Mar
8
by Chris Maynard, chris@hoops4thesoul.com
Hoops 4 the Soul Southeast Regional Breakdown
#2 1994 Arkansas Razorbacks vs. #3 2004 UCONN Huskies
(remember to click on the pictures)
Point Guard:
ARK Corey Beck (8.8 ppg, 169 assists) vs. UCONN Taliek Brown (6.3 ppg, 253 assists)
The junior Beck is at his best when using his speed to break down the defense, get into the lane and kick out to Arkansas’ outstanding three-point shooters Scotty Thurman, Dwight Stewart and Alex Dillard. Beck is like a magnet when he gets past his defender—the defense must collapse on him and thus be left susceptible to getting killed from the outside. Beck may be a pass-first point guard, but he can stroke the three, connecting on 45 percent of his attempts this season. Beck is also a real pest on the defensive end. A product of the New York playgrounds, Brown does not have the flashy offensive game of a Kenny Anderson or a Pearl Washington, as examples. Brown is just a true point guard; he can’t shoot the ball well but he gets UCONN and its shooters—Ben Gordon and Rashad Anderson—going. Brown knows how to run an offense and makes up for his shooting deficiencies with hard-nosed defense. Advantage: Even
Shooting Guard:
ARK Clint McDaniel (8.1 ppg, 35% three) vs. UCONN Ben Gordon (18.5 ppg, 43% three)
The 6’4’’ McDaniel is a solid wing player, who is a bit streaky with the three but will keep you honest. McDaniel’s another annoyance on defense who will get into Gordon’s body as the Razorbacks employ their aggressive 40 minutes of hell on defense. While Gordon is generously listed at 6’2’’, the junior from Mount Vernon, New York is as creative a scorer as there is in this region. Gordon will burn you from the outside, whether his feet are or are not set, and can get into the lane and toss up tear-drop floaters or simply pop back and stick in a high-arching fade away. Gordon’s specialty is scoring, and his size is no deterrent in getting to the rack. Gordon is streaky and can be quiet at times; he is often shaky with the ball and doesn’t play much defense. However, with his scoring ability and lack of fear in taking and making the clutch shot, Gordon easily gets the nod here. Advantage: UCONN
Small Forward:
ARK Scotty Thurman (15.9 ppg, 43% three) vs. UCONN Rashad Anderson (11.2 ppg, 41% three)
Technically, Arkansas Head Coach Nolan Richardson starts senior Ken Biley (2.8 ppg, 2.1 rpg), who plays a few minutes and gets replaced by the 6’6’’ sophomore Thurman, who is instant offense off the bench. Thurman is adept at using screens to get his three-point shot. And if Thurman’s able to get his feet squared with the rim, he’ll usually knock down the three. Behind big man Corliss Williamson, Thurman is Arkansas’ most dangerous and explosive offensive option. Like Thurman, Anderson is another three point shooter. The sophomore from Florida is one-dimensional on the court, but he does his one dimension quite well. However, Anderson is not as strong from the trifecta as Thurman. Advantage: Arkansas
Power Forward:
ARK Corliss Williamson (20.4 ppg, 7.7 rpg) vs. UCONN Emeka Okafor (17.6 ppg, 11.5 rpg)
