2024-25 Arizona Basketball

[Djcat]

I went to the game with friends. I waited until Friday to purchase tickets, hoping for a discount code. I noticed that Ticketmaster stopped selling the seats on both ends of the court prior to the game. Pretty sparse crowd. We sat in section 208 and the top ring was pretty empty. Sad that this game didn’t draw nearly the crowd that last year’s Alabama game garnered.

Discretionary spending is down overall and people are not willing to spend for an inferior product. Tickets for Giants Ravens were going for $24. BK Nets game tomorrow - $18.

[TucsonClip]

One issue I have with Love, is that when he does get downhill and attacks the rim, he has his mind made up before he gets there. He's going to the rim, he's going to get up a shot, even if he's running into traffic and has to toss up something wild in a crowd as with contact.

There's no middle game to drive, read and react or kick.

Regarding Townsend, I never got what the staff saw in him. My problem is, watching 2 full games of these guys (Townsend and ADO) which I did for my scouting reports last spring, it was clear as day they weren't good enough. And one dude (Townsend) was brought in to be a fulcrum of our offense which was absolutely laughable at the time, and grows in hilarity by the game.

Who the hell does the talent evaluation for our transfers? I mean this is Ryan Anderson, Ryan Luther, and Mark Tollefson bad.

Additionally, I think the most alarming thing is we weren't able to recruit anyone who could stick around and play the 4 since Lloyd got here, or develop someone who could. As a result, we end up with Townsend because we had to play Pauli as a 3 last year, and we didn't try to get him ready as a 4 man (or Pauli didn't want to pay the 4 and wanted to handle the ball more), which is an entirely different role.

Pauli or not, everyone saw what Zu did as the 4 man here, and Lloyd couldn't stand having to scheme our defense to cover for him on the other end. You'd think he could find any HS recruit, show him Zus tape in our offense, and say we can feature you here from day 1.

Furthermore, what does Lloyd actually want to run? I was fine with his system the first three years, he just needed more guys who could create off the bounce.

This isn't any of those things. It's a Bradley and Love centric high PNR scheme, but there's no shooting, nobody even tries to hit the roll man, or event a short roll, and our post up threat has no skill level. It certainly isn't anything like what we ran in the first 2 years, even part of last year with Love.

[Merkin]

289th in 3 point shooting out of 364 teams.

https://www.teamrankings.com/ncaa-baske ... -point-pct

One thing I did admire about Miller was his love for statistics and adjusting the game based on them.

Doubt the old "shoot yourself out of a slump" mantra still applies. Like Lute used to say, don't worry about your shooting slump, focus on something else like defense, and the shooting will come back.

However, the 3 point shooting defense is better. Up to 217th. Not that the UA 3 point defense is that much better, but the last 2 teams both missed several open looks.

https://www.teamrankings.com/ncaa-baske ... -point-pct

[RawleArenas]

Clip make some great points about Lloyd and his evaluation of players. And it's not just that, it's his recruiting momentum with this program. Someone with CTL's record should be stockpiling talent, well before we knew we were headed to the Big 12. The players we have now would dominate the WCC, which tells me he's still stuck with that 'mid major little brother' mindset. Or he simply can't connect and close with high level players.

To contrast, we pulled in five star after five star during the FBI thing, and that's with a laser beam being pointed at us from Bristol. The Arizona name carries weight, even in bad times, which bends the mind that we don't have any depth or real athleticism on this team. Bigs and point guards have been his recruiting weaknesses since getting here, which has forced him to focus on player development more than he should. We should have been able to beat West Virginia, Wisconsin and UCLA just on talent alone. To put this in perspective, can you imagine if Luke, Damon or JT with a record like Lloyd's? The recruiting classes would be staggering (btw, I'm not advocating for nepo hires, just making a point). Nepo hires allowed the whole CBB situation to transpire, which has been historically catastrophic.

