Olson's tough love pushes Stoudamire, Arizona to victory
CHICAGO -- Arizona coach Lute Olson beat Oklahoma State in the Sweet 16. Arizona guard Salim Stoudamire will get the credit, and with good reason, but Stoudamire didn't end Oklahoma State's season Thursday night. Olson did.
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| Salim Stoudamire puts up the game-winning field goal with 2.8 seconds left. (AP) |
The genesis for the Wildcats' 79-78 victory began in October, when Olson threatened to kick Stoudamire from the team if he didn't lose his surly, chemistry-killing facade. It didn't matter that Stoudamire generally was angry with only himself. Olson didn't like the impact it had on the rest of the team for his most talented player -- and Stoudamire is Arizona's most talented player since Mike Bibby -- to have the worst demeanor.
Olson's tough love with Stoudamire continued in December when he suspended the 6-foot-1 senior for one game for pouting. Stoudamire had been suspended the year before, and this was to be his last chance -- a message that finally took. Since then Stoudamire has been the best shooter in college basketball, and probably the best shooter college basketball has seen since another Arizona player, Steve Kerr, hit 57.3 percent of his 3-pointers in 1988. Stoudamire leads the country in 3-point shooting at 51.2 percent.
Thursday night was why Olson put up with Stoudamire. The pouts, the suspensions -- Olson put up with all of it, and Stoudamire repaid him with the biggest shot of the 2005 NCAA Tournament. With 2.8 seconds left, Stoudamire drilled a fadeaway 17-footer against OSU defensive specialist Daniel Bobik for the final points of a gripping game.
Stoudamire scored 11 points in the final six minutes, all 11 coming thanks to another bit of preventative coaching from Olson.
It began Wednesday, when Olson steered every possible line of media questioning toward an issue he felt would decide this game: officiating. Olson said Pac-10 referees called games more closely than those in the Big 12, and said Oklahoma State would have an unfair advantage if Thursday's game was allowed to get too rough.
Thursday's game was not allowed to get too rough. The teams combined for 34 fouls, including the touch foul that had Oklahoma State's bench howling -- and had Stoudamire rolling. After scoring eight points in the first five minutes to help Arizona build a 23-13 lead, Stoudamire went scoreless for nearly 30 minutes. Oklahoma State led 66-64 when Bobik nudged Stoudamire 30 feet from the basket.
Whistle. Foul on Bobik. Stoudamire went to the line and made a free throw for his first point in 29 minutes. The foul was Bobik's third, and he went to the bench. OSU coach Eddie Sutton put 6-3 freshman JamesOn Curry on Stoudamire, though it probably didn't matter who was on defense. The free throw had ignited something in Stoudamire, the same something Olson had ignited when he benched his star in December.
Stoudamire took Curry to the rim for a bucket. Then he made a 3-pointer. Then he worked a perfect pick-and-roll with Channing Frye, drawing OSU center Ivan McFarlin and passing to Frye for an open 15-footer. Sutton put Bobik back into the game, but it was too late. Stoudamire hit another 3-pointer with 1:55 left to pull Arizona within 76-75. Then he assisted again to Frye with 1:02 left. Then, after Joey Graham gave Oklahoma State a 78-77 lead with a bulldozing move against Ivan Radenovic with 18.8 seconds left, Stoudamire went one-on-one with Bobik and won.
"When you're on, you're on," Arizona forward Hassan Adams said of Stoudamire. "And when he gets into his groove, it's hard to stop him."
Olson's pregame work on the officials benefited Arizona's defense of Oklahoma State's final possession, too. Oklahoma State's John Lucas III had just crossed half-court when he was fouled by Arizona's Chris Rodgers with 1.3 seconds left. Fans gasped -- what a dumb foul -- until they looked at the scoreboard and realized Arizona was still one foul short of sending Oklahoma State to the free-throw line.
See, while officials were whistling Oklahoma State for nine fouls in the second half and putting Arizona in the bonus situation for the final six minutes, Arizona slipped through most of the second half with only four fouls. The Wildcats picked up two fouls in the final 35.7 seconds, both for strategic reasons.
Now with just 1.3 seconds left to create a shot, the Cowboys had to settle for Lucas' rushed 3-pointer from the corner. When it bounced off the rim, the Wildcats mobbed Stoudamire. Radenovic grabbed Stoudamire's whiskered face with both hands and gleefully pushed it to and fro.
Away from the delirium, the star of Thursday's game started Arizona's handshake line. Olson, that silver fox, had just won his 741st career game, sending Arizona into the Chicago Regional championship game against No. 1 Illinois.
