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Thank you up toon everybody. Welcome to I on the Ball here on Fox Sports fourteen fifty. Come Steve Rivera in today with me is Frank Eager from.
Southern Arizona sports tourism and film authority.
Yes, you have a big deal gloming up pretty soon, huge deal. Pretty I'm glad you got away from your desk. Yeah, I appreciate it. This is the highlight of your week. Oh listen, I'll be honest with you this it's Yeah. The stress of the of the whole task and taking on is incredible. I'm so thankful for all our partners. But this is definitely the highlight. I'm thinking being with me, not no the BS.
Let's really no, let's really see dizzel behind and behind the back.
Yeah. So we have our guy here, mister what's your name again, Kobe?
I always want to call him Cody, though I know, I know, I did that for the first couple of days. Yeah, it's it's Kobe as as the guy from the Lakers.
No, no, cool, lot of stuff going on. Did you watch game on Saturday? You of course?
Yeah, you were there, right, I was there. Yeah, I've been thirty four straight. I think you've been thirty four straight up there up North? How's the how you know we were talking about this my uh my wife went to issue you can say that on there.
But she's a U. A basketball fan of course she wants to win.
Yeah, of course, what's the what's experience up there up north?
Like?
Is there?
Is it? Is it a lot of Is it a lot of you have a fans? Yeah? This time not as much as in the past, but it was still like fifty to fifty maybe fifty five forty five Arizona. Yeah, you know it was it was. It was good. It was a good mix. Before when the Arizona was rocking and rolling, it was seventy thirty.
Yeah.
A lot of these people who like.
U up there, They've had a ton of alumni up there, right oh yeah, right right, you know that's go where the jobs are, man, how are yeah?
Uh? And that's it was. It was a good showing from from both sides. Actually, the Asue game a pretty good game until the final minutes.
Yeah, I mean they you know, you look at that roster for ASU, there's some good players on there.
Who's their center? The young kid that's seventeen, twenty one, yeah, twenty years I forget his name. Yeah, he had been hurt. He played really well, a big strong guy, yeah, like Sandy, and hit a couple of good shots on the stretch too. Yeah.
And Freeman did pretty well until the end. Yeah, absolutely, yeah. I mean it was good to see us kind of get punched in the face a little bit and react the way we did there.
Right, right, So I wanted to kind of start the show with that. That's why I brought it up, is that I guess. Hurley was on the Bicley Show Them Bicley Show in the morning in Phoenix, and he said that he and Tommy talked, they're good and the only regret he has, and we talked about this a lot yesterday, was not shaking Tommy's hand. He was finally taking the kids away and you know, put them away. I don't fault that either. I don't even care if he shick
shook his hand. I get it, but and we've talked about it yesterday that maybe that was the lone thing that should have happened.
I think this was one of the points that I was going to bring up on the show today that even from a coaching perspective, I understand him getting his kids out of there because you don't want an altercation out of the game, right, And there's a postil. Yeah, absolutely, we've seen it before. These young men or young women at that point.
You need to take that. No, it might be my pharmacist.
No, but I do think that from a coaching standpoint, you stay there and at least go and shake Tommy's hands.
Yeah. Yeah, Well, let me ask you, because in your lifetime, how many games have you played and been part of two thousand, fifteen hundred. Yeah, somewhere in that neighborhood.
Okcase this ever happened, not to that degree, No, I mean we've had we've had altercations. I've been in altercations on the field, and you know it's once you get to that level, you know, professional level, you're not shaking hands with other team afterwards, right, But even afterwards we've been pulled in. I don't remember if you remember Niger Morgan, he was a center fielder for the Brewers for a while.
It was a big leader for a while.
Him and I got in altercation and winter ball, and then after the games we you know, had a coke afterwards and worked it out. It's it's just that it's that young ptosterone t stosterone that kicks in, and you know you have this suscrestion. But yeah, but never to the degree that I saw at that level on Saturday, where you're taking a group, taking them away because I didn't think the altercation. Maybe I missed the talking back
and forth. The head butt was aggressive, but not to the point where I thought there was going to be fisticuffs or anything. I thought it was a controlled enough environment that there could have still been handshakes. But at least from a coaching standpoint, you're walking through that line probably in the side of caution, right, Yeah, I guess so. Yeah, But there's a few things people saying, well, there was a lot of tripping or Bobby did at least. Isn't
that what athletes do? I mean, come on, yeah, I mean that's what you do out of almost all sports. When I think about trash talking, I think about I mean you think about Bird Larry Bird Jordan. You see that's basketball is trash talking.
You played a little league ball, yes, whatever, I can remember saying any bad, a better well kind of where it starts. Yeah, there's from that's where it starts. That's where they learn. You know, you stink whatever. You know, we've been called names all that. Either that fuels you or it doesn't.
