'97 team inducted into Arizona Sports Hall of Fame

**Caz** · 03-05-2011, 01:55 PM

Arizona’s 1997 national championship basketball team won an on-line vote and will be inducted into the Arizona Sports Hall of Fame.

The 1996-97 Wildcats, who knocked off three No. 1 seeds en route to the national title, have the honor of being the first team inducted into the state’s sports Hall of Fame.

They defeated Kentucky 84-79 in overtime in the championship game.

Perhaps somewhat surprisingly, fans voted for Arizona over the 2001 World Series champion Arizona Diamondbacks.

Other teams nominated for on-line balloting were the 1975 Arizona State football team, the 1992-93 Phoenix Suns, the 1994 Arizona Rattlers, the 2007 Phoenix Mercury and the 2008-09 Arizona Cardinals.

The national champions will be inducted March 31, 2011 @ Wild Horse Pass Casino
http://tucsoncitizen.com/wildcatrepo...-hall-of-fame/

**Caz** · 03-05-2011, 02:20 PM

Registration Fees:
General admission
$75.00 ONLINE through March 20, 2011
There will be NO event day registration.

VIP Ticket
$150.00 ONLINE through January, 2010
There will be NO event day registration.
For VIP table and Sponsorship information please contact Ed Durkin at ed@phoenixsports.org

When:
Thursday, March 31, 2011

Start Time: 3:00 pm

Where:
Wild Horse Pass Hotel and Casino – Show Room

**mvpreed2** · 03-05-2011, 08:08 PM

sweet..

**SDRB** · 03-05-2011, 08:11 PM

This is way overdue.

**mvpreed2** · 03-06-2011, 07:07 AM

isnt there a timeline that has to pass before being able to be voted in or is that just solely for individual players?!..

**Pras** · 03-06-2011, 12:35 PM

As the players that will be there get confirmed, please post in this thread.

**SDRB** · 03-06-2011, 01:31 PM

Originally Posted by mvpreed2

isnt there a timeline that has to pass before being able to be voted in or is that just solely for individual players?!..

If there is, it should have been waived for the '97 team.

**mvpreed2** · 03-06-2011, 01:41 PM

Originally Posted by SanDiegoRedandBlue

If there is, it should have been waived for the '97 team.

haha..
now i think about it i dnt think it applies to teams..

**Caz** · 03-31-2011, 09:18 PM

Former Arizona basketball player AJ Bramlett started Thursday morning in Albuquerque.

As he cruised down the highway to the airport to hop on a flight to Phoenix for the 41st Arizona Sports Hall of Fame induction ceremony, traffic became snarled. With only 15 minutes left to get to the airport in time, Bramlett sped up only to be greeted by police lights in his rearview mirror.

"I'm so sorry I was speeding," he told a female officer as she stood at his window. "I'm with the Arizona Wildcats 1996-97 national championship team. I'm flying to Phoenix to be inducted into the Arizona Sports Hall of Fame. I'm so sorry for speeding."

The officer issued Bramlett a stern glare before softening.

"I had the biggest crush on Mike Bibby and Miles Simon," she said. "Please slow down and bear down."

The 1997 championship squad is the first team to be inducted into the Arizona hall and was recognized along with NFL great Randall McDaniel, rodeo cowboy Ty Murray, three-time World Series champion pitcher Curt Schilling and Olympic gold medalist Kerri Strug in front of more than 500 guests at the Wild Horse Pass Hotel and Casino in Chandler.

Each athlete talked about challenges and successes, but a common thread of appreciating Arizona as home connected each of their messages. That and banter about ASU and UA.

"That you won that title is an amazing thing," Schilling told the UA team when he took the stage. "That you did it while going to school in Tucson was even more amazing."
-AZ Republic Sarah McLellan

Photos >> 41st Arizona Sports Hall of Fame - 2011 - azcentral.com photos