KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) – Loren Woods was a self-described
"nervous wreck." The long-armed Arizona center didn't want the
Wildcats joining the list of favored teams making an early exit
from the NCAA Tournament.
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Fri, March 16
Loren Woods and Michael Wright dominated the interior, combining for 34 points.
Eastern Illinois did not have an answer for Arizona's physically superior front line.
Arizona moves on to meet Butler, which lost to the Wildcats earlier this year 72-60 in
Tuscon. That game was close with five minutes left. Gilbert Arenas struggled in that
game, but you can bet Arenas will show up to play Sunday. He's been playing as well as
any shooting guard in America down the stretch.
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"The guys were trying to calm me down. The other guys were
relaxed from the beginning. Once I got into the flow of the game, I
was fine," Woods said.
And so was second-seeded Arizona in the opening round of the
Midwest Regional. Surviving an early surge by inspired underdog
Eastern Illinois, the talented Wildcats rolled to a 101-76 win
Friday.
"Yesterday we knew there were a lot of teams going down, a lot
of upsets out there," said Woods, who scored 17 points and also
had nine rebounds and six blocked shots.
"We knew Eastern Illinois was capable of an upset because they
have those really good 3-point shooters. They had guys who can
score on the outside, but we have guys who can score on the outside
and the inside."
Gilbert Arenas scored 21 points to lead Arizona and Michael
Wright also added 17 for the Wildcats (24-7), who had five players
in double figures.
|  | | Eugene Edgerson, left, beats Todd Bergmann for one of his seven rebounds in Arizona's first-round win over Eastern Illinois. Edgerson also had 13 points. |
When Iowa State was ousted Thursday night by Hampton in the West
Regional, it made the Cyclones the fourth No. 2 team since 1991 to
lose to a No. 15 in the first round. That included Arizona's loss
to Santa Clara in 1993.
But Arenas and his talented teammates weren't about to let it
happen again.
Arizona, making its 17th straight NCAA Tournament appearance
under Lute Olson, endured a season of turmoil that included the
death of the coach's wife, Bobbi, and suspensions for Woods and
Richard Jefferson.
Regrouping emotionally, the Wildcats have won 16 of their last
18 games heading into Sunday's second-round meeting with Butler.
The Bulldogs jumped out to a 43-10 halftime lead Thursday and
beat Wake Forest 79-63 in the first game at Kemper Arena.
It will be the second meeting this season between Arizona and
Butler. The Wildcats took a 12-point win on Dec. 28 in the Fiesta
Bowl Classic.
"This has been a very difficult year for these guys," Olson
said.
"It was a very unstable situation we had through the middle of
January. Arizona basketball is all about family and all of a sudden
it wasn't the same. The turnaround of this team is when they began
letting the game come to them."
That came when Olson returned to the team after his wife's
death. The Wildcats subsequently got on a roll that helped them
build momentum into the tournament.
Eastern Illinois (21-10), making its second-ever NCAA
appearance, rushed out to an early five-point lead before the
Wildcats got going.
Kyle Hill, the nation's No. 3 scorer with a 23.5 average, got 12
of Eastern's first 16 points with a variety of jumpers and
acrobatic drives to the basket. He finished with 32 points.
Arizona withstood the initial outburst from Hill and ran off 14
straight points, using a pressing defense and its inside power and
strength.
Woods' three-point play and three baskets by Eugene Edgerson
highlighted the spurt as the Wildcats rolled to a 28-16 lead.
In the final 13 minutes of the first half, Arizona outscored the
overmatched Panthers 41-17 to build a 55-33 halftime lead as Woods
and Wright had 13 points and five rebounds apiece in the opening
half.
"They put the pressure on us and we were careless with the ball
and that turned around the game. They got that big lead and we were
fighting back," Hill said.
At one point it was so easy for the Wildcats that Arenas had a
breakaway layup but at the last second he turned and fed the ball
to Woods for a dunk. Woods got a technical for hanging on the rim.
The second half was more of the same as the Wildcats started
with an 11-0 run before Eastern could score 4½ minutes into the
half.
Arizona, which shot 59 percent, is now 15-0 this season when
scoring at least 80 points.
Eastern's Henry Domercant, who averaged 22.9 as the No. 4 scorer
in Division I, scored 20 Friday on 5-of-17 shooting.
"We just didn't take care of the details that you need to beat
a team like that," Domercant said.
"We were prepared but we aren't used to seeing that type of
athleticism and size," Eastern guard Matt Britton said. "They
didn't throw any surprises at us, they just wore us down."
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ALSO SEE
Men's College Basketball Scoreboard
Eastern Illinois Clubhouse
Arizona Clubhouse
AUDIO/VIDEO
 Lute Olson says Loren Woods did a good job in stepping up as a team leader of the Wildcats.
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Loren Woods says if the Wildcats didn't play as a team, their season would have ended quickly.
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RealAudio: 14.4 | 28.8 | 56.6
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