And you're seeing grown men do it at the highest level. So I mean we're faulting eighteen to twenty two year olds. Yeah, Michael Jordan's said bad things about me. Yeah, I can't play. Yeah, that's that can happen. Yeah, so he he I said on the air that he did this. Say, if there was one bad thing he would have done over he would have spoken, he would have shook Tommy Lloyd's hand. But other than that, no, he wasn't didn't want to
apologize for the moving the kids. He had to me, Okay, that's a smart move.
I thought. And and so there's that.
So do you do you remember this when when we played Michigan. Michigan came and played in McHale with I think it was a Fiesta classic. Yeah, yeah, and uh the coaches and the whole team didn't come out for Michigan, and the only player that came out was Juwan Howard.
Four What what moment after after the game? I don't remember that.
I don't remember that. No, So that was like a core memory. And maybe I'm speaking out of turn here, but I'm pretty sure that happened because I loved you. Remember this, it was a core memory. When I want to get a I'm going to make a call here. Yeah, I want to make a text here. And I don't remember that at all.
Confirm it because because because Corston for forty three, I think it was, Yeah, we beat him at Michale was the Fab four.
It was a Fab four, and I think Juwan Howard the only person that came out.
Okay, I don't remember that well. And then Joey is funny because Juwan Howard is the guy who kind of gets into fights on the line.
Yeah he is, you know, shaking hands and punching coaches. Yeah, yeah, I do you remember that when he was back coaching.
So I don't remember that. It would have been part of the book of a book or something.
Maybe it was this wild fantasy that I created as a young kid that I was like, this is why I like Juwan Howard.
I had to. I had to grasp on the straws at that point. Yeah, so okay I didn't. I don't remember that. But you know it's competition, man.
Yeah, and you're leaving out on the court, right, you're playing for something, sure.
So you know he's talking a bad about who really yea, and we said this yesterday. I'm sorry for everybody who heard me yesterday say the same thing. Bobby Earley and his group of dookies. They were pretty pretty tough smack talkers. I want to be careful on that saying, yeah, yes, you've got the bleep in this working. It's lit up and you knew I was coming in, so you got it right here. Yeah.
But well, not only that, his antics on the side, right, I mean, he gets teed up early in the game, he's losing his mind, takes his tie off. What precedent are we setting for your team? And then to come out after the game and say, you know, well they were chirping the whole game. Okay, like did you add fuel to the fire or did you try to take
that fire and put it down like that? You know, it's it's a confusing it's a confusing situation that happened earlier on For the verbiage that he used after the game, Yeah, it was what it was.
I mean, I think people are asking for Tommy's explanation, explanation thoughts on Herdy talking about the no class situation with with his players one and and with co with Caleb. You know that he's not going to vote for him, big deal. Yeah, you know, let's let's move on from it. It's pretty aggressive in that in that moment too. I think as a coach, he's done it long enough. As a player, he's done it long enough.
You I mean, we have that sleep on it method, right, Like there's times I want to send an email and no, right, I probably need to sleep on it. Or this text, I probably should sleep on it right now. My younger days, I just sent him and then regretted it afterwards. He's he's at a point in his career where that's one of those moments you probably don't need to say that. And I know you're trying to protect your players in that moment, but you're causing more harm than you are anything else.
Well, today we're gonna talk a lot about tonight's game. Uh, the first hour or at least, we're going to have the provo beat writer from a Herald, Darnell Dixon in today for like fifteen minutes talking about tonight's game. And as you said, Kobe, what were you surprised about it from Saturday?
No?
No, no, from tonight's game.
On tonight's game, oh, that we are the underdog at plus three.
Right, so it was one of an underdog minus three or plus you know, plus three.
Yeah, I mean that's surprising, especially with the way we've been playing well.
Home court is I know, home court is very difficult in this league and in anywhere. Actually, people don't understand me because they really don't go to the games. They see them and they think paper beats paper has nothing to do with anything.
That's a pretty tough environment to play in. I mean, they packed that house.
There was one I took a pretty good team the geene Edgarson year two twenty two thousand and two, I think it was, and came out losers that game. It's tough road games, and especially in this.
League on the Big twelve, you're hoping to split, right, Yeah, it's the best we can do right, Yeah.
Right, so I call I detected somebody on that team to see if they remember that game. Was it Juwan Howard? Yeah, no, no, it was uh it was Pus his name from the sports question. He's you know, what's his name?
I don't know. I think I was ten so in the ninety three and eighty four right right around ten three? Okay, give him away too much? Why can't shake our heads? That was a pretty fiery kid from the West Side with one Well. I was like, oh, I understood, And those are the times you kind of remember stuff, yeah, ten, eight, nine, ten. It creates core memories, right right, talk about all the time?
Yeah, dad, why didn't you shaked? Yeah? Okay, oh so that's so. That's at three seventeen. And then at four seventeen, who do you got?
We got Jim Small, the president of the World Baseball class that come on board. Really excited to have him talk about a little bit of history.
Do you have to mine of your piece?
