Wildcats don't have hype, but they have talent.(Knight Ridder Newspapers)

FREE PRESS SPORTS WRITER

MINNEAPOLIS _ One of the nation's finest programs _ a regular at the Final Four _ will be on display in tonight's NCAA championship game. So will Duke.

Arizona was ranked No. 1 in the preseason, so it's impossible to say the Wildcats don't get respect. Arizona is a perennial high seed in the NCAA tournament, so it's impossible to say the Wildcats are unknown.

But of the nation's top programs, Arizona seems to have the least buzz. Not that many people talk about the Wildcats, especially east of the Mississippi _ or east of the Colorado, for that matter.

Since 1988, Arizona has gone to four Final Fours. That's not quite Duke-like; the Blue Devils have made it to nine in 16 years. But it easily puts Arizona among the nation's top 10 programs in that period. Arizona has not been seeded lower than fifth in the tournament since 1987.

Nationally, though, Arizona is known mostly for choking in the tournament's early rounds. And the Wildcats do frequently choke in the early rounds. But with a Final Four appearance every three or four years, they deserve a little more than the "choker" tag.

Arizona's problem is that many of its games are on Fox Sports Net at 10 p.m. in the Eastern time zone. The Pac-10 doesn't have the national television exposure that the Atlantic Coast Conference and Big Ten have.