The 2019-2020 Season Thread

[Chicat]

Stanford, UW, Oregon, OSU, Utah, CU, Utah & UA are all very much in the tournament picture. Lots of quality wins out there. Just try not to shit the bed against Cal & Wazzu.

So you say the Pac-12 has eight teams that are still on the path to the tourney.... Using your logic, I say only seven are in the hunt...

PS - You give Utah way too much credit

I wouldn’t say on the path. But they’re easily in the mix for consideration. Generally speaking, I think a winning conference record gets you in the NCAA tournament this year. The PAC performed pretty good in OOC games.

Psst... just joking.... you counted Utah twice... that's all...

Greg Hansen burner account.

[CatFanOneMil]

Stanford, UW, Oregon, OSU, Utah, CU, Utah & UA are all very much in the tournament picture. Lots of quality wins out there. Just try not to shit the bed against Cal & Wazzu.

So you say the Pac-12 has eight teams that are still on the path to the tourney.... Using your logic, I say only seven are in the hunt...

PS - You give Utah way too much credit

I wouldn’t say on the path. But they’re easily in the mix for consideration. Generally speaking, I think a winning conference record gets you in the NCAA tournament this year. The PAC performed pretty good in OOC games.

Psst... just joking.... you counted Utah twice... that's all...

Greg Hansen burner account.

You seriously think Greg Hansen is smart enough to use a computer? The dude lugs around his Smith Corona Karmann Ghia Super G portable typewriter whenever he goes to IHOP to write his column...they only publish his article because its nostalgic and they're trying to get into Guiness world book of records for maximum consecutive shitposts...Jeff Goodman aspires to be as great.

[Frybry02]

I came home to my 2 year old playing with his Arizona basketball... I am taking that as a sign that the Cats win tonight.

[azgreg]

[Captain Obvious]

All of those programs have multiple FF's/Championships...........except for one.

[billk78]

I know everyone's upset, but I thought they played a really good Oregon team on the road pretty well tonight. Were there mistakes? Sure. But I also saw some good things. Jeter finally benched most of the second half with Gettings getting more minutes. Gettings played fantastic. Not flashy but does all the little things you need (which right now Jeter can't help with). Josh Green under the radar fantastic game. They need to get him the ball and run more set plays for him. Zeke had a really bad night. Bad timing there. Gotta get a win against Oregon State now and move on. We really couldv'e (should've?) won tonight and I'm disappointed. But they were in the game the whole time against probably the best team in the conference on the road. I'd really like to see Miller make some adjustments like continuing to sit Jeter, play Koloko and Gettings, and make it a point to get Josh green the ball. What a defensive play he made at the end that will not even be remembered.

Anyway, what was that final inbounds play? Why was Mannion inbounding and what was the purpose of throwing into a pack of 8 guys?

[PieceOfMeat]

Good to have another "good loss" on the resume.

Should really help come ncaa tourney time

[WildcatStunner]

2019-2020 Season.... 7 through 10 seed out East. First round exit.
Nastiness is required!

[Captain Obvious]

I think once conference play is finished we're a bubble NCAA team. No quality wins whatsoever. Very weak tournament resume.

[SCCats]

2019-2020 Season.... 7 through 10 seed out East. First round exit.
Nastiness is required!

Just wait til the excuses then!!

Epic..excuses.

[RawleArenas]

The one bright spot is that Pritchard is gone next year and Akinjo arrives. But Miller has to figure out quickly how to use Smith and Jeter. When our seniors play well, we can run most teams right off the court.

[TucsonClip]

This one is difficult to write, because I thought we played extremely well in the first half. Our defense was quite good, despite not being able to get up in shooters on close outs (the entire game really). Our offense was clicking, we were good on the glass, Zeke was very active on the offensive glass. I was surprised Oregon was able to hang around that close, ultimately because they hit those threes.

The second half and overtime were something else though. The defense was fine, but man our decision making was piss poor, the offense bogged down, Nico kept taking some poor shots, and we were unable to get the freaking ball to Zeke. This absolutely amazes me, as Oregon even went small at times. Still... Nothing. I believe we even caught a glimpse of Miller telling Zeke he needs to demand the ball (could be wrong, but thats what it seemed like to me).

Lets dive into some observations.

