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Arizona to honor Lute Olson with statue

REUTERS/John Gress / Action Images

TUCSON, Ariz. - Arizona says it will honor former Wildcats basketball coach Lute Olson with a statue on campus.

Athletic director Dave Heeke announced Tuesday that the project will cost about $300,000 with most of the money coming from private donations.

Construction is scheduled to be completed next March. The statue will be located at a pavilion outside the north end of the McKale Center basketball arena.

Olson coached Arizona from 1983 to 2008 and compiled a 589-187 record, guiding the Wildcats to the 1997 national championship, four Final Four appearances, 23 consecutive NCAA Tournaments, and 11 Pac-10 titles.

He was Pac-10 Coach of the Year seven times and led Arizona to 20 consecutive 20-win seasons.

Olson, now 82, was enshrined in the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 2002.

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