Arizona Wildcats Basketball

Sports act as a buffer between reality and fantasy land for most avid sports fans. These games can distract people from their daily lives so they can have two to three hours of relaxation, and get away from real world issues. I can happily say that only when my University of Arizona Wildcats basketball team plays, I put everything else on the back burner.

Growing up, the Wildcats were one of the most successful sports teams on the West Coast. Lute Olson was a coaching God, and was given sainthood in Tucson. Being from Phoenix, many of the locals went to ASU, so they weren’t able to appreciate good basketball. I don’t blame them one bit. There’s no tradition at ASU, and it’s tough to recruit high school phenoms when the school is only known for its distinguished baseball program.

1997 rolled around, and I caught a glimpse of a young Wildcat team that had Miles Simon, Mike Bibby, Jason Terry, and Michael Dickerson all in its repertoire. After watching one of their games early in the season, I became a huge U of A fan. Their elegance on the court was evident to their opponents, but yet they received little critical acclaim from the media. Rightfully so. They were young, unproven, and at that stage, had never won anything substantial. Those same Wildcats later became NCAA champs, and Miles Simon took home the MVP trophy.

Fast-forward to circa 2006, when I first made my way down to Tucson to start my illustrious college career. The program was just one year removed from the Elite 8 debacle against Illinois, and it became a rebuilding year to say the least. Chase, Jordan, and Nic were all Freshmen at the time. I won’t go into all the horrific details of Lute’s departure, simply because it received more media attention than the war in Iraq.

I graduated from the U of A in May of 2010, and caught glimpses of the recruiting class Sean Miller had put together. Right then, I knew they were going to be a cohesive unit that would potentially bring this program back to the top. I’ve watched almost every single U of A game since 1997, and this years group has the most heart of any team from prior years. That’s saying a lot!

This season was fulfilling to say the least. Pac-10 champs, Elite 8 birth, and one three pointer away from our 5th Final Four appearance. All this, and yet we were picked to lose the first round match-up against Memphis by some analysts.

Arizona Wildcats basketball is back. I’ll always remember this team because of the heart they showed in times of adversity. Sean Miller deserves a Nobel Prize for his efforts and accomplishments in the last two years.

These players deserve a plethora of recognition as well.
Derrick
Momo
Solomon
Jamelle
Jesse
Jordin
B-Lav
Kyle
Kevin
Kyryl

Thanks to you guys, UA alumni here in California can brag to everyone that we’re back! Can’t wait to see what the future holds for the program. With this exponential rise in success, an NCAA championship isn’t too far away!

Bear down, Wildcats.

Signing off,

Miran Maric

Ability is nothing without opportunity.
– Napoleon Bonaparte