Game Plan vs. Pritchard

I thought Miller's game plan was excellent. Essentially it was to mirror PP on the perimeter. Be it man up, ICE coverage vs. empty corner ball screens, switching ball screens, or showing even when there was no screen or a slip by the big. We wanted to keep him out of the lane, force him to shoot from the perimeter, and it worked the majority of the game. Honestly, this might be the most positive aspect of tonight, because we executed it well and the defense was pretty darn good.

Nico Ball Screens

They were a hot mess all night.

Oregon did a good job of crowding Nico, be it with Pritchard or any of their bigs. They had a similar plan of keeping someone in Nico's face. The difference being Nico doesnt have the ball possession skills that PP does yet. He was making some late reads, turning the ball over, hesitating because of the tight spaces Oregon make him operate through. He was much better off, IMO, attacking 1v1, even against Pritchard, which leads to...

Attacking Pritchard on Defense

Now this obviously wasnt going to work all night, but I found it interesting we attacked Pritchard quite a bit in the first half. When PP switched on Green, Miller even swapped him into a ball handling role to attack. Unfortunately, thats about as much insight I can provide on it, as we didnt do it much in the 2H and OT, so perhaps it was an attempt to get him in foul trouble (didnt work).

The Final Sets of Regulation and OT

Having already covered Nico in ball screen sets, you can imagine what my living room sounded like on those final two possessions in regulation. Zeke needed a touch on one of those, and not via PNR. I mean, bury someone in the paint off one of those DWill baseline cross screen duck-ins Miller used to run like crazy for DWill (we saw one at the end of OT, but Zeke couldnt catch the pass from Green in the corner, but it was open).

The two in OT which stand out would be, as Winger's thread mentions, Dylan Smith? feeding Zeke on the ISO. Miller should be better than that on the design. And then Dylan pushing the ball up the floor, but not being able to see Zeke had Pritchard pinned under the rim for an easy touch and likely score. That led to the bumbling Pac-12 refs interjecting themselves into the end of a game.

Josh Green

He still disappears too much for my liking, but he was solid. Defended, attempted to get out in transition, hit the glass some, hit a big three. We just need more OF him. You can argue we need more FROM him, but I just dont want to see him fade in and out of games. Hes too vital in all areas to go unnoticed for stretches. I want to see more - Catch on a swing, rip through, attack. Hes smart enough to understand if he can get to the rim, pull up, or kick.

Zeke

Monster performance on the glass. I feel for you man. I realize that its going to be difficult to get him the ball when a team sits in a zone. However, when a team does switch to man, I dont care what Miller says, he needs set after set run for him. Its clear, even if he has position on the block, we are going to struggle to get him a touch against quality competition with size in the paint. Miller has a handful of sets he ran to get DWill the ball. Bust those out. Google some for all I care. Motion isnt doing it.

Nico's Shot Selection

I get it, hes used to nailing Js off the bounce. But they arent falling. And even worse, they arent going to fall if he isnt on balance... I thought his selection was fine in the 1H. A couple heat checks here and there, but nothing we cant live with. The 2H and OT though, he was pressing too much.

There was a great sequence at around the 11:30 mark in the 2H. Nico pushed the ball up the floor in attack mode in transition. Instead up settling for the pull up three, which we know he loves, he pulled back, hit a trailing Ira Lee who was able to attack with a driving lane because of Nico's threat to score, who then caught the rotating help defender in no-mans land, and kicked to Green for a wide open corner three.

These are the winning plays Nico will get comfortable making. Unfortunately, we have to live with the mistakes of an elite PG learning how to play his game, but also seeing the floor at the same time. However, that play above is where you can see the wheels are turning. He'll figure it out as the season progresses.

Baker

I thought his defense was pretty good most of the night. He was good on the ball, even on Pritchard in the 1H and early 2H. The problem is he just isnt a back up PG. I wish he was, but his vision and decision making on ball just arent there yet. Im still pretty high on him, but he needs time to develop. We really need him to come along in the next two months to reach our peak, I truly believe that. Keep grindin.

Koloko

I was a bit stunned to see him come in before Ira. Even more shocked to see Miller with the quick hook, after 2 mins, on Jeter in the 2H to insert Koloko. The promise is there, he did a good job in limited minutes. However, those hoping he starts need to chill out a bit. Jeter was not good, and im not even going to dig into him, because we all saw what we saw. But Koloko needs to see 10ish+ minutes per game the rest of the way, at least to see where his development goes as we near March.

