Matching Up
Meet the teams
Gonzaga University (26-8)
No. Name Pos. Ht. Wt. Yr
10 John Gebbers G 5-8 165 Fr. 13 Matt Santangelo G 6-1 173 Sr. 14 Kenny Williams G 6-1 165 Fr. 15 Ryan Floyd G 6-1 185 Sr. 21 Matt Kincaid G 6-0 180 Fr. 22 Jimmy Tricco G 6-5 180 Fr. 23 Mark Spink F 6-8 192 Jr. 24 Richie Frahm G/F 6-5 203 Sr. 25 Mike Nilson F 6-5 216 Sr. 30 Axel Dench C 6-11 243 Sr. 31 Casey Calvary F 6-8 214 Jr. 32 Zach Gourde F 6-8 236 Fr.
Head coach: Mark Few Assistants: Bill Grier, Scott Snider, Leon Rice
Leaders (per game averages) Scorers: Richie Frahm 17.0
Matt Santangelo 13.3
Casey Calvary 13.2 Rebounders: Casey Calvary 6.4
Axel Dench 5.0 Assists: Matt Santangelo 6.4 3 pointers made: Richie Frahm 89 Field goal (pct.): Zach Gourde 63.4 Free throw (pct.): Richie Frahm 78.9
Purdue University (23-9) No. Name Pos. Ht. Wt. Yr 11 Chad Kerkhof G 6-0 170 Sr. 12 Maynard Lewis G 6-1 170 So. 20 Kenny Lowe G 6-3 185 Fr. 21 Adam Wetzel C 6-9 240 Fr. 22 Jaraan Cornell G 6-3 200 Sr. 23 Mike Robinson F 6-6 210 Sr. 31 Rodney Smith F 6-6 205 So. 32 Greg McQuay C 6-7 215 Sr. 35 Brian Cardinal F 6-8 230 Sr. 43 Carson Cunningham G 6-1 170 Jr. 54 John Allison C 6-10 215 So.
Head coach: Gene Keady Assistants: John Pelphrey, Anthony Grant, Donnie Jones
Leaders (per game averages) Scorers: Brian Cardinal 14.1
Jaraan Cornell 12.6
Mike Robinson 11.9 Rebounders: Mike Robinson 6.5
Brian Cardinal 6.4 Assists: Carson Cunningham 4.2 3 pointers made: Jaraan Cornell 63 Field goal (pct.): Mike Robinson 52.5 Free throw (pct.): Carson Cunningham 80.8
Louisiana State University (28-5) No. Name Pos. Ht. Wt. Yr 00 Brian Green G/F 6-4 190 Fr. 2 Brian Beshara F 6-8 220 Jr. 3 Torris Bright G 6-4 200 Fr. 4 Stromile Swift F 6-9 225 So. 11 Brandon Landry G 6-0 175 So. 12 Ronald Dupree G/F 6-6 205 Fr. 21 Jermaine Williams F 6-6 180 So. 41 Collis Temple III G 6-6 205 Fr. 43 Lamont Roland G 6-4 205 Jr. 45 Jack Warner G 6-4 205 Jr. 52 Jabari Smith C 6-11 250 Sr. 54 Brad Bridgewater F 6-8 250 So.
Head coach: John Brady Assistants: Kermit Davis, Butch Pierre, Donnie Tyndall
Leaders (per game averages) Scorers: Stromile Swift 16.3
Jabari Smith 12.5
Brian Beshara 11.2 Rebounders: Stromile Swift 8.2
Jabari Smith 7.0 Assists: Torris Bright 4.5 3 pointers made: Torris Bright 55 Field goal (pct.): Stromile Swift 60.8 Free throw (pct.): Jermaine Williams 76.8
University of Wisconsin (20-13) No. Name Pos. Ht. Wt. Yr 2 Travon Davis G 5-10 180 So. 5 Maurice Linton F 6-8 215 Jr. 10 Jon Bryant G 6-2 185 Sr. 13 Duany Duany F/G 6-5 180 Sr. 15 Andy Kowske F 6-8 230 Jr. 20 Kirk Penney G 6-5 205 Fr. 21 Robert Smith F 6-8 215 Jr. 22 Mike Kelley G 6-3 185 Jr. 30 Dave Mader F/C 6-11 240 Fr. 32 Roy Boone G 6-3 190 Jr. 40 Charlie Wills F 6-8 230 So. 42 Julian Swartz G 6-6 215 Fr. 44 Eric Faust F 6-7 215 So. 50 Mark Vershaw F 6-9 235 Jr.
Head coach: Dick Bennett Assistants: Brian Hecker, Shawn Hood, Brad Soderberg
Leaders (per game averages) Scorers: Mark Vershaw 12.2
Andy Kowske 9.3
Jon Bryant 7.9 Rebounders: Andy Kowske 6.4
Mark Vershaw 4.2 Assists: Mark Vershaw 3.3 3 pointers made: Jon Bryant 66 Field goal (pct.): Andy Kowske 58.3 Free throw (pct.): Mike Kelley 77.1
GAME NO. 1 Gonzaga vs. Purdue
Gonzaga
How they got to tourney: West Coast Conference automatic bid (10th seed)
In the first round: Defeated Louisville, 77-66. Richie Frahm buried four 3-pointers and buried the seventh-seeded Cardinals. The Zags, who trailed by one at halftime, switched zones in the second half and shut down the Louisville offense. Leading scorer: Frahm, 31. Leading rebounders: Casey Calvary and Frahm, seven. Second round: Defeated St. John’s, 82-76. Matt Santangelo played a near-perfect game, scoring 26 points (5 of 6 from beyond the arc) and Axel Dench supplied 17 points inside as GU posted another upset, this time of the second-seeded Red Storm. Leading scorer: Santangelo, 26. Leading rebounder: Dench, seven.
