TUCSON, Ariz. — The love fest at McKale Center began early, and ended late.
Just like the Arizona domination.
On senior night, 14,545 made up a sea of red that stretched from the boosters on courtside all the way up to the die-hards in the rafters. They cheered and hailed their beloved Wildcats through their every move in Arizona’s final home game of the year.
There certainly was plenty to be jovial about for Tucson natives as nothing could go wrong for Arizona (21-7 overall, 13-3 Pacific-10 Conference) Saturday night in a 104-65 laugher.
And, by the way, the team they were playing was Oregon, but the men in green hardly made their presence felt as they wilted away in the desert heat.
“We didn’t handle ourselves well with our composure in this environment,” said Ernie Kent, Oregon head coach. “It needs to hurt. They need to be angry at themselves.”
The 39-point deficit was Oregon’s worst loss since a 106-54 defeat to the same Wildcats on Feb. 27, 1992, in McArthur Court. And if it weren’t for Arizona’s benchwarmers’ occupying most of the second-half court time, Saturday’s final score could have been much worse.
Needless to say, Oregon’s (13-14, 4-13) season presumably has just one game left, and for the first time in weeks, not a single player or coach brought up the NIT.
“To know exactly when your season is over … you never want that,” said junior guard Freddie Jones, who could only muster four points to follow up his career-high of 36 against Arizona State on Thursday. “I came out and didn’t play how my team needed me to play.”
But this loss was hardly Jones’ fault. One man couldn’t have prevented the assault that the ninth-ranked team in the nation put on.
The Ducks were handed a textbook blowout.
Oregon actually played with Arizona for the first few minutes and were only down 10-9 when Tucson-native Anthony Norwood knocked down two of his seven points with just over 15 minutes to play in the half.
Then Arizona’s Gilbert Arenas drilled two free throws, Loren Woods swished a jumper, and Michael Wright converted a bucket.
And the rout was on.
Oregon was held scoreless for just less than six minutes during a stretch in which Arizona outscored the Ducks 25-4. Soon, the run turned into a 41-8 Wildcat advantage.
Thanks to Ben Lindquist’s two last-minute three-pointers, the Ducks entered the half only trailing 55-25.
“They got a great start and had all the momentum, and it just had a snowball effect,” said freshman Luke Jackson, who was the only Duck to score in double figures with 15. “It hurts, especially in this fashion. I don’t think anyone on this team likes to lose like that.”

Things didn’t get much better in the second half. Arizona opened the last frame with a 26-7 run to take an incredible 81-34 lead at the 11:36 mark.
It got even worse. When Arizona senior Eugene Edgerson put in a rebound basket, it put his team ahead 89-38 with still 9:21 to play.
That’s a 51-point lead — the largest of the game.
But then Arizona head coach Lute Olson loosened his reigns and let the youngsters and the departing seniors have some fun together.
“It was a great day for us,” Olson said. “We had the chance to give everybody a substantial amount of playing time.”
The stat sheet again was ugly for the Ducks. Oregon had 26 turnovers (16 in the first half), committed 29 fouls and was out-rebounded 41-25. Arizona, meanwhile, had all five starters score in double figures with Wright leading the balanced attack with 18.
The one Duck that showed up to play early was Norwood, but his seven first-half points were his only ones, as foul trouble plagued the guard in his return home. He fouled out with 12:02 to play.
“Very frustrating,” Norwood said. “It’s built up to that. We let ourselves get to that. We’ve got to make some changes.”
Besides the emotion of the Arizona seniors, who were honored after the game in a lengthy ceremony, Oregon had to deal with the revenge factor.
After the Ducks beat the Wildcats in Eugene earlier this season, many Arizona players mentioned how they were looking forward to Oregon’s visit to Tucson.
“The way we played up there [at Oregon], we shot ourselves in the foot,” said Woods, who scored 17 points. “But we knew they were coming down here.”
Since Oregon’s win on Feb. 1, both teams have gone in opposite directions. The loss was a wake-up call for Arizona, which has since won seven of eight and is preparing for a date at No. 1 Stanford on Thursday.
Oregon, on the other hand, has dropped eight of its past nine in that span and 13 out of 16 overall since starting the season 10-1 after beating Oregon State on Jan. 6.
Now, the Ducks have a losing record for the first time all season and face the task of having to beat the Beavers in Corvallis next Saturday just to finish 14-14. Technically, a .500 record would make the Ducks NIT eligible, although they’re not holding their breath for an invitation.
With the way the Ducks played in this trip to Arizona, they had the look of a fatigued team that was just waiting for the season to end. But according to many Oregon players, that couldn’t be farther from the truth.
“I don’t feel that way, and I hope nobody else does,” Jackson said. “If that’s our last game [Saturday], I’d like to end on a winning note. I’d like my team to be known as a team that fights to the end.
“I don’t want this to happen again.”