Lee Puts Stanford in Sweet Position

Arthur Lee was in the right place at the perfect time. It seemed just like the old days at North Hollywood High, except this was on a national stage.

Stanford was clinging to a four-point lead over Wake Forest in the second round of the NCAA basketball tournament Sunday when Lee, a sophomore guard for the Cardinal, penetrated through the defense and passed to teammate Peter Sauer.

Sauer had made two consecutive jump shots , but this time he missed.

Alone under the basket, the 6-foot Lee rebounded the ball and put it back in to give Stanford a six-point lead with 28 seconds left. The Cardinal won, 72-66.

A photograph of Lee celebrating wound up on the front page of USA Today’s sports section.

Not bad for a guy playing out of position, even if it is temporary.

Since he arrived at Stanford two years ago, Lee has served as the understudy to All-American point guard Brevin Knight.

But Lee broke into the starting lineup full-time last month as a shooting guard and has averaged 7.5 points.

“That’s a play he probably wouldn’t have made last year,” Stanford assistant coach Keith Larsen said of Lee’s put-back basket against Wake Forest. “He wouldn’t have been in position.”

Actually, he has been there before. Just ask North Hollywood Coach Steve Miller.

Watching Lee on television Sunday, Miller remembered a game during Lee’s senior season with the Huskies.

Lee scored on a rebound at the buzzer to give North Hollywood a 71-69 victory over Royal in the semifinals of the Simi Valley tournament.

“Except he dunked that one,” Miller said. “But it was almost the same situation.”

It’s no coincidence Stanford is 9-1 since Lee replaced senior Rich Jackson in the lineup, making the Cardinal quicker and more athletic.

Lee’s 14-point effort against third-seeded Wake Forest helped sixth-seeded Stanford (22-7) reach the Sweet 16 for the first time since the school won the national title in 1942.

“It’s been a long time,” Lee said. “It’s gotten very exciting around here.”

Stanford, playing just 20 miles from home, will face second-seeded Utah today at 4:40 p.m. at the San Jose Arena in the West Regional semifinals.

Considering this is finals week at Stanford, March Madness has become truly crazy for the Cardinal. Lee had a final scheduled for today but will have to reschedule.

“Yeah, it’s been a little crazy,” he said. “It just makes finals week a lot more fun.”

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Lee didn’t get much playing time as a freshman, usually making an appearance only when Knight needed a rest or when the outcome was decided. Always an explosive scorer, Lee had to learn to refine his ball-handling skills.

“He’s definitely more flashy than Brevin,” said Larsen, who works closely with the Cardinal’s guards. “His pass might look prettier, but we want him to get an assist-to-turnover ratio that’s more like Brevin’s.”

Nothing like high expectations. In two tournament games this season, Knight has 15 assists and one turnover.

Still, Lee figured the best way to improve was to get playing time, even if it wasn’t at the point.

So Lee embraced the move to shooting guard at the beginning of this season.

“I wanted to find any way I could to get on the court,” Lee said. “I don’t like to sit on the bench. Believe me, I understand Brevin runs the show. I just wanted a chance to play.”

For the Stanford coaches, moving Lee to shooting guard is part of the maturation process. Lee fully expects to take over for Knight.

“I will be the starting point guard next season.” Lee said.

Long Beach Poly’s Mike McDonald, a touted point guard, signed with Stanford in November. But he’ll likely serve as backup to Lee, as long as Lee keeps making progress.

“That’s the way we like to do things,” Larsen said. ‘We usually have a veteran out there leading the point and a younger player waiting to back him up. That’s what it was like for Arthur.”

Lee slowly established himself as one of Stanford’s top reserves on a deep team. He got his first start in December against Navy and responded with 18 points.

When Lee returned home to play against USC and UCLA, he caught the Stanford coaches’ attention.

Although the Cardinal lost both games, Lee scored a career-high 26 points against USC, then scored 12 against UCLA.

The next week, Lee started in place of Jackson and shooting guard Kris Weems was moved to forward.

The transition hasn’t always been smooth. In a first-round NCAA tournament game against Oklahoma, Lee was scoreless and played only 14 minutes.

“I got into foul trouble and it really slowed me down,” Lee said. “I just had to come back and forget about it.”

Lee’s role is similar to the one he played as a sophomore and junior at North Hollywood, where when his backcourt partner mate was Jamal “Fantasia” Johnson, another talented player.

“It’s nothing that unusual for me,” Lee said. “Jamal and I would share the ballhandling.”

North Hollywood has been one of the most successful programs in the Valley for the last decade.

But Lee is the first Husky to be in the national spotlight since Dana Jones nearly led Pepperdine to an upset over Michigan in the first round of the 1994 NCAA tournament.

“He’s gone farther than anyone else,” Miller said. “I’m proud of what he’s done.”