Coach

This one hurt, as I thought we outplayed Oregon in the 1H, the 2H was a stalemate, and then the end of game scenarios caught up, yet again. The defense was great tonight, so major props for having them ready. However, as much as you want to control possessions and let Nico make plays in close games, we are just too tight in late game situations. There is no room for error. I did enjoy the late thumb call (the set we run to start even half) to hit Nico on the backdoor (he slipped and it was a TO), and also the rescreen high-ball screen call late to get Zeke that wide open elbow jumper. But, I want to see us get back to imposing our will when we have an advantage. Tonight, that was clearly Zeke. He needs better sets, more touches, something, anything. He needs your help.

[ralmom22]

Did any of us have us winning tonight? Nope. But now we come oh so close in a crazy game in freaking January and the seasons done?? Stop. This is the first season since TJ’s last that we are actually improving and making meaningful strides vs trying to stop the down slide as other teams rose... we weren’t supposed to win tonight! We are just all pissed because we see how close we are... let this team grow. Let them build and improve. I would much rather be frustrated now then in the first weekend of the tournament. (And even if we got a “good” seed...the NCAA would try to screw us on matchup (BUFFALO)..so let’s stop hyperventilating about that issue as well). I’m mad. It’s ok to be disappointed. Feel that and then move on-but its never ok to quit on our team! Bear Down fellas!

[dmjcat]

The one bright spot is that Pritchard is gone next year and Akinjo arrives. But Miller has to figure out quickly how to use Smith and Jeter. When our seniors play well, we can run most teams right off the court.

How to use Jeter/Smith?? Easy.

Bench them. Start Gettings/Koloko and Baker. Use Smith/Jeter for depth coming off the bench.

[catgrad97]

Thank you, TucsonClip. As far as I am concerned, your post hit the nail on the head.

Especially designing better sets--for Zeke AND for others--but ESPECIALLY, especially, getting back to imposing our will on opponents when we have the advantage.

That remark has so much resonance when you reflect on so many of the great Arizona teams of the past. It's one of our hallmarks IMHO and this program seems to have lost that killer instinct.

I don't blame the youth of our recruits for that. I blame the lack of program building for various reasons, and Miller needs to get back to it and stop being the coach who has to win his way only.

DWWD? It's. Just. Not. Working.

[Olsondogg]

Reminds me of the Dwill sophomore Elite 8 season where every douche on the board was whining about Arizona hadn’t beaten a “good” team all year while the team got better.

It literally took a dook 2nd half beatdown for people to realize young teams have issues and it takes time to gel.

What will it take this year? Do you douche bags think Arizona hasn’t played well in the first 2 conference games?

Arizona is good. Arizona will win the conference. Arizona will do well in the post season.


This team is different.


And fuck the pac and it’s shit officiating now and until the day I die.

[KillerKlown]

Reminds me of the Dwill sophomore Elite 8 season where every douche on the board was whining about Arizona hadn’t beaten a “good” team all year while the team got better.

It literally took a dook 2nd half beatdown for people to realize young teams have issues and it takes time to gel.

What will it take this year? Do you douche bags think Arizona hasn’t played well in the first 2 conference games?

Arizona is good. Arizona will win the conference. Arizona will do well in the post season.


This team is different.


And fuck the pac and it’s shit officiating now and until the day I die.

This is what i think of this team. I could definitely see this team gelling in March after getting this experience in the front half of the seson and I do feel like this team will be playing well in March.

[Olsondogg]

This team is playing well now, regardless of what idiots on here post

[Longhorned]

It’s amazing how many things have to go wrong for this team to lose so narrowly to such quality teams. That’s got to mean something for how things might break differently down the line.

[WildcatStunner]

Be happy with those moral victories, they mean so much.

[Olsondogg]

Be upset about an OT road loss to a top 10 team. They mean so much.

[Beachcat97]

Had to attend a work function and couldn’t watch the game tonight. Sounds like we came out strong but made some critical mistakes down the stretch. We narrowly missed defeating a top 10 team on the road, so that doesn’t suck. But like I’ve been saying all week, even if we now start racking up wins over Pac teams not named Oregon, it’s not gonna get us past the 5 seed line. Our path to a higher seed runs through Oregon.

Or maybe it’s better to just focus on steady improvement and earning a bid at all. It may be the spoiled AZ fan in me hoping for a better seed.