And Ques, I mean, he's not my direct boss, but yeah, I would prefer to do that.
I don't want to upset them in mister Small, how are you?
We're a little bit more casual that now, that's probably how it first started. But when you're going through the negotiation process, uh, there's a lot of the bleep by and then you need in. And I've learned a lot from him and I'm appreciated everything that he's done.
Thanks forgetting him. We've had him on the show before when we were at the casino. He was very good. I joked with him a time or two because baseball has been betty bitty good to you guys. Yeah, very And you're in a group, so he'll he'll be with us for a while at the four seventeen hours to see what the progress is. Although you know exactly what the progress is here. I do. What's a ticket situation. It's slow, but we're expecting you to pick up because people, well, welcome to Tucson.
I listen, everybody tells me the same thing. So when we talk about the stress level, from my side, I've always been on the other side, right, I've always been on the playing side or going to games. I've never been on the program management or the developed side. So everybody that were surrounded by tells me the same thing. And it's Tucson is it's a late seller's walk up market and we're doing the best we cand to get everything.
Okay, my source who was at the game, Yeah, in the game, Yeah, I don't remember them not shaking hands. It was a crazy intense game that gut Chippy, But I don't remember that.
Well, we've got to get somebody to say yes or no. Right, we're relying on nine year old Blake here. That's not a good reference.
You asked ten dudes and they say the same thing.
Yeah, sorry, mister Blake. You dreamt this moment. Oh man, Well, you know what, I'm gonna hold on to it. I'm just gonna I'm gonna continue to build on that.
I'm gonna go to one more sources, okay, because all right, one more so. But we'll talk about that later. That's funny because I don't remember that. That's something that I don't really look for until unless unless something like that happens. Right, Yeah, but it was at Chippy game. Was gonna kick a grap out of them. It was like one side of the pair. Cold had his moment of forty some points and it was what it was. I mean, come on, we still talk about it thirty some years later.
I mean, but you think about that performance it's one of the greatest of A performances of all time. Michael, Yeah, I mean, I guess whatever, Fab four that just went to national championship.
Right right? Okay, uh, well we got got two minutes, Okay, okay, cool, so here we go we can have some breaking news. I just wanted to get that Bobby early stuff. So good for him that he came out and he said that. Yeah.
I mean, I mean, how do you feel about Bobby Hurley overall? Because I watch interviews compared to what he's on the court, and I think there, I think his court antics are a little bit of an act compared to what he is as a person.
That's exactly what the synopsis is or the the overwhelming thoughts are on him. He's different when he gets in the court, he's a competitory, he's animated blah blah blah. He's always his brother, yeah right, and his brother's getting results.
Uh.
And he's an apparently a very good guy off the off the court. We had a former U of A player, a issue player, talk about that yesterday. You know, he helps people, sees people in need, blah blah blah. But when he gets on the court, but everybody has their own yah persona. Yeah, yeah, you know.
I mean we were going to see his brother hopefully here in the next what two years?
Yeah, yeah, right, so that should be a lot of fun. Yeah, okay, Hey, let's just go. We'll go and get a hold of Darnell Dixon here from approval.
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Steve Rivera, PA's got his eye on the ball on Tucson's sports stationed Fox Sports Sports fIF eight.
I'll talk to why in the Ball hero on Fox Sports fourteen fifty. I'm Steve Rivera. You're Blake Eager from the Southern Arizona Sports Tourism in film forty.
Yes.
No.
On the foal, we have our visiting guests from the Provo Herald and it's Darneld Dixon, Darniel. How are you.
I'm doing well, fellows. I'm experiencing something kind.
Of odd here.
Maybe you guys can judge verify it because you're in Phoenix.
I believe to call it the sun.
Oh the sun here here here in Utah. It's winter still in February, but.
I believe is it?
Is it yellow and kind of warm? Is that what that is?
It's eighty six degrees today.
We're in a we're in a little low fifties.
But it feels like eighty six.
Oh, I'm sure. I mean, that's that's bothering for you guys. That's notice. I'm curious. I'm curious tonight we'll talk a lot about tonight's king. But how long have you been covering the team?
Well, I've been with the Herald and and some of its outlets since about nineteen ninety eight, so I've been you could tell from this picture I sent you got I got a white beard, so I've been.
Around a while.
Yeah.
No, no, I have the same white beard. And that's interesting because you must have been at the game when when UA played last with Loot in maybe early two thousands.
Well, the last game I remember with Arizona, there were two with Jimmer's junior year Jimember for that junior year in Tucson. He scored school record forty nine in that one, and then the following year this was a Sean.
Miller I believe, yes and ye had The.
Next year was at the Delta Center where the Jazz play and Jimmer had thirty three in another pretty big b YU win. Those those a last two I remember with Arizona.
And basketball, okay, because Arizona took a pretty good team to Provo a while back and got beat with a party, a very good team, and Jean had gotten thrown out hitting some guy. Can't remember the player in the back of the head, you know.