There’s a reason why Williamson is called the “Big Nasty.” While only 6’7’’, Williamson is a beast down low against bigger opponents with his upper body strength, wide shoulders and soft shooting touch (62 percent field goal percentage on the season). Playing with a scowl on his face, Williamson has no problem bowling over the defense to get to the hoop. Williamson will pose a challenge for UCONN stud senior Okafor, the 2004 National Defensive Player of the Year who led the country in blocked shots. The cerebral Nigerian Okafor has come a long way in its four years at UCONN, coming in as a lowly recruited and unrefined project and turning into a potential top NBA draft pick. Cerebral on and off the court, Okafor is the bedrock of this UCONN team; while Gordon may have the most talent, Okafor has the most heart, determination and focus. A nice guy off the court, Okafor is like Williamson in that he doesn’t care about making friends on it. In simple terms, this is an outstanding match up in which the game will hinge. Advantage: Even
Center:
ARK Dwight Stewart (8.0 ppg, 39% three) vs. UCONN Josh Boone (5.9 ppg, 5.8 rpg)
The rotund 6’9’’ Stewart makes his living hoisting the three. Don’t be fooled by the slim picture to the left; the girthy Stewart can really stroke it from the outside. However, stamina is always an issue with Stewart, and it will be again with the active freshman Boone, who is out there because of his length and size. Boone does not have much of an offensive game but really works hard and makes his impact on the glass. Advantage: Even
The Bench:
Arkansas throws some very talented players off the bench. Junior guard Alex Dillard (8.9 ppg, 41% three) is a gunner who has no conscious and can fill it up quickly and often. Promising freshman forward Darnell Robinson (7.6 ppg, 4.7 rpg) brings intriguing offensive ability while 6’7’’ junior guard Davor Rimac (4.8 ppg, 1.9 rpg) and fellow freshman big man Lee Wilson (3.4 ppg, 3.1 rpg) are capable players in limited minutes.
UCONN matches with another promising if not erratic freshman in 6’11’’ Charlie Villanueva (8.9 ppg, 5.3 rpg), who was on his way to the University of Illinois but reopened his possibilities when Bill Self left the school. For his size, Villanueva is more about the outside than the inside play; he loves to shoot the three like Arkansas’ Stewart. If Villanueva plays well and up to his ability, UCONN is nearly impossible to beat. He may also be a no-show. The Huskies also have depth in sophomore small forward Denham Brown (8.9 ppg, 3.9 rpg), a solid shooter and defender who could easily start on this team. Sophomore big man Hilton Armstrong (2.4 ppg, 2.8 rpg) and freshman point guard Marcus Williams (2.9 ppg, 69 assists) don’t get much time but can step in if need be. Advantage: Even
Coaching:
ARK Nolan Richardson vs. UCONN Jim Calhoun
Richardson’s team thrives off his philosophy of employing 40 minutes of constant pressure on the offensive and defensive sides of the ball. The Razorbacks have also adopted the persona of their head coach, who can be quite nasty when it comes to being competitively great. Calhoun has put together yet another deep and solid UCONN team. Like Richardson, Calhoun is a street fighter with attitude. These guys won’t back down, nor will their teams. Advantage: Even
Prediction:
Yet another evenly matched game in this Sweet Sixteen Tournament. Arkansas’s tough but UCONN’s interior depth could be the difference in limiting or at least slowing down Williamson. Arkansas will need a big game from Thurman, and UCONN will need to limit the turnovers against Arkansas’s pressure. This will be a physical game that may be tough on the eyes at times but will be exciting when it counts, in the second half. UCONN pulls this one out with the duo of Gordon and Okafor taking over in crunch time, much to the dismay of Bill Clinton, who will inevitably drown his sorrows in Big Macs afterwards.
