Dogs Take on No. 21 Arizona

Fresno State will play the Wildcats for the first time since 1981.

Senior Kevin Bell is on track to become Fresno State's all-time leader in assists.

Dec. 12, 2007

FRESNO, Calif. - After more than a week off, the Dogs hit the road at another tough venue, taking on No. 21 Arizona, a traditional Pac-10 power, on Sunday at Noon PT. The game will be played at the historic McKale Center (capacity 14,545) on the Arizona campus. This is the first meeting between the Dogs and Cats since 1981, a 70-60 Bulldog victory in Fresno. Fresno State has a two-game .winning streak in the series. The Wildcats will be without the services of head coach Lute Olsen, who's taking a leave of absence for the remainder of the season. Kevin O'Neil is the interim head coach. This is the first of two Pac-10 foes for the Dogs in the next four games.

With final exams for the fall semester beginning Dec. 17, head coach Steve Cleveland has a schedule that will allow the Bulldogs ample opportunity to prepare for their tests. The Dogs have just one game this week and will take a couple days off. After Sunday's game, the Dogs will host Presbyterian College on Dec. 20 and Pacific Dec. 22 after final exams have been concluded. The team will take a short Hoiliday break before returning to action Dec. 29 at Stanford.

Scouting the Wildcats
The Pac-10's premier program over the last 20 years, the Wildcat program is one of the best in the nation under Lute Olsen's watch. The pinnacle for the program was in 1997, when the Cats won the NCAA Championship. Olsen, who has taken a leave of absence for this season due to family issues, is one of the winningest coaches in NCAA history. Assistant Kevin O'Neill is running the team in his absence and has the Cats ranked No. 22 in the nation. Jerryd Bayless lead the Cats in scoring, 19.9 per game. He's one of three players averaging in double figures in scoring. Jordan Hill is coming off a game-high 23 points at Illinois. He averages 12.9 points and a team-high 5.6 boards per game.

Against the Wildcats
Fresno State is facing Arizona for the first time since 1981. The Dogs lead the all-time series 3-2 and own a 2-2 record in Tucson. The Dogs and Cats began the series in 1960.

Against the Pac-10
This marks the 77th meeting between Fresno State and a member of the Pacific-10 conference. Just 25 of the previous 76 games were played in Fresno. Since the Save Mart Center opened four years ago, three Pac-10 schools have played there.

"Join the State - Fresno State!" - The Fresno State men's basketball team will travel to play Arizona on Sunday, December 16 at 12 p.m. Catch the game on the Bulldog Sports Network, KFRE CW59.The Bulldogs return to the Save Mart Center on Thursday, December 20 against Presbyterian College at 7 p.m. All tickets are just $5 for this game. Tickets can be purchased online at ticketmaster.com, by phone at (559)485-TIXS, or in person at the Save Mart Center box office.