Oh yeah, yeah, yeah, I remember that.
Yeah yeah. So now this should be a little different. Arizona goes in as a three point what's up with that?
Well, here's the thing about this game.
And you know, there's been so many big games played that Michale Center that that Arizona has been involved with, But in the Marriott Center, there just hasn't been a lot of really big power conference games until b why You joined the Big Twelve because previously in their other conferences they couldn't get teams to come and play them here in the non conference. And then they were playing in the West Coast Conference in the Whack and the
Mountain West Conference. So I can remember Jim Or's sophomore year at BYU, Wake Forest came and that was a huge deal that they came to Provo. And then in twenty twenty, h b why You played Gonzaga when the Zaggs were ranked number two and beat them those right before everything shut down.
With the pandemic.
But I was trying to think of games that are bigger than this one, And you guys might think it's hyperbole, but I'm telling you this is one of the biggest games ever played at the Marriott Center because of the situation where it's Arizona WILL teams are in a big conference YU and there was on a book on four game win streets that has NCAAA implications for both programs.
So it's it's a really big game. And I'm a little surprised that Arizona would be an underdog considering what they've done in the Big twelve play so far, but the Cougars have played pretty well in the last couple of weeks, so I expect it to be a really really competitive game.
What do you think the what do you think the ten it's going to be for the game tonight or do you know already?
Oh, it'll be a sellout, close to eighteen thousand. It's going to be crazy. It's a nine o'clock start here in Utah, so you know, college students don't ever pass up an opportunity to stay up late and get crazy, So I expect that. I think the atmosphere to.
Be really good.
Yeah, even the b YU, right I mean this is just like.
Well, they're usually not allowed to see, so now that they get their approval.
They're going to all be there.
But you know what, BYU has kind of made its mark in recent weeks obviously, and I've heard somebody from Provo talk about this. It's kind of non provincial. It's the nil they have a lot of money in the in the conference. Uh, this could change a few things up there, basketball boys, It really could.
And you know, when when b YU hired Kevin Young, you're familiar with him as being an assistant coach, the topic assistant in the NBA there with the Suns for a while. When when he was hired, I thought, Okay, his strength is going to be acts as and O's, but he might struggle a little bit with some of the nuances of college basketball, including ni L and recruiting. And it turned out to be kind of the opposite that he's been a fantastic recruiter, and some of that
is that there is nil money available. He's also sold the program is being run like an NBA franchise, So they've got you know, NBA strength and conditioning guy to get NBIA nutrition and got NBA you know workout situation, so so they sold it that way too. And where I think this this uh he and his coaching staff has struggled just a little bit, is kind of making that switcher over from professional to college basketball a little
bit different pace. Not necessarily on the floor, although there is a little bit that way, but just the pace of the season. You know, he's used to getting two or three practices and playing exhibition games and then playing three games a.
Week for you know, three or four months in the NBA.
And they had six months from the time he took a job until they had their first.
Game, and they played one or two a week, And so.
I think all that was something that took his coaches to have a little bit of time to get used to. But I think in the last couple of weeks what they've discovered is a way to get the right guys in at the right time, the right starters, with the right rotations. Guys understand their roles better than they did earlier, and that's what's led to this four game when Eastreet, God,
they've played really well. They're the number one field goal percentage team in the Big twelve play and the number one three point percentage team in Big twelve plays, so they really put themselves in a good.
Position right there. Explains why they're the three point favorite, because there was a lot of has been better at the three point line defending it, but not always. No, I would still argue it's probably close to our Achilles Hill is still, especially if a team like BYU comes into town or we're going there with with how good you guys shoot the three ball, it's gonna be it's gonna be a dogfight. To clarify, Darnell, I'm the journalist in the room, and my boy Blake here is not.
He's the fan of the room. So that's why he's saying, Yeah.
I get it. Yeah, we're sensitive of that kind of thing, aren't we.
The Yeah, not an hour, But to your point, yeah, I mean you see it because you know the games.
Yeah, I mean you're you know, we've been going to games forever and you've seen this team kind of evolve, but there's still weaknesses and you watch by you and you're right, Darnell that they're I mean, they've shoot lights out from the three point line, and these last four games they've been pretty much unstoppable when it comes to that.
Yeah, and they've improved defensively. I think they're still working some things out. And when they face and you know the big twelve, everybody has at least one or two or even three guards they can just take into the hole every every time they get it. And Caleb Love is that kind of guy for Arizona. And it looks like he's shooting percentages are kind of up and down, but he puts points on the board and he puts a lot of strain on your defense to have to
account for him. And so I know that's that's a challenge that the DYU defense has to face tonight, is is slowing him down and then making sure other guys don't don't get off because of that.
Yeah, no question.
You know.
