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Sean Miller walked up the steps behind the black curtains and onto the dais inside Vivint Smart Home Arena four minutes early Wednesday afternoon. Arizona's coach was comfortable.
He said his team, fresh off a run through the Pac-12 tournament, is too.
The No. 2-seeded Wildcats are in familiar territory, and that helps. Arizona practiced inside the Runnin' Utes practice facility on the campus of the University of Utah before driving a dozen blocks downtown to go through a shootaround.
With his arms crossed at the podium, Miller described an injury-filled, issue-filled, but rewarding season that has the Wildcats playing close to home. On Thursday night, they'll face No. 15 North Dakota.
"We love being here in Salt Lake," he said. "It's in the footprint of the Pac-12. Our players have been in this city many times. Our fans are able to travel here very easily. And really, for our own team, we're here in an hour flight, which a lot of teams in this tournament don't have that.
"So now it's up to us to take advantage and perform well."
Headlined by a stacked roster headlined by sophomore Allonzo Trier, freshman Lauri Markkanen and highly-touted freshmen like Kobi Simmons and Rawle Atkins, this Wildcats team has the same pressure lobbed onto its shoulders as every other.
Arizona, under Miller, has made three Elite 8 appearances and one Sweet 16. The Wildcats, however, haven't made a Final Four since 2001.
"At the end of the day," Miller said, "all of us are judged by what happens in March. And I think for us to duck that or look at that as not being the case is somewhat unrealistic. For us, it's you have to advance. You want to take advantage of a good seed. You want to play your best basketball in March."
Arizona, Miller said, survived the saga of Trier's season. The dynamic 6-foot-5 shooting guard missed the Wildcats' first 19 games after testing positive for a substance with a trace amount of PED. Trier was cleared in mid-January.
"I feel like we are the same team we were once before when he was out," said Kadeem Allen, Arizona's lone senior. "And when he came he added more to the team, allowed other guys to rest more during the game, more minutes have been cut down. Everyone accepted our role."
In 15 games since returning, Trier is averaging above 17 points per game and five rebounds per outing.
"It's no coincidence that as he's played his best," Miller said, "it's brought out the best in our team, as well."
Considered by many to be a favorite to emerge out of the West Region — even with No. 1 seed Gonzaga — star-studded Arizona hasn't forgotten about last year's first-round loss to Wichita State.
"It's our job to kind of just honor each day and approach each day the way it is," said junior guard Parker Jackson-Cartwright. "And work extremely hard. If we honor the process, our goals and what we want, will be very clear."
Miller reminded the throng of reporters Wednesday that Wichita State remains on his mind, but for another reason: The Shockers face Dayton in this year's first round. The Flyers are coached by Miller's brother, Archie.
"As much as nobody ever wants to have that first-round exit, this isn't a seven-game series tournament," Miller said. "You have to be at your best in that first 40 minutes or the next 40 may never come."
Sean Miller knows that better than most.
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