'CATS KEEP THEIR COOL AT THE FINISH; ARIZONA HOLDS OFF MARYLAND'S SURGE : ARIZONA 87, MARYLAND 79.

Byline: Scott Wolf Daily News Staff Writer

Arizona finally broke its first sweat in the NCAA Tournament - the Wildcats just didn't let too many people see it.

They defeated Maryland 87-79 before 17,838 at the Pond on Thursday night to advance to the West Region final, a victory that produced initial moments of queasiness for the defending champions.

Not that they would ever admit it.

But Maryland certainly did, after mounting an 18-5 run that cut top-seeded Arizona's lead to 57-56 with 10:28 left.

``You could see in their eyes they weren't sure they were going to win,'' Terrapins guard Sarunas Jasikevicius said. ``I thought we had them, to tell you the truth.''

Always-prickly Arizona coach Lute Olson quickly brushed aside any questions that the Wildcats were ever in trouble.

``Why would we worry?'' Olson said. ``We just said we've got to get tougher and step it up. This group is not a worrying group.''

Just to make sure he was right, Olson interrupted his players to give that answer, in case they felt differently.

It's the Wildcats' goal in this tournament to look and play cool, and so far, they're succeeding.

The way Arizona (30-4) responded to Maryland's challenge, it was hard to tell if they were the slightest worried about the possibility of a devastating loss.

Arizona merely went back to its money players. Seniors Michael Dickerson and Miles Simon each drove inside for baskets, and a three-point play by Dickerson quickly extended the lead back to a comfortable eight points (64-56).

Just like that, Maryland's rally had been quelled.

Although Dickerson (12 points) and Simon (18 points) emerged during the critical part of the game, it was really sophomore point guard Mike Bibby who led the Wildcats. Bibby scored 26 points, making five of six 3-point shots, and also had five rebounds and four assists.

He prevented Maryland's pressure from effectively trapping the Wildcats with his ballhandling and mortally wounded them with his perimeter shooting. Bibby was brilliant in the first half, with 18 points, including 4 for 4 on 3-pointers. He also had just one turnover in 19 minutes.

Without Bibby, Arizona shot 42 percent, and would have faced a much-closer contest with Maryland (21-11), which shot just 37 percent.

``For all people talk about our scoring, we win with our defense and I think that was in evidence,'' Olson said.

Maryland's top two scorers, Laron Profit and Rodney Elliott, were just as cold as the rest of the Terrapins. They were a combined 14 for 35 from the field, and Elliott spent most of the game in foul trouble.

With both struggling, Arizona jumped out to a 52-38 advantage early in the second half, before the Terrapins made a final gasp. Terrapins coach Gary Williams has never advanced past the Sweet 16 in his 20-year career.

The Wildcats are now just a game away from a second straight trip to the Final Four, and will meet Utah on Saturday at 12:40 p.m. in the regional final. Arizona has not lost a regional final since 1976, and is 3-0 under Olson.

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PHOTO (Color) Arizona's Michael Dickerson drives past Maryland's Rodney Elliott for two points.

Matthew J. Lee/Long Beach Press-Telegram