One of the concerns I think down here is Arizona's coming off a couple of very emotional wins. Iowa State we thought was fantastic right in the top five when they came down here. Now they've kind of lost a little momentum or mojo. And then Arizona beats Arizona State and in an emotional game that how maybe the fall could happen sometime soon.
Well, it's this league, and you guys know this. You know, obviously the first year for Arizona in the Big twelve, but playing in the Pac twelve, you know, you go on the road and things are a little bit different. It's been a long time since Arizona's been in the Marriage Center, so it's an unfamiliar place for them. It's it's it's a big arena too. It used to see around twenty two thousand, and they restructured a little bit with some of the seats to make them a little
bit wider, so it's about eighteen thousand capacity now. But it's a big arena and the student section is huge and they get really loud, and it'll be a good test for Arizona to go on the road and play in this environment. For BYU, you know, they they have spent one year in the Big twelve and they got some big road wins. Last year they beat Canvas at Allen's Field House, which was might have been the BYU's biggest win in the regular seas than ever.
I mean, who knows. That's that's for up for debate.
But this league makes it difficult for you to go on the road with all these different environments and different venues.
And so it'll.
Be a big test for Arizona to come in here and base a team that's been playing well the last couple of weeks and putting things together at the right time.
I was curious, having been the beat writer for a while. I was I was covering the team many years ago as a journalist of the paper for twenty three years, and I've gone to venues know flog Allen and a lot of those good places. B whyus as well. I'm sure you've traveled to a few of those spots in the Big Twelve, and can you talk about some of the better venues for fans?
Well, I feel like any place you go in this league, it's pretty specific when you when you're a Power Conference team, you have that kind of support, and there's a few places like when B why you played in the West Coast Conference, you know, going to Gonzaga and going to Saint Mary those were crazy places to play. But B why, you would go to Portland and they'd have more fans than Portland would have. Yeah, or they'd go to Santa Clara and they'd have more fans, And that doesn't happen
in this league very often. But B why you does represent itself really well in some of these places. I know, b why you're going down and uh, you know, playing Baylor and TCU and some of those schools though those are some pretty tough environments when those teams are playing well and and but they always seem to have a pretty good contingent of BYU fans, and the announcers always say, well,
BYU travels well, and that's partially true. But because of the bau's association with the Church of Jesus Christ the Lattery Saints, there are congregations in every city, so they do get quite a few home fans that end up driving a couple of hours if they need to to go to the game and help support the team. So d YU spared pretty pretty well. They struggled this year on the road early, but they picked up a couple of wins now and they feel like they've got that all worked out.
Yeah.
I think it was similar for the uv A coming from the B twelve. I mean with a PAC twelve. Wherever they traveled, I would say for the most part it was a majority of U of A fans a similar circumstance, so that that changed the Big Twelve, like Steve was saying, is that. I mean, every house is rocking and their fan base is huge, and I mean, you know, for the U of A to travel to BYU into a stadium that has eighteen thousand fans, it's it's not a cookie cutter game like you would get
going to maybe COL in the past. Very similar situation, so same kind of similar road maps as well.
Yeah, yeah, I was gonna say, I don't think Arizona's going to travel well here because they just don't. But you talked about BYU fans all over in Phoenix have a nice contingent. Arizona played the football against BYU and Phoenix and that mutual game whatever it was with rit Rod I think it was Vegas for the Bowl Bowl game back in whatever it was to So there's a history of the schools and playing one another.
Yeah, I was just recalling I went down to Tucson for a game I believe it was two thousand and six. Nick Foulk kicked the field goal in the final seconds. I think it was sixteen thirteen with the final there in that year, BYU finished eleven and two, if I recall correctly.
So I like it.
I like the fact that there are some more regional matchups in this league now with Arizona and Arizona State BYU Utah Colorado. I just like that that it's close enough where fans can travel and you can develop some good rivalries. That's one of the things that's kind of getting lost in this shuffling of conferences is you end up with teams that don't play each other that used to play each other every year. I think I was seeing something about UH Texas Tech and Baylor aren't playing
this year for the first time. It's like the longest running UH rivalry in the state of Texas. I mean, you know, things like that happen. So I'm glad to see some some closer matchups and to renew some rivalries with Arizona, a Zona State, who were in the whack with YU way back when.
What was the coach talking about when he talked about Arizona, you know, facing you know, facing Arizona tonight the biggest concerns.
Right, Well, he says he knows Tommy Lloyd pretty well, and so that that's something that you know as a as a coach. He's been everywhere Kevin Young has been overseas, He's coached in the what was then the D League now the G League in the NBA. So he respects Tommy Lloyd. He knows what a challenge it is defensively to play against someone like Caleb Love, who's got so much talent and kind of material. You know, some some games are even within the game.
He may start off three for twelve and.
End up making his next six shots. So he's a tough guy to defend.
There.
There's a lot of respect though. They understand what Arizona went through in the non conference play with a very difficult schedule, and you know, going nine to one in the first ten games in this league is not an easy task for anybody, and Arizona's pulled it off. So they're expecting Arizona's best tonight.
