basketball and I’ve seen all the teams play. I don’t think they have a weakness. They’ve got great guard play. They got great size."
— Washington coach Mike Hopkins on Arizona before Saturday's game, according to the Seattle Times.
— Bruce Pascoe
