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With a grueling
Pac-10 schedule looming, Arizona coach Lute Olson knows the importance of a
strong performance by his fifth-ranked Wildcats at the 19th annual Fiesta Bowl
Classic.
``This tournament is important to us as always because it is the final two games
before we get started with league play,'' Olson said as his team prepared to
host Liberty in the second of two first-round games Sunday.
``As a result, I think it is important that we play well and we pretty much know now the rotation that we will be using.''
Arizona will start Pac-10 play next Saturday at Arizona State, beginning a stretch of 18 consecutive conference games.
The Wildcats (6-1)
have won five straight since a 78-77 loss to No. 13 Florida in the Tipoff Classic
on Nov. 28. On Monday, Hassan Adams had 19 points and 11 rebounds and Chris
Rodgers matched a career high with 17 points as the Wildcats used a late rally
to storm past San Diego State 83-71.
Arizona boasts a 35-1 all-time mark in the Fiesta Bowl Classic, with the lone
loss coming against Mississippi State in the 2000 title game.
Louisiana-Lafayette and Valparaiso will meet in Sunday's tournament opener. The championship and consolation games are scheduled for Tuesday.
``One of the reasons we set the tournament games up like we do with the day in between is that it is much more productive in terms of your second game,'' Olson said.
``Because you have one more day to prepare for it just like we would with our Pac-10 schedule normally being Thursday and Saturday.''
Adams, a sophomore guard, leads the Wildcats with 18.1 points per game. However, he is just one of five players averaging double figures in scoring for Arizona.
Junior Channing Frye (15.6 points, 9.3 rebounds), Salim Stoudamire (15.0 points), Andre Iguodala (12.3) and Rodgers (10.6) round out the Wildcats' formidable and balanced lineup.
Liberty (3-7) has dropped three of four, including an 87-66 setback at Old Dominion on Dec. 18. Ticketmaster. Gabe Martin scored a team-high 19 points and Larry Blair added 16 for Liberty, which is looking forward to its first meeting with Arizona.
``We're certainly very excited to participate in the 19th annual Fiesta Bowl Classic,'' Flames coach Randy Dunton said. ``For us at Liberty, we are committed to moving our program to a solid mid-major level. We've been very aggressive with our schedule, as you can see. It's put our kids in a lot of adverse situations heading into league play.''
Martin, a senior guard, leads the Flames with 14.0 points and 6.2 rebounds per game.