Stanford, Cincy end string of early exits

Steve Addy

Monday, March 19, 2001 | 10:47 a.m.

SAN DIEGO -- When Stanford and Cincinnati get to Anaheim for the NCAA West Regional this week, they might be as wide-eyed as youngsters up the road at Disneyland.

Though both teams have been in the tournament many times before, they've probably forgotten how it feels to still be playing on the second weekend.

With victories Saturday in the subregional at Cox Arena, top-ranked Stanford and fifth-seeded Cincinnati snapped nagging streaks of second-round NCAA exits. Cincy had lost to lower-seeded teams four straight years and the Cardinal twice in a row as a No. 1 or 2 seed.

The Bearcats advanced rather easily, pounding outmanned Kent State 66-43, while Stanford had to fend off a determined St. Joseph's club that refused to capitulate until the final minute of a 90-83 Cardinal victory.

Stanford and Cincinnati will meet in Thursday's regional semifinals, as will the other West advancers -- neighbors Maryland and Georgetown -- from the Boise subregional.

No matter if Stanford or Cincinnati prevails, at least the loser won't have to deal with any more questions about second-round pratfalls. The subject had begun to gnaw at both clubs.

"I'm relieved," Stanford coach Mike Montgomery said after his team overcame a superb 39-point performance by shooting guard Marvin O'Connor of St. Joe's. "Sometimes when you get to this tournament, if you're good, there's a 'but' attached to your team. It gets old. It gets tiring, but you know you have to deal with it."

But not anymore, not after the grit the Cardinal displayed in Saturday's closing minutes, especially after most of the San Diego locals began cheering for a St. Joe's upset. Stanford hit 10-of-10 free throws in the final 45 seconds to rescue the win after blowing a 14-point lead.

"With the way we closed it out, I think our kids really deserve to be playing (this) week," Montgomery said.

Cincinnati coach Bob Huggins was equally relieved, and also gratified that one of his most unheralded clubs finally got rid of the "but" attached to the Bearcats.

"We struggled early in the season and a lot of people didn't think we'd even make the tournament," Huggins said.

"When you walk out there with Cincinnati on your chest, I think everybody in our town expects us to win. But we struggled, and we took some criticism. So I'm happy for my players, because they've come a long, long way. It's not about me, it's about them."

Cincy guard Steve Logan, the Bearcats' best player in the two games here, said, "We were tired of everybody saying we couldn't get past the second round. It was really personal and emotional for me to get this win. I wanted this win really bad."

But now the Bearcats have to tussle with a tall and talented Stanford club that added another layer of experience against St. Joe's.

"After the way (St. Joe's) played us -- a lot of grabbing and chucking -- and almost beat us, you can bet we're going to see that again," Cardinal sophomore guard Casey Jacobsen said. "I guarantee you, Cincinnati is going to bring that kind of pressure."

Montgomery said, "(Cincinnati) is probably stronger than St. Joe's. They have big muscle guys, and they've got a lot of them. I would expect they'll try to play us that way defensively, with good on-the-ball pressure. They'll probably try to hang with us in the post."