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The shadows on the south end of McKale Center were growing longer. There would be a statement about the future of the UA men's basketball program, the media were told. Late in the afternoon on Oct. 23, Arizona Wildcats athletic director Jim Livengood issued a four-minute statement, taking no questions, naming no interim coach and giving no reason why the greatest sports figure in Tucson history had retired. Lute Olson's departure tops the Star's list of the 20 biggest sports stories in Southern Arizona in 2008.

Oct. 23. Livengood delivers the news that Olson — who, at 74, was the oldest active NCAA Division I college basketball coach — is retiring. Olson, who has still not discussed his decision publicly, won one national title and appeared in two title games and four Final Fours with UA.

Sept. 1. In front of about 6,000 fans, the Sidewinders lose to Salt Lake 7-2, ending Tucson's 40-year participation in Triple-A baseball. The Arizona Diamondbacks' Pacific Coast League affiliate moves to Reno, Nev., where it is renamed the Aces.

Feb. 24. Tiger Woods, the world's best golfer, beats Stewart Cink 8 and 7 to win the WGC-Accenture Match Play Championship at the Gallery Golf Club at Dove Mountain. Woods' best escape act came in the first round, beating J.B. Holmes after trailing by three with five holes left.

Dec. 2. The Pima County Board of Supervisors votes unanimously to accept a $5 million buyout of the Chicago White Sox lease at Tucson Electric Park. The team will share a spring training home with the Los Angeles Dodgers in Glendale starting in February.

March 22 and 29. The Arizona Wildcats women's swim team sets three American records in Columbus, Ohio, en route to its first NCAA title. One week later in Federal Way, Wash., the men win their first-ever title, giving coach Frank Busch a sweep.

Dec. 20. The Arizona Wildcats defeat BYU 31-21 in their first bowl game in 10 years. Senior quarterback Willie Tuitama is the Las Vegas Bowl's MVP award winner at Sam Boyd Stadium.

Aug. 8-24. Thirty-two athletes with Tucson ties participate in the Beijing Olympics: swimmers Lacey Nymeyer, Amanda Beard, Matt Grevers, Ryk Neethling, Roland Schoeman, Darian Townsend, Jean Basson, Lyndon Ferns, Simon Burnett, Joel Greenshields, Jake Tapp, Albert Subirats, Nicholas Nilo and Juan Veloz; baseball players Jason Donald, Brian Barden and Mike Koplove; softball players Jennie Finch, Tairia Flowers, Lovieanne Jung, Caitlin Lowe and Alicia Hollowell; divers Claire Febvay and Angelique Rodriguez; track and field athletes Jill Camarena, Abdi Abdirahman, Bernard Lagat and Dominic Johnson; volleyball player Kim Glass; cyclist Todd Wells, archer Jennifer Nichols and basketball player Robertas Javtokas.

Oct. 28. In a hastily assembled news conference, Olson's personal physician, Steven D. Knope, says the coach likely had suffered a stroke within the past year. The stroke may have contributed to behavioral changes, Knope said.

Aug. 10. In Tucson's premier Olympic victory, Mountain View High and UA grad Lacey Nymeyer swims on USA's silver medal 400 freestyle relay team in Beijing.

Aug. 17 and 23. The Tucsonan — and first American world champion in both the 1,500 and 5,000 meters — fails to qualify for the medal round in either race at the Olympics. Lagat was nursing a left Achilles' heel injury.

March 20. Under interim coach Kevin O'Neill, the UA reaches the NCAA basketball tournament for the 24th straight season. The Cats lose in the first round to West Virginia 75-65 and finish shy of 20 wins for the first time in 21 years.

April 3. After firing Joan Bonvicini following 17 years as women's basketball coach, the UA gives Niya Butts her first head coaching job. The 30-year-old was the associate head coach at Kentucky following a playing career at Tennessee.

May 31. The two-time defending champion UA softball team loses to Alabama 5-1 and is eliminated from the Women's College World Series in Oklahoma City. The Wildcats, led by interim head coach Larry Ray with coach Mike Candrea at the Olympics, had lost Game 1 to UCLA.

June 8. The Arizona Wildcats baseball team loses the decisive third game at Miami 4-2, barely missing a trip to the College World Series. After winning Game 1, the Wildcats blew a 4-0 lead in Game 2 to fall 14-10 and force the final game.

Oct. 24. One day after Olson's retirement, assistant Russ Pennell, who spent last season calling Arizona State men's basketball games on radio, is named the interim head coach. Pennell was selected after associate head coach Mike Dunlap chose to stay in his role.

June 11. Canyon del Oro High School pitcher Kenzie Fowler, a junior, is named the Gatorade National Softball Player of the Year. Fowler's award came roughly one year after she spent 13 days in the hospital — eight in intensive care — while being treated for thoracic outlet syndrome, a life-threatening blood-flow condition in her pitching arm.

Feb. 23. The Flowing Wells High School girls basketball team defeats Marana to win the 4A-I state title by a record 32 points. The Caballeros finish the season 33-1, winning by an average of 29 points, in probably the most dominant season ever for a Southern Arizona girls basketball team.

Dec. 6. In the city's feel-good football story of the year, Santa Rita High School reaches the Class 4A-II state championship game against Scottsdale Notre Dame — two years after going 0-10. The Eagles lose 30-26.

July 8. Brandon Jennings, a star point guard from Oak Hill (Va.) Academy, announces he will play professionally in Europe rather than attend the UA. He becomes the most public face of a year-long exodus from the program, for varied reasons, by coaches Josh Pastner, Miles Simon and O'Neill; player Jeff Withey; and recruits Abdul Gaddy, Emmanuel Negedu, Solomon Hill and Mike Moser.

April 26 and June 26. UA cornerback Antoine Cason, a Jim Thorpe Award winner, is selected by the San Diego Chargers with the 27th pick in the NFL draft. Cason becomes the first UA player picked in the first round since 2000, and the highest-paid UA draftee ever. Two months later, UA men's basketball guard Jerryd Bayless is picked No. 11 by the Indiana Pacers in the NBA draft and traded to the Portland Trail Blazers.