Yeah, of course, Uh with with Caleb, but of course he's played you know, hot and cold. Uh, it's you you expect to be a physical game. Arizona kind of showed something that's not and to be physical against Iowa State a little against a issue, but it's it's this league is all about that.
Yeah, that that's that's interesting. I know when b Y you played on.
All of it Saturday.
Uh, their their.
Last game, they kind of had some issues with the physicality, especially early on that UCF put on them. And you know, you see F, They're they're very physically talented team. They were double teaming on the on the pick and roll. They were putting a lot of pressure on Diego dem N, BYU's freshman point guard, and caused quite a few turnovers to start. BYU ended up adjusting. But this is this is not generally a team that's been super physical in
Big Twelve play. They kind of had to adjust to that, mainly because their non conference schedule was really not very good. And even Kevin Young's admitted he wished he would have played another, you know, two or three maybe Power conference teams rather than the schedule theyhead. But you play here out in front of you. But they've had to kind of adjust to the level of physicality and and I don't believe you see F. It's shown that double team early, but BYU managed to find ways to beat it and
ended up with some some pretty good open threes. So those in game adjustments are going to be important depending on how physical.
That game gets.
Uh, you know, we tend to dabble and stuff like this, but so there, Arizona's a three point underdog. But do you know what the over under is because I know that both teams score like crazy, Yeah, I would.
I would imagine the over run Wry'd be somewhere in the maybe one sixty sixties sixties maybe, yeah.
Because if they scored near each should be around that area.
Yeah. I think.
I think both teams are capable of putting eighty or ninety points on the board. And I think that Byu likes that pace.
Uh.
They play a little bit of what they call point five basketball, where you know, you get the ball in your hands and you want to in half a second, you want to make a decision about what you were trying to do. And they're trying to increase that pace to move the ball and to find their shooters because they do have quite a few guys. Richie Saunders is having an MVP Tyme season for the Cougars. Trevin Nell's a really good shooter. Cannon Catchings went eight for eight
last week in a game against Baylor in overtime. So they've got some shooters and they'd like to play that fast pace, and if Arizona does too, I do expect there to be a lot of points tonight.
Well, it's kind of funny because, like I said, I've covered this team forever. I guess I've been told that the over unders one fifty and a half. But Arizona thrives in these situations. You give them a put teams put them in a half court situation. And it's been since my time, since your time, Blake, where if you put them in a half court situation, they kind of get muddled. You get muddled and they get you know,
you're playing in the fifties, Arizona struggles. But if you're in the seventies, I mean, Arizona's like twenty six and one, they love it.
Yeah. And defensively, that's, like I said, a challenge for BYU to figure out what they want to do to slow them down. During the non conference play, BYU's rebounding was really good. It hasn't been quite as good in conference play because they're obviously playing better teams, you know, so they're going to have to work the defensive boards really well and they may try to, you know, get a little bit more half court because they've been better
at executing in tough situations. They lost in games early in conference play where they just couldn't execute down the stretch, and against UCF in a very close game, the y end up scoring on its final seven, well seven straight possessions after the four minute mark. So I think they worked out some things execution wise where they feel like when.
They need to they can execute in a half court. But they do.
They do want to move the ball, they want to be fast.
Yeah, not afraid to do that real quick. We got to go, But give me a prediction real quick from end Blake too, what's your prediction?
You got to get your prediction from the fan. You can't get a prediction from.
The media now, ye, So yeah, I was going to ask you Darnell actually before we get to go, who's the X factor for BYU tonight? Who on that team makes a difference for them?
Well, about six games ago, Kevin Young made an adjustment and the starting lineup Ken and Catchings is a really highly rated freshman who's been kind of struggling a little bit. So he put in what mag He's a grad transfer from Rutgers, six foot seven, really really good defender, and I think that's made a big difference because of his intensity on the defensive end. And then on Saturday at UCP he scored to see some high nineteen points, so
he's capable of scoring. I think he's kind of the X factor because he's going to have to defend Kayleb a little, but he's gonna do it on his own. But he's gonna have to spend I think, most of the reps on him, and and then he has to take advantage when other teams focus on Richie Saunders and
the Sandy Trari either the Yu's main scorer inside. So that's the guy I would say would be someone to watch tonight, is what mag He's a long, athletic defender, kind of somebody that BYU really hasn't had in the bag for quite a while, and so they take advantage of his his abilities.
Okay, so real quick, your prediction seventy eight seventy five you have a okay you Homer, what you okay?
Okay, seventy five b YU had that.
On the bus. I will I'll go like a eighty eighty two seventy seven b YU. Yeah, all right, Okay, we'll see what happens. We'll talk to you the next time around. Darnell. Thanks, I appreciate your time.
Yeah, sure, good talking again.
