Wild About '88: Chapter 20: Cook and McMillan lead Arizona at Mac Court.
This season marks the 35th anniversary of one of Tucson’s most beloved teams of all time, the 1987-88 Arizona Wildcats that finished 35-3 and went to the program’s first Final Four. We will celebrate that team by recapping each game during that unforgettable season by referencing newspaper archives and interviews conducted during the making of the upcoming documentary film ‘Wild About ‘88: The Rise of Arizona Basketball.’ (Some interview quotes in this series have been edited for clarity.)
January 16 1988 at Oregon
Lute Olson and company were dominating the PAC-10 and the league wasn’t doing a good job of keeping the games close.
Arizona hoped to continue its PAC-10 domination tour when they visited the famous McArthur Court in Eugene.
Before the cavernous Matthew Knight Arena was constructed the Ducks played in the rowdy bandbox famously known as Mac Court/The Pit. The 1980s were not kind to Oregon but their home had a reputation for being loud.
Former Arizona Athletic Director Greg Byrne grew up admiring Lute Olson when going to games at the Pit back in the day.
“I remember as a kid when he'd come up to Mac Court in Eugene, and you'd have all three balconies full and everybody looking right down on top of him. He commanded the respect of that place,” Byrne said in 2016. “I know when there would be a call that he wouldn't like from one of the officials, he'd stomp his loafers. I'd sit up in the second balcony and you could hear it up there.”
Arizona’s 1988 trip to Eugene was led by a couple of Wildcats not talked about nearly enough in the history of the program.
Big man Anthony Cook was selected All-PAC 10 in 1988 and 1989 because of his ability to score, rebound and block shots with regularity.
On the Oregon trail, his offensive side came out big time.
He matched the scoring game he had against Oregon State a few nights earlier when he dropped 18 against the Ducks.
"I'm just being more aggressive, I'm looking to score more, and the other guys on the team are looking for me a lot more"1
Another player not celebrated enough on the ‘88 squad who stepped up big against Oregon was shooting guard Craig McMillan.
McMillan’s scoring took a hit in the ‘87-88 season with the return of Steve Kerr but his defense was still second to none.
Against the Ducks, McMillan was put in charge of guarding Oregon’s top offensive weapon Anthony Taylor.
Taylor was one of the best scorers in the league and would be selected All Pac-10 in 1987 and 1988, before being drafted by the Miami Heat.
In the first 35 minutes of the game, McMillan was largely responsible for holding Taylor to six points.
"Craig's defense early on (Anthony)Taylor was outstanding. Craig is a well conditioned athlete who has such a great work ethic. Even when he gets tired, he keeps coming at you. He's really the unsung hero of this basketball team. He's still the best position defender we have,” Olson said.2
Taylor would turn it up late in the game but the Wildcats would hit 7 of 8 free throws to close out the game giving them a 70-54 victory.
Sean Elliott would finish with 18 points and 13 rebounds.
Olson was impressed with Elliott on the boards.
“He went up big time a number of times, which he can do,” Olson said. “I’ve said before, he should be our best rebounder because not only does he have great jumping ability, he also has great hands.”3
The No. 1 Wildcats were now 16-1 and 6-0 in the Pac-10.
Next Up: January 21, 1988 vs. USC
Blog content and original interview quotations © Waterfoot Films 2023.
Jay Gonzales, “Cook scores 18 as Wildcats top Ducks,” The Arizona Daily Star, January 17 1988, Page 1 and 11—Section E.; Jack Rickard, “Pac-10 is close race — for 2nd,” The Tucson Citizen, January 18 1988, Page 1 and 7—Section B.; Jack Rickard, “Foes having fits trying to slow down UA,” The Tucson Citizen, January 18 1988, Page 7—Section B.; Dana Cooper, Memories ‘88.
Jay Gonzales, “Cook scores 18 as Wildcats top Ducks,” The Arizona Daily Star, January 17 1988, Page 1—Section E.
Jay Gonzales, “Cook scores 18 as Wildcats top Ducks,” The Arizona Daily Star, January 17 1988, Page 11—Section E.
Jay Gonzales, “Cook scores 18 as Wildcats top Ducks,” The Arizona Daily Star, January 17 1988, Page 11—Section E.