Coach: Mark Few Record: 26-8 Team scoring: 78.0 * FG% 48.0 * 3-pointers: 255-695,36.7% Opponents scoring: 64.9 * FG% 39.0 Free throws, 66.6% Rebound margin: +2.9 Offense: Up-tempo; motion Basic defense: Man-to-man, matchup zone
Starters G Matt Santangelo 5-11 Sr. G Ryan Floyd 6-1 Sr. C Axel Dench 6-11 Sr. F Richie Frahm 6-5 Sr. F Casey Calvary 6-8 Jr.
1999-00 record: 26-8 Biggest regular-season wins: at UCLA, 59-A3; vs. Pepperdine, 62-57
Purdue
How they got to tourney: At-large berth from Big Ten (sixth seed)
In the first round: Defeated Dayton, 62-61. Jaraan Cornell had been struggling shooting all year, but he hit three 3-pointers in the final 9 minutes as Purdue held off the Flyers. Dayton had three chances to win in the final minute. Leading scorers: Brian Cardinal, 18. Leading rebounders: Mike Robinson and Cardinal, eight.
Second round: Defeated Oklahoma, 66-62. Cornell again came up big, as the senior left-hander scored 13 of his 15 points in the final 9:30. Purdue’s defense was big also, as the Sooners were only 2 of 19 from beyond the 3-point arc. Leading scorer: Greg McQuay, 16. Leading rebounder: Robinson, eight.
Coach: Gene Keady Record: 455-200 Team scoring: 74.1 * FG% 44.5 * 3-pointers: 194-546, 35.5% Opponents scoring: 66.1 * FG% 44.7 Free throws: 68.5% Rebound margin: +2.5 Offense: Motion Basic defense: Man-to-man
Starters G Jaraan Cornell 6-3 S G Carson Cunningham 6-1 Jr C Greg McQuay 6-7 Sr. F Mike Robinson 6-6 Sr. F Brian Cardinal 6-8 Sr.
1999-00 record: 23-9 Biggest regular-season wins: at Florida, 79-68; vs. Michigan State, 70-67
GAME NO. 2 LSU vs. Wisconsin
LSU
How they got to tourney: At-large berth from Southeastern Conference (fourth seed)
In the first round: Defeated Southeast Missouri State, 64-61. Brian Beshara hit a 3-pointer with 17.8 second left to break a 61-61 tie and lead the Tigers past the 13th-seeded Indians. LSU struggled against the Indians’ defense, committing 13 turnovers. Leading scorer: Jabari Smith, 17. Leading rebounders: Stromile Swift and Beshara, five.
Second round: Defeated Texas, 72-67. Beshara again came to the rescue of the fourth-seeded Tigers, as his steal and layup in the final minute capped a 6-0 run. The teams were tied at 60 with 3 minutes left before the LSU spun. Leading scorers- Swift, 23. Leading rebounder Swift, 10.
Coach: John Brady Record: 138-115 Team scaring: 76.7 * FG% 49.0 * 3-pointers: 191-537, 35.6% Opponents scoring: 62.8 * FG% 38.2 Free throws: 64.2% Rebound margin: +8.0 Offense: Up-tempo; motion Basic defense: Pressure man-to-man
Starters G Lamont Roland 6-4 Jr. G Torris Bright 6-4 Fr. C Jabari Smith 6-11 Sr. F Brian Beshara 6-8 Jr. F Stromile Swift 6-9 So.
1999-00 record: 28-5 Biggest regular-season wins: vs. Oklahoma State, 63-53; vs. Arizona, 86-60
Wisconsin
How they got to tourney: At-large berth from Big Ten (ninth seed)
In the first round: Defeated Fresno State, 66-56. The Bulldogs didn’t cover Jon Bryant in the left corner and the senior took advantage, hitting four straight second-half 3-pointers. The Badgers held the nation’s leading scorer, Courteney Alexander, to 11 points. Leading scorer: Bryant, 21. Leading rebounder: Andy Kowske, 14.
Second round: Defeated Arizona, 66-59. Maurice Linton scored nine of his 14 points in the last 3 minutes as the Badgers held on to defeat the top-seeded Wildcats. Arizona hit three 3-pointers late, but still couldn’t catch up. Leading scorer: Mark Vershaw, 15. Leading rebounder: Kowske, 12.
Coach: Dick Bennett Record: 449-256 Team scoring: 60.3 * FG% 42.9 * 3-pointers: 190-554, 34.3% Opponents scoring: 55.9 * FG% 40.0 Free throws: 68.6% Rebound margin: -1.1 Offense: Slow-tempo, motion Basic defense: Man-to-man
Starters G Mike Kelley 6-3 Jr. G Duany Duany 6-5 Sr. C Mar k Vershaw 6-9 Jr. F Andy Kowske 6-8 Jr. F Maurice Linton 6-8 Jr.
1999-00 record: 20-13 Biggest regular-season wins: vs. Purdue, 55-45; at Temple, 62-44