Good stuff. Hey, we've got to take a break. You can come back and then we'll talk more about this game. You're an Arizona men's basketball fan. You know whats been successful for nearly forty years. Now take a look back at the Ludelsen era. In my new book, Lessons from Loot, it was a labor of love through the eyes of twenty five former players, coaches and friends to give insight to the coach and the man who led them, competed against them, and inspired them. Twenty five chapters for his
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Streaming live on the Ihearts Radio WAB. This is I on the Ball with Steve Rovera on Fox Sports fourteen fifty.
Hey, welcome back to in the Ball here on Fox Sports fourteen fifty on Steve Rivera.
You're Blake Eager. Yeah, from the Southern Aer's on the sports chowism in film Authority.
At some point I'm going to remember all that. No, It's okay.
That's why I'm here, right, because I'm just a fan that needs to remember those things, right, Yeah, we will you.
War fansers, No, no, no, no, kids. The kids are fans too, because they're school until they graduate. They're not fans.
Okay, Now can alumni say us yes? Okay, And I'm not alumni, but I'm a two son in I'm not able to say. You can say what you're just no, no, no, I like to have this debate. You're a guest on the show.
You can say whatever you please except cursords. Dang it, right, one of these days, it is what it is.
So we were we were asking Cody f off Air, like what the most stressful part of his day is, and Cody, you said.
It's class. I love it. Yeah, it's the greatest thing to be twenty and going to college, right, best time? Yeah, best time of your life? Honestly. I mean you you you're from New York, right, yeah, I'm sure your parents are doing okay, you're sending you here, right, what do you have bills? Don't worry about No? I hate you? Yeah seriously, right? Yeah, No, sleepless nights.
You don't wake up at like three and with just anxiety ridden, with anxiety, sweating, going what am I doing with my life? Just wait a couple of years when you graduate, it's going to kick in. So enjoy these huh yeah, no, yeah, we're not going to go down that.
Well that's eventually. Well, yeah, that's my son is going through that.
Now, how many And let me ask you this, as a you have a student, current you have a student, how many sporting events do you attend as a student?
The Marquee basketball and.
Football games mostly so like the ranked teams I go to your friends go to, but not like baseball, softball or volleyball.
No, not yet.
Yeah, I always think it's it's kind of intriguing me.
And I know I'm a baseball homer too when I say this, But because they have High Corbett and the history at High Corbett and it's like kind of a standalone arena, not on campus, and it was kind of the first one that allowed students to drink at Like I always thought as a student that would be especially on a Friday or Saturday, you would go to like start your night and you guys could all meet it because it's it's more it's a more affordable ticket, right,
There's there's a capability of just starting off and then going downtown from that. But that's is that not a thing for you? Ving Some of my friends do do that. Yeah, I think I'll start doing that this year. So yeah, Okay, Yeah, what a life you guys have. I wish I had that life. Again, you're tying to Cody, Yeah, you have a good life too. I'm not complaining about my life.
You know.
This is not a complaint driven show. Sure if it was, I would be on every day.
And you probably want to come on every day. Anybody want to call talk about tonight's game? Do you think they're gonna win? Do you think they're gonna lose? Why do you think they're gonna lose? Why do you think you think they're gonna win?
I didn't know that the Marriott Center was eighteen thousand strong.
That's big, and I knew that Utah was. It's going to be packed, and it's going to be you know, a lot of people that are going crazy.
Our chair for Tourism, Vance Bryce, is from Graham County, but he went to buy U and he was talking about that. I actually saw him at lunch today. He was talking about the atmosphere on campus for when teams like you have a come to town that the fan base goes.
It's just a rabbit fan base. They go crazy for these things, you know. So yeah, no, of course, thanks for coming in today. Oh me yees sa saving me today. Listen, I have a lot of stuff to do. Apparently, I know you're fine. It's it's not from it all. So let's go back to to the WBC. Are you nervous from a sales standpoint, from sales and whatever you're doing.
I mean, you're asking somebody that's just nervous about life. That's unfair. I was talked to my mom today and like, I got that, you know, irish worrying gene from her. So yeah, I'm nervous, but I'm nervous with everything. You know, I've got to remember at the end of the day, it's still a group effort from our community in southern Arizona to bring Major League Baseball back in some capacity with World Baseball Classic that we haven't had.
So is it driven by sales?
Yeah, it is for us from a financial standpoint where we don't want to lose too much money. But is it important for the community to have a footback in the door. And I think that's that's important, right, I mean, that's something that allows us to have I think I was telling you offline, or maybe I said don't.
I can't remember now. My memory is so short.
Our Kids in the Park days on Monday and Tuesday, March third and March fourth at eleven am. We've already got three thousand kids lined up for that and they're coming to the day they're coming to the day games as field trips. We've got all the school districts and in Kima County and Santa Cruz involved, And I mean it's things like that that you're able to maybe do something that we haven't done in a long time. So yeah, I'm nervous about sales, but that's again we're we're late market.