[WildcatStunner]

Be upset about an OT road loss to a top 10 team. They mean so much.

Especially everything that went into blowing it. But hey, we played well. That will mean so much more down the line... hopefully.

[catgrad97]

Be upset about an OT road loss to a top 10 team. They mean so much.

Be confident in one bad loss and no clear quality wins. That means even more.

[Olsondogg]

Be upset about an OT road loss to a top 10 team. They mean so much.

Especially everything that went into blowing it. But hey, we played well. That will mean so much more down the line... hopefully.

Clearly you haven’t played/coached organized sports, otherwise you’d realize how stupid that post is.

[WildcatStunner]

Be upset about an OT road loss to a top 10 team. They mean so much.

Especially everything that went into blowing it. But hey, we played well. That will mean so much more down the line... hopefully.

Clearly you haven’t played/coached organized sports, otherwise you’d realize how stupid that post is.

Oh look, another quality post from our resident fan officer.

You're comment about myself playing/coaching organized sports is wrong and clearly shows your mental capacity.

[catgrad97]

Had to attend a work function and couldn’t watch the game tonight. Sounds like we came out strong but made some critical mistakes down the stretch. We narrowly missed defeating a top 10 team on the road, so that doesn’t suck. But like I’ve been saying all week, even if we now start racking up wins over Pac teams not named Oregon, it’s not gonna get us past the 5 seed line. Our path to a higher seed runs through Oregon.

Or maybe it’s better to just focus on steady improvement and earning a bid at all. It may be the spoiled AZ fan in me hoping for a better seed.

Short of the automatic bid of a conference tourney title, tonight was really this team's last clear chance to earn a great win that would impress the tournament committee enough to offset at least its one bad loss, if not the three other losses in the non-con.

When March comes around, and we look at Arizona's seeding in 97Cats' dreaded 8/9 game vs. its tournament resume, what do we say then about games like tonight? STFU some more?

Sure, that'll mean so much too. Come on. Expect a little more from one of the top recruiting classes in the country. Stop settling. Mike Bibby didn't.

[Olsondogg]

Lmao

[Beachcat97]

Had to attend a work function and couldn’t watch the game tonight. Sounds like we came out strong but made some critical mistakes down the stretch. We narrowly missed defeating a top 10 team on the road, so that doesn’t suck. But like I’ve been saying all week, even if we now start racking up wins over Pac teams not named Oregon, it’s not gonna get us past the 5 seed line. Our path to a higher seed runs through Oregon.

Or maybe it’s better to just focus on steady improvement and earning a bid at all. It may be the spoiled AZ fan in me hoping for a better seed.

Short of the automatic bid of a conference tourney title, tonight was really this team's last clear chance to earn a great win that would impress the tournament committee enough to offset at least its one bad loss, if not the three other losses in the non-con.

When March comes around, and we look at Arizona's seeding in 97Cats' dreaded 8/9 game vs. its tournament resume, what do we say then about games like tonight? STFU some more?

Sure, that'll mean so much too. Come on. Expect a little more from one of the top recruiting classes in the country. Stop settling. Mike Bibby didn't.

Any win over Oregon this year will pay dividends on Selection Sunday. Going 0-2 (or 0-3) against them means being seeded somewhere between 5 and 8.

[AZCatGirl]

Glad I had something better to do than watch the game.

I did catch the end of regulation and OT and yeah... this team is not different and we aren't doing shit in March. You couldn't be more wrong ODogg.

[CatFanOneMil]

I must have stumbled upon the "Not the Wildcats forum" because we just went on the road to the number #9 team in the nation on thier court and forced them to beat us in OT by a 1 point margin...

Who in hell thought we'd go unbeaten in conference play ESPECIALLY against the highest ranked Pac 12 team???

Are you idiots all on crack? You really expected us to beat the toughest team in the conference on their court?

Go join the Sparky forum.

[Olsondogg]

Glad I had something better to do than watch the game.

I did catch the end of regulation and OT and yeah... this team is not different and we aren't doing shit in March. You couldn't be more wrong ODogg.

Lol.

Continue to find something better to do then and GFY

[MountainCat]

Glad I had something better to do than watch the game.......

Than why did you have nothing better to do than come to this forum and whine about a game you didn’t watch?

[Olsondogg]

She was busy writing that gem of a post.

