ESPN.com - No. 1: Arizona

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Tuesday, November 12, 2002
No. 1: Arizona

By By John Gustafson

Last Season: 24-10, NCAA Sweet 16


	Anderson is Zona's forgotten leader.

Lute Olson was supposed to be rebuilding. But his five freshmen -- bigs Channing Frye, Isaiah Fox and Dennis Latimore, guards Salim Stoudamire and Will Bynum -- had other ideas. They combined for 35 points and 16.4 boards a game to help the Wildcats win the Pac-10 tourney. Now the magic number is three, as in Zona's savvy senior trio: clutch PG Jason Gardner (20.4 ppg), do-everything swingman Luke Walton (15.7 ppg, 7.3 rpg, 6.3 apg) and slippery PF Rick Anderson (42% 3PT). Veterans, super sophs & oh, and here come fab frosh wings Hassan Adams and Andre Iguodala. All these bodies allow Zona to play full-court pressure D in myriad combinations, leaving opponents wondering when it'll end. How about when the Cats cut the nets in New Orleans?

One Step Ahead: Olson doesn't waste scholarships: His perennially deep bench allows him to mix lineups and game plans. After losing three underclassmen to the NBA and playing with only nine scholarship guys last season, he's restocked with Adams (McDonald's All-American), Iguodala (top-75) and PG Chris Rodgers (top-25).

One Step Behind: The Cats typically roll with agile big men who get up and down in transition. But that leaves them vulnerable to physical post teams like Oklahoma, the squad that ate up Zona's half-court D in last spring's Tourney. Can the fleet, 6'10" Frye stand his ground after a summer in the weight room?

2002-2003 NCAA PREVIEW
MEN
1. Arizona Wildcats	9. Georgia Bulldogs
2. Kansas Jayhawks	10. UCLA Bruins
3. Oklahoma Sooners	11. Alabama Crimson Tide
4. Pittsburgh Panthers	12. Kentucky Wildcats
5. Florida Gators	13. Virginia Cavaliers
6. Texas Longhorns	14. Michigan State Spartans
7. Duke Blue Devils	15. Xavier Musketeers
8. UConn Huskies	16. Indiana Hoosiers

This article will appear in the November 25 issue of ESPN The Magazine.