– by Adesina O. Koiki
A Lot of Sports Talk editor-in-chief
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SAN DIEGO — Ever since the Arizona Wildcats won their first national championship in men’s basketball, the program has had great coaches stalk the sidelines in Tucson. They’ve had All-Americans, as they did before, and have received No. 1 seeds in the NCAA Tournament, like they are now.
But also in those near three decades, the Wildcats have yet to return to the college basketball mountaintop, and as the wait for another national championship to come to the desert, and to the West Coast in general, Arizona has probably fielded its best team since the days of Simon and Bibby and Coach Olsen brought home that title back in 1997. The 32-2 Wildcats started their latest journey to national glory up the road in San Diego, where Arizona did not have any of the troubles that plagued the No. 1 seeds yesterday in dispatching Long Island University 92-58 inside Viejas Arena in San Diego. Brayden Burries led four players who scored in double figures for the Wildcats with 18 points as Arizona shot 53 percent from the field.
The win is No. 145 in the head coaching career of Arizona lead man Tommy Lloyd, who with each win adds to his NCAA D1 record for most victories in the first five years as a head coach, breaking Brad Stevens’ mark upon winning the Big 12 Championship Game last weekend. Instead of passing Stevens in the win column, Lloyd hopes he and the Wildcats can the former Butler head coach in leading Arizona to the Final Four and, eventually, the national championship game.
“It’s something that I don’t take lightly. It’s an honor to be at the helm of the program,” Lloyd said. “And trust me, every day I think about, it’s my job to honor and respect this program and move it forward in the direction that makes our supporters and our former players proud.”
*Editor’s note: Above the byline is the photo gallery from Friday’s NCAA Tournament first round, with photos taken by ALOST staff photographer Dale Horton. After clicking on a photo to enlarge the picture, press the left and right arrow buttons on either side of the caption to scroll through the rest of the pictures that appear on the first page. Also, click on the numbers and/or arrow appearing immediately below the picture grid to load the next set of photos. There are 29 pictures in total.
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