[Spaceman Spiff]

Had to attend a work function and couldn’t watch the game tonight. Sounds like we came out strong but made some critical mistakes down the stretch. We narrowly missed defeating a top 10 team on the road, so that doesn’t suck. But like I’ve been saying all week, even if we now start racking up wins over Pac teams not named Oregon, it’s not gonna get us past the 5 seed line. Our path to a higher seed runs through Oregon.

Or maybe it’s better to just focus on steady improvement and earning a bid at all. It may be the spoiled AZ fan in me hoping for a better seed.

Short of the automatic bid of a conference tourney title, tonight was really this team's last clear chance to earn a great win that would impress the tournament committee enough to offset at least its one bad loss, if not the three other losses in the non-con.

When March comes around, and we look at Arizona's seeding in 97Cats' dreaded 8/9 game vs. its tournament resume, what do we say then about games like tonight? STFU some more?

Sure, that'll mean so much too. Come on. Expect a little more from one of the top recruiting classes in the country. Stop settling. Mike Bibby didn't.

Mike Bibby settled for 5th in the Pac 10 in 1997.

[Olsondogg]

Spiff, don’t let facts get in the way of an endless rant

[UAEebs86]

It's that time of year when we're eating our own. It's like a primary debate.

[SCCats]

Had to attend a work function and couldn’t watch the game tonight. Sounds like we came out strong but made some critical mistakes down the stretch. We narrowly missed defeating a top 10 team on the road, so that doesn’t suck. But like I’ve been saying all week, even if we now start racking up wins over Pac teams not named Oregon, it’s not gonna get us past the 5 seed line. Our path to a higher seed runs through Oregon.

Or maybe it’s better to just focus on steady improvement and earning a bid at all. It may be the spoiled AZ fan in me hoping for a better seed.

Short of the automatic bid of a conference tourney title, tonight was really this team's last clear chance to earn a great win that would impress the tournament committee enough to offset at least its one bad loss, if not the three other losses in the non-con.

When March comes around, and we look at Arizona's seeding in 97Cats' dreaded 8/9 game vs. its tournament resume, what do we say then about games like tonight? STFU some more?

Sure, that'll mean so much too. Come on. Expect a little more from one of the top recruiting classes in the country. Stop settling. Mike Bibby didn't.

Mike Bibby settled for 5th in the Pac 10 in 1997.

Continue the analogy.

...or is that where it ends?

[Longhorned]

What’s the argument even about here? Everybody wants to win and doesn’t want to lose. If you’re just watching the games instead of playing or coaching them, what’s wrong with noting the positives and what they portend for the upcoming games and months? We’re not the ones who need to hustle more on loose balls or manage the clock.

[Spaceman Spiff]

Had to attend a work function and couldn’t watch the game tonight. Sounds like we came out strong but made some critical mistakes down the stretch. We narrowly missed defeating a top 10 team on the road, so that doesn’t suck. But like I’ve been saying all week, even if we now start racking up wins over Pac teams not named Oregon, it’s not gonna get us past the 5 seed line. Our path to a higher seed runs through Oregon.

Or maybe it’s better to just focus on steady improvement and earning a bid at all. It may be the spoiled AZ fan in me hoping for a better seed.

Short of the automatic bid of a conference tourney title, tonight was really this team's last clear chance to earn a great win that would impress the tournament committee enough to offset at least its one bad loss, if not the three other losses in the non-con.

When March comes around, and we look at Arizona's seeding in 97Cats' dreaded 8/9 game vs. its tournament resume, what do we say then about games like tonight? STFU some more?

Sure, that'll mean so much too. Come on. Expect a little more from one of the top recruiting classes in the country. Stop settling. Mike Bibby didn't.

Mike Bibby settled for 5th in the Pac 10 in 1997.

Continue the analogy.

...or is that where it ends?

There is no analogy. The point is that every team takes losses. It isn't settling to not lose your effing mind over an 1 point OT road loss to a top ten team. No players or coaches are special and don't accept losses.

See the thing that makes a team great is taking a L and recovering stronger with an ability to work on what needs to be worked on, not jumping ship when adversity hits.

If this team acted like its fanbase, we'd be hosed six ways from Sunday. This fanbase jumps ship when the temp drops below 60, not when we're dodging icebergs.

I am happy the team and coaches have shown a little more resilience and responded to the SJU loss with probably our two strongest all around games of the year.

