Mike Adras: >> "It's a great game for us"

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Part of NAU coach Mike Adras' annual routine at Arizona is a stop at the scorer's table for a chat with Ryan Hansen, the Wildcats' radio commentator and basketball schedule maker.

"Usually, I'll drop by and say, 'Hey, Ryan, are we OK for next year?' " Adras said.

Usually, the answer is yes, and usually, Adras can breathe a sigh of relief. The Lumberjacks, who were invited to McKale Center for a 2 p.m. date today with Arizona, have lost 24 straight games in the intrastate series. And they've lost by 20 or more points three times in the past five meetings.

But that's OK with Adras. Because it's a game with Arizona.

Anytime, any score, he'll take it.

"It's a great game for us," Adras said. "It's really helped us. I don't know how never winning helps you, but it's a great game for our players. They get excited. Our fans like it. People go down there with us. And it's on TV, so people around the state get to watch it."

Adras likes playing the game so much that, two years ago, he scheduled the Lumberjacks to play at UA two days after playing at ASU and four days after playing at Kansas. If the game is during the week, he usually has the players attend class until noon, then hop on the bus for the four-hour ride, get a bite to eat at a booster's tailgate, and then play the game.

Anytime, any score. It works for them.

"We seem to benefit in the long run," Adras said. "One year, we lost there and were able to later go to UCLA and win. That experience helped us. It really does help us in the long run playing that game. How often do our guys play against future pros? I think that experience is very valuable."

Sometimes, playing high-major teams even benefits in the short run. Two days after the Lumberjacks were drilled at Kansas in 2006-07, NAU marched into Wells Fargo Arena and handed Herb Sendek the first loss of his ASU coaching career.

The Sun Devils haven't played NAU since.

"I know we lost to them once when Ben (Howland) was there," said UA interim head coach Russ Pennell, a former ASU assistant coach. "It puts a little pressure on you. We understand it's a big game for them. It's a big game for us, too, but it always puts a little pressure on you."

Aside from keeping the Regents and local NAU alums happy, playing the Lumberjacks is really a no-win proposition for the Wildcats: If they win, it's no big deal and an actual drain on the RPI; if they lose, it's embarrassing and a recruiting disadvantage.

For out-of-state schools, there isn't much to gain playing a perennially scary team from a low-major conference, either. That's why Adras is willing not only to play Arizona on the road but just about anybody who will at least agree to a home-and-home series.

"Scheduling is now the worst animal out there in college athletics," Adras said. "We can't get anybody who wants to start a series until we go to their place. Anytime I can get somebody to come play us in Flagstaff, that's what I'm looking for."

Last season, the Lumberjacks gained a "free" home game by participating in the Jayhawk Invitational, an exempt event that, among other games, had NAU playing the UA at McKale and then hosting Missouri-Kansas City at Flagstaff.

This season, Adras said he was offered a spot in the NIT Season Tip-Off, but would have had to play two games at Arizona and two more at a consolation site such as Georgia, where the Wildcats wound up last week. That was four games, none of them at home.

"I had no interest in that," Adras said.

Instead, the Lumberjacks scheduled road games with UC-Riverside, Utah Valley State and UNLV. All three were losses.

Adras said the road games didn't help, but that the Lumberjacks simply aren't playing that well, despite having returned three starters from a 21-win team last season. Injuries to forward Zarko Comagic (concussion) and guard Josh Wilson (sprained ankle) haven't helped.

"I didn't think it was going to be as transitional as it is," Adras said. "You think guys can move from being more of role guy to being more productive, and we always seem to find guys making that transition. We haven't had that this year, so that's my job now as the coach to say well, fine, let's be more balanced as a team."