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The junior Beck is at his best when using his speed to break down the defense, get into the lane and kick out to 
The 6’4’’ McDaniel is a solid wing player, who is a bit streaky with the three but will keep you honest. McDaniel’s another annoyance on defense who will get into Gordon’s body as the Razorbacks employ their aggressive 40 minutes of hell on defense. While Gordon is generously listed at 6’2’’, the junior from 
Technically, Arkansas Head Coach Nolan Richardson starts senior Ken Biley (2.8 ppg, 2.1 rpg), who plays a few minutes and gets replaced by the 6’6’’ sophomore Thurman, who is instant offense off the bench. Thurman is adept at using screens to get his three-point shot. And if Thurman’s able to get his feet squared with the rim, he’ll usually knock down the three. Behind big man Corliss Williamson, Thurman is 
There’s a reason why Williamson is called the “Big Nasty.” While only 6’7’’, Williamson is a beast down low against bigger opponents with his upper body strength, wide shoulders and soft shooting touch (62 percent field goal percentage on the season). Playing with a scowl on his face, Williamson has no problem bowling over the defense to get to the hoop. Williamson will pose a challenge for UCONN stud senior Okafor, the 2004 National Defensive Player of the Year who led the country in blocked shots. The cerebral Nigerian Okafor has come a long way in its four years at UCONN, coming in as a lowly recruited and unrefined project and turning into a potential top NBA draft pick. Cerebral on and off the court, Okafor is the bedrock of this UCONN team; while Gordon may have the most talent, Okafor has the most heart, determination and focus. A nice guy off the court, Okafor is like Williamson in that he doesn’t care about making friends on it. In simple terms, this is an outstanding match up in which the game will hinge. Advantage: Even 
The rotund 6’9’’ Stewart makes his living hoisting the three. Don’t be fooled by the slim picture to the left; the girthy Stewart can really stroke it from the outside. However, stamina is always an issue with Stewart, and it will be again with the active freshman Boone, who is out there because of his length and size. Boone does not have much of an offensive game but really works hard and makes his impact on the glass. Advantage: Even
UCONN matches with another promising if not erratic freshman in 6’11’’ Charlie Villanueva (8.9 ppg, 5.3 rpg), who was on his way to the 
Yet another evenly matched game in this Sweet Sixteen Tournament. 
1994 was blah. Unmemorable Arizona and Duke teams made the final 4, Glenn Robinson, Gene Keady and Purdue did not. BC beating UNC in the 2nd round was a shock, but any year where Purdue and Missouri are 1 seeds has to be considered a bust. In the end, the final was actually good with Thurman’s big shot the decisive blow. I remember this year best as the year I went 31-1 in the first round (only missed Cal-UWGB), only to have my sleeper Final 4 team Kentucky lose in the 2nd round. I think I picked UK to win the tourney every year from 1993 through 1997. Then I stopped in ‘98 and they won the damn thing.
2004 has fond memories for myself due to Georgia Tech’s amazing and fortunate run. UConn proved that they were lazy as hell in the regular season to only get a 2 seed with an insane amount of NBA level talent.
There were actually only 4 seeded upsets in the first round, but the 2nd round was crazy with a pair of 1-seeds crashing out, including an awesome UAB win over #1 overall team Kentucky and also 2-seed Gonzaga, after receiving their highest seed ever, getting bounced by 19 by 10-seed Nevada. The upsets in one bracket allowed UConn to coast the Final 4 without a challenge, but the UAB win set up GT for a miracle run. GT barely won the first two games over N.Iowa and BC. In both the other team had a shot to win at the very end. GT was “lucky” to get Nevada in the Sweet 16, but Nevada had to have been the best 10 seed ever with Kirk Snyder and Fazekas and just pummeled GT until the last 10 minutes, when GT started drilling 3’s. Will F’n Bynum made a filthy layup (check youtube) to break a tie with about a minute to go and Nevada went cold at the end. Against Kansas in the next game, GT played real well but let KU back into the game and thug JR Giddens tied it with a 3 in the last 30 seconds. In the OT, Jarrett Jack and Bynum were studs and Bill Self went home. Xavier had a great tournament as a 7-seed, knocking off the 2 and 3 before losing to Duke by 3 in a game where they got no calls. St Joe’s lived up to their 1 seed in a super game with Oklahoma State won by John Lucas at the end.
Bynum cemented his legend of the household status with his last second driving layup to beat OK State in the final 4. He is the only player from Illinois to play for GT since I started following them and for him to do what he did makes him a certifiable legend in my eyes. I was on such a high I don’t remember much from the UConn-Duke game, although I remember UConn catching some late breaks to win. Streaky shooters like Gordon and Anderson needed to be cold for GT to have any chance of beating UConn for a second time that season. They were very much not cold. How that team ever lost with 4! NBA big men, Gordon and a selfless PG is beyond me.