[catgrad97]

Had to attend a work function and couldn’t watch the game tonight. Sounds like we came out strong but made some critical mistakes down the stretch. We narrowly missed defeating a top 10 team on the road, so that doesn’t suck. But like I’ve been saying all week, even if we now start racking up wins over Pac teams not named Oregon, it’s not gonna get us past the 5 seed line. Our path to a higher seed runs through Oregon.

Or maybe it’s better to just focus on steady improvement and earning a bid at all. It may be the spoiled AZ fan in me hoping for a better seed.

Short of the automatic bid of a conference tourney title, tonight was really this team's last clear chance to earn a great win that would impress the tournament committee enough to offset at least its one bad loss, if not the three other losses in the non-con.

When March comes around, and we look at Arizona's seeding in 97Cats' dreaded 8/9 game vs. its tournament resume, what do we say then about games like tonight? STFU some more?

Sure, that'll mean so much too. Come on. Expect a little more from one of the top recruiting classes in the country. Stop settling. Mike Bibby didn't.

Mike Bibby settled for 5th in the Pac 10 in 1997.

Continue the analogy.

...or is that where it ends?

Mike Bibby also had a win over North Carolina in his first college game.

He made his statement. Where is this team's?

But yeah, please record who went after who first, personally. It wasn't me. You dumbasses don't want to listen, want to call critical fans delusional, help yourself.

I see a home win over Illinois, a Wooden title over mediocre competition and little else to convince this longtime fan this team is somehow different.

But yeah, keep blaming the refs for last night. Or better yet, don't read TucsonClip's excellent breakdown of the breakdown last night, whose comments articulate my feelings better than me.

Then you can all tell me after Oregon State how wrong I was, right?

[SCCats]

Had to attend a work function and couldn’t watch the game tonight. Sounds like we came out strong but made some critical mistakes down the stretch. We narrowly missed defeating a top 10 team on the road, so that doesn’t suck. But like I’ve been saying all week, even if we now start racking up wins over Pac teams not named Oregon, it’s not gonna get us past the 5 seed line. Our path to a higher seed runs through Oregon.

Or maybe it’s better to just focus on steady improvement and earning a bid at all. It may be the spoiled AZ fan in me hoping for a better seed.

Short of the automatic bid of a conference tourney title, tonight was really this team's last clear chance to earn a great win that would impress the tournament committee enough to offset at least its one bad loss, if not the three other losses in the non-con.

When March comes around, and we look at Arizona's seeding in 97Cats' dreaded 8/9 game vs. its tournament resume, what do we say then about games like tonight? STFU some more?

Sure, that'll mean so much too. Come on. Expect a little more from one of the top recruiting classes in the country. Stop settling. Mike Bibby didn't.

Mike Bibby settled for 5th in the Pac 10 in 1997.

Continue the analogy.

...or is that where it ends?

There is no analogy.

Agreement.

[StickItInTheyFace]

What’s the argument even about here? Everybody wants to win and doesn’t want to lose. If you’re just watching the games instead of playing or coaching them, what’s wrong with noting the positives and what they portend for the upcoming games and months? We’re not the ones who need to hustle more on loose balls or manage the clock.

I feel this to my fucking core. Game's over. We lost. It sucks. Everyone's pissed. Surprisingly, the sun still came up this morning.

Lets move on and try and win the fucking Pac with a team that is clearly good and getting better.

[PHXCATS]

Let's breakdown what happened last night.

Arizona was the far better team. Seriously they absolutely were.

It took all of the following for Oregon to beat UA by 1 fucking point at home.

Getting every single 50/50 ball
Unforced errors by Nico down the stretch
Lots of missed free throws including multiple front ends of one and ones
Incredibly lucky shots by Oregon that were very well contested (fyi in regulation only UA held Oregon to their lowest point total of the season)
Refs not calling a clear foul on the final play of regulation
Refs blowing a call that would have given Green the ball in the paint at the end of OT

It took all those things for Oregon to win. Some are Arizona's fault and some are not. But to cry doom and gloom over this and to be a complete turd like so many of you shows a clear lack of understanding of the game of basketball.

Again Arizona was clearly the better team last night. UA should have won. Oregon got lucky and played much closer to their ceiling than Arizona and they barely won.

[Olsondogg]

I like when guys like Catgrad97 lament the officiating at times when convenient to them and then lament those that complain about officiating...also when convenient to them.