Well that's brilliant too. You're gonna have a lot of a lot of fans that way. Yeah, kind of like built in right.
Yeah, And we came up with that idea is that, you know, as a group of Eric Rhodes with the STOEP dug arison A Bowl. So yeah, I used to work with the Diamondbacks when they were still at TP then and now Keno Sports Complex, Keeno Veterans.
Yeah. No, that's a great because it's a great idea, great idea. Uh and and the kids, many of which will be interested obviously, yeah, some won't be, but you'll have them in the seats and having a great time and who yells louder than kids.
Yeah, and we've got you know, the great thing about that is that we got the Tucson Children's Museum and Pema County Library on on site. The two Sun Children's Museum is going to be running a STEM program. Uh So, like you said, even if you have kids that don't care about the game of baseball, they have they have added attention when it comes to the STEM program. And I will tell you from a playing experience, we used to have kids days on getaway games.
So getaway games.
We usually played the day after a night game at like ten am, And so I would if I pitched that night game and we enjoyed ourselves after the game that ten a in game. To have thousands of screaming kids singing SpongeBob SquarePants was a little bit of a nightmare. But at the same time, it's pretty cool to see all those kids on site and watching baseball, watching sports in general is great.
Yeah.
You go through Monday through Thursday, right, Sunday through Thursday, Sunday through Thursdays. Sunday should be opening.
Day, right, Yeah, we've got opening ceremonies, We've got we've got two games on Sunday in March second, eleven am and six pm. We're really excited about that. The six pm game, we're gonna have fireworks. We're gonna have opening ceremonies for both games. We're gonna get the cultural the Chinese Cultural Center involved. Hopefully they're going to come out and do a little show. We're really excited about it. And then Monday night you have a youth sports Night.
We're going to honor Bill Leith from Keno Baseball. Bill started Keno Baseball and that's if you've ever had a sunplay youth baseball, and two SUNY's probably gone through Keno in the last fifteen to sixteen years.
Yeah, we've got a call. Great, Yeah, Hello, you're on the ERA and nine on the ball.
Who's this good afternoon, Steve?
What's going on?
They? Yeah?
I could have swore I looked on the spread this morning and the U of A was favored.
By one and a half.
No, it was the other way around.
Well, I mean I looked this morning, and I guess my eyes were playing tricks on me. But I guess anyway, I think if they're getting two, they said two where you could play to three tonight in two to three points, depending on what.
You want to do. And I think the U of A is gonna win. I think they're gonna I think they're gonna be cover the spread. And how you think they're gonna win? Outright? Are you by three?
Who's Who's who's saying this? Howard the fan or Howard the person?
No, Howard the person. I just they're good. I just look through their lineup. They are good. And that freshman is really good. And I didn't know they're eighteen thousand. So I'm gonna be up. I'm gonna listen to it on the radio, I guess, because it should be good. It starts at nine o'clock. But you can bet the fans and attend the games of mckill. They're gonna be in bed.
They'll they'll stand up once just one. Obviously. Yeah, there's a good chance they could lose this game. Obviously. Yeah.
I mean, you know, Howard you the you don't think let me ask you this question. Do you does the b YU three point percentage scare you against you as perimeter defense?
Yeah? Yeah, possibly.
And they have a lot of guys six foot eight are over. They got a lot they literally have about eight p eight.
Or nine people six foot eight are over on the roster, and that's what a lot of teams are lacking. The Sons and the Wildcats are lacking six foot eight enough six eight players.
So let me ask you think it quick, real quick, Howard. Maybe within a minute. Yeah, so what do you make the whole thing within a minute? What do you like about Arizona? What don't you like yet?
Okay, Well, I think what we like is the guard play is going good and we know as tournament time's coming that's going.
To be important.
And in the Wildcats, I look at it just like at the Suns. Too bad we don't have but you are going to need taller players. And I just like to compare both the Sons and the Wildcats. They don't at least the stupid Son's coach is not coaching.
Well.
I think in college it's a different animal and you coach a little different. And I think Tommy has control of how you know to bed. He doesn't have the other big guy, but you play with what you got. So I think that's the thing I don't like is the players that God Tommy is such a great coach. I mean I'm Trucson should just.
Really be happy what they have. They have no clue.
Yeah, okay, well, thank you. Something we talked about Tommy earlier on. I think that we are very fortunate to have him here. And yeah he's so good. Yeah, okay, well, hey, we got a minute, no minute, it's to me. It's pretty close right about a minute. Oh, you can wrap it up, we got okay, uh, so good for st hour. We're gonna talk to you. Okay, it's okay. Small here on the other side, so, uh, talk more baseball. We're gonna
breaking news. Okay, we'll probably get some calls. You probably don't have a whole lot of breaking news, right, Okay, so then we'll take some more calls during that breaking news and talk to Jim Small from the WBC, and then take some more calls after that. Okay, yeah, sounds good to be cool. Thanks. I'm here for the right