Notebook: Benn Mathurin makes history in Wildcats' loss; UA fan makes long trek to San Antonio

SAN ANTONIO — With five first-half points, Arizona guard Benn Mathurin moved into the top 10 in single-season scoring in UA program history, passing Michael Dickerson with 643 points.

Mathurin finished with 15 points in Thursday’s 72-60 loss to Houston, but shot just 4 for 14 from the field. It was likely the sophomore’s final game in an Arizona uniform as he’s a projected top-10 NBA Draft pick.

Khalid Reeves set Arizona’s single-season scoring mark in the 1993-94 season, scoring 848 points. Sean Elliott scored 743 in the 1987 -88. Both players led their teams to Final Four appearances. The rest of Arizona’s top-10: Derrick Williams (741, 2010-11); Elliott (735, 1988-89); Deandre Ayton (704, 2017-18); Jason Gardner (692, 2001-02); Damon Stoudamire (684, 1994-95); Bob Elliott (677, 1974-75); and Salim Stoudamire (662, 2004-05).

One UA fan ‘surrounded’ by Coogs

Arizona fan and alum Robert Garrett, 48, drove 28 hours from North Dakota to San Antonio to watch the Wildcats only to find his seat was located in the middle of Houston fans.

“I’m surrounded by Houston fans in my area but hopefully Arizona can make up for it and get the win,” he said before the game.

Though UA fans had a good showing, it looked — and sounded — like there were more Houston fans, giving the UH somewhat of a homecourt advantage. The Cougars’ campus is located 187 miles away from AT&T Center, making it a fairly easy commute for the fanbase.

Arizona alumni head downtown before Sweet 16

Wildcats alumni that made the trip to San Antonio tailgated before Thursday’s game at Smoke BBQ and Skybar, a 42,000 square-foot bar located just off the Riverwalk downtown. Alumni who purchased tickets to the event were given two drink coupons along with a barbecue dinner that featured smoked brisket, pulled pork and house BBQ sauce.

Arizona athletic director Dave Heeke and UA president Robert C. Robbins spoke at the tailgate.

Brews, burgers and more at AT&T Center

AT&T Center, home of the San Antonio Spurs, had plenty of appealing food and drink options lining the concourses. Among the most popular destinations were Rock & Brews, a restaurant chain founded by Paul Stanley and Gene Simmons of the rock band KISS, and Whataburger.

Rock & Brews had a large seating area with over a dozen televisions and local beer on tap, making for a busy atmosphere pregame.

The Whataburger inside the arena is one of 58 in San Antonio, the home of the fast food chain. (Tucson, by comparison, has seven).

The AT&T Center location is one of the few that isn’t open 24 hours.

Sweet selection of merch

Over 20 different Sweet 16-themed T-shirts and long sleeves were available for purchase at merchandise stands spread throughout the arena. Prices ranged from $35 for T-shirts and $40 for long-sleeve tees; the same price as the Round of 64 shirts sold last weekend in San Diego.

Ex-UA assistant critical of Adidas’ NIL plans

More than four years after several college basketball programs were engulfed in a federal bribery scandal, the shoe company attached to the investigation announced that it will be awarding name, image and likeness (NIL) deals to college athletes.

Earlier this week, Adidas announced that it’s creating an NIL network that will help thousands of student-athletes at 109 Division I Adidas-sponsored schools receive compensation for promoting the brand on social media.

The deals “will enable them as student-athletes to maximize their NIL, opening the doors to future possibilities,” said Jim Murphy, an Adidas executive.

Former Adidas employees James Gatto and Merl Code were convicted on felony charges of wire fraud and conspiracy to commit wire fraud after they paid high-profile recruits to sign with Adidas-sponsored programs, then signing with the company once they turned pro.

Former Arizona assistant coach Emmanuel “Book” Richardson, who served three months in prison after admitting that he accepted $20,000 in bribes from agent-runner Christian Dawkins to steer recruits to Arizona and ultimately an agency once they declared for the NBA draft, told Sportico.com that Adidas’ NIL network is “the ultimate smack in the face.”

“I went to jail for this,” Richardson said.

“I have a felony, I can’t do what I love, my passion was taken away. I lost my family, my career, my house, my everything — and now, (in) five years it went from (the FBI saying), ‘I have your playbook,’ to now, ‘I am going to pay you on the books officially for your NIL,’” he said. “I just wonder how Americans feel that your tax dollars were used to investigate college basketball coaches.”