[dovecanyoncat]

It's that time of year when we're eating our own. It's like a primary debate.

As surely as the sun rises in the East.

[PHXCATS]

Yeah it fucking sucks to have four losses right now. They are by a total of 13 points and three of those teams that beat UA are in the top ten today. Three were away from home as well.

Keep crying if you want to but eventually grow up and learn the game of basketball

[Spaceman Spiff]

Or maybe it’s better to just focus on steady improvement and earning a bid at all. It may be the spoiled AZ fan in me hoping for a better seed.

Short of the automatic bid of a conference tourney title, tonight was really this team's last clear chance to earn a great win that would impress the tournament committee enough to offset at least its one bad loss, if not the three other losses in the non-con.

When March comes around, and we look at Arizona's seeding in 97Cats' dreaded 8/9 game vs. its tournament resume, what do we say then about games like tonight? STFU some more?

Sure, that'll mean so much too. Come on. Expect a little more from one of the top recruiting classes in the country. Stop settling. Mike Bibby didn't.

Mike Bibby settled for 5th in the Pac 10 in 1997.

Continue the analogy.

...or is that where it ends?

Mike Bibby also had a win over North Carolina in his first college game.

He made his statement. Where is this team's?

But yeah, please record who went after who first, personally. It wasn't me. You dumbasses don't want to listen, want to call critical fans delusional, help yourself.

I see a home win over Illinois, a Wooden title over mediocre competition and little else to convince this longtime fan this team is somehow different.

But yeah, keep blaming the refs for last night. Or better yet, don't read TucsonClip's excellent breakdown of the breakdown last night, whose comments articulate my feelings better than me.

Then you can all tell me after Oregon State how wrong I was, right?[/quote]

Clip posted a detailed breakdown praising a strong start and critiquing some sets we used late and hoping to get Nnaji the ball more. I respect that.

That's the way a team gets better. Hard work and evolving your strategy to fit talent. Every objective metric suggests we are succeeding at that.

You aren't a prisoner to your past. Lute was a tournament choker for a while...until he wasn't. So was Mark Few, and now one Final Four and we think he is superior to Miller.

You win by making positive changes and literally every marker in the last two games suggests we are making positive changes. Yet you seem to be borderline hoping we lose to OSU so it can confirm we suck.

[Alieberman]

I think people need to be cut a break for having high emotions after yesterday's game.

We played very well... good enough to win a big game on the road... and then pooped it away with some bad play at the end of the game and in OT.

I think we are playing our best basketball right now but not getting that win last night is depressing.

[zonagrad]

If Arizona had been beaten soundly at Oregon, then there would be justified criticism and need to worry. Same with our other losses. But the facts say otherwise.

It’s January 10th and Arizona just went into Oregon and slugged it out with a top ten team. I hope there’s a bad taste after losing in OT. There should be. Some bad luck. Bad decisions. Bad execution. And yet Arizona lost by a point in overtime.

It’s not to say everything is ok and be Pollyanna. But there’s definite growth by this team, especially our freshmen. It’s our veterans who are the concern right now and how much we can trust them moving forward. Jeter looks great one game and awful the next. Miller sat his ass in the second half, which was the right move. What’s Jeter going to do? Man up or call it quits. His performance in such a big game was last night’s biggest disappointment. And it puts unfair pressure on Koloko, Gettings, Nnaji and everyone else.

Secondly is what to do about Dylan Smith. He made some big shots late in regulation to give us the lead, then committed a horrible turnover with a 4 point lead and missed a front end 1and 1. Miller sat him down after that in regulation. Great move. Then brought him back in OT where he went 0-2 with 2 more turnovers. The loss of Doutrive really impacts this team. What are Miller’s options going forward? We need production from that position.

I was hoping we’d attack Oregon’s press a bit more and make them pay. But when you look at the turnovers from a guy like Smith, that’s a hard decision to make because it can backfire quickly against a team like Oregon. I thought Miller coached a great game considering Jeter disappeared. We had the lead and the ball but committed a few turnovers and missed some critical FTs. And the officiating certainly helped Oregon’s cause. Pritchard was afforded a few calls that Mannion didn’t get.

I can only be optimistic after last night. But our weaknesses aren’t going anywhere either. But clearly we’re a very good team and showed that we can win this conference.