I'm not going to go as far as to say that CTL can't coach. That's too reductive. I think he's a situational coach, a coach that performs well when given certain players and the right conditions. Lloyd is too far along in his tenure to not be self aware and forward thinking in his approach to leading this program. To Clip's point, he's gotten away from the core principles that made Gonzaga successful. The Zags would never entertain a player like Love because he doesn't fit their culture. They focus on ball movement, skillfull passing, and selfless basketball. NIL money is not going to save Lloyd's career, especially when he can't put his foot down and discipline players. To say nothing of his misfires with player evaluation and recruiting. Case in point, you don't recruit Euros that have to develop to be role players. That's pure insanity. There's too much talent out there in the P4 that would love to be a part of Arizona that can contribute on day one.

Which brings me to my final point on staff. I gave CBB the benefit of the doubt initially because he had a lot of similarities to Lloyd (temperment wise). And I went on the record to bash Lloyd when he was hired and was proven wrong. The difference is, Lloyd has chops but has blind spots in maturity and experience. Brennan's an opportunist while Lloyd needs personnel that can help him grow. He's found a sweet spot that going to turn sour especially when we enter conference play. The kind of players he needs are not the kind he is used to recruiting. That's why he needed Iggy to help him get Keshad. I'm not going to sugarcoat this, his staff is too white washed. He needs some guys that can connect with the athletic, greasy, physical types that can give our program depth. The types of players that OU and WVU have. This is not the first time that this has been mentioned, so it falls on CTL to read the writing on the wall and adapt or be among the ever growing list of has-beens.

[PHXCATS]

3 point shooting will come around

Not worried

[azcat49]

3 point shooting will come around

Not worried

I think there is a whole third of the season against P4 teams to see this probably won’t happen with any consistency.

I am not sure we even finish at .500 on the season. Lloyd and company are 0-7 vs +.500 P4 teams. That to me speaks volumes

[PHXCATS]

3 point shooting will come around

Not worried

I think there is a whole third of the season against P4 teams to see this probably won’t happen with any consistency.

I am not sure we even finish at .500 on the season. Lloyd and company are 0-7 vs +.500 P4 teams. That to me speaks volumes

So you want to fire Lloyd?

[IrishAzCat]

It's not just the terrible playing by the players, but the nonchalant attitude by both the basketball and football coaches that is concerning. There is no fire to win and it reflects on the players. It's just oh well we lost - we just have to get better, but you are not getting better. There has to be some accountability and these guys coach like their job is not on the line. They get paid for mediocrity - where is the fire? Why not bench shitty players? Where is the passion to win? I don't see it...

[Merkin]

Lloyd sure doesn't inspire fear into the players like Lute used to. Nothing like calling a time out and having the player sit next to you on the bench. Miller too for that matter was pretty intense. Shakur comes to mind as someone who looked over at the bench if he screwed up with puppy dog eyes.

Lute also didn't have a problem telling star players not to come back, Marcus Williams comes to mind.

The Aw Shucks coaching brothers do prove that nice guys finish last.

[IrishAzCat]

Lloyd sure doesn't inspire fear into the players like Lute used to. Nothing like calling a time out and having the player sit next to you on the bench. Miller too for that matter was pretty intense. Shakur comes to mind as someone who looked over at the bench if he screwed up with puppy dog eyes.

Lute also didn't have a problem telling star players not to come back, Marcus Williams comes to mind.

The Aw Shucks coaching brothers do prove that nice guys finish last.

I remember Miller pointing at players and telling them to get off the court - lol... Lute was definitely the best - he got the most out of those players...

[KaibabKat]

Three Mcdonald's all americans on this team. 3.

[PHXCATS]

Three Mcdonald's all americans on this team. 3.

Yeah so things will be fine

[azcat49]

3 point shooting will come around

Not worried

I think there is a whole third of the season against P4 teams to see this probably won’t happen with any consistency.

I am not sure we even finish at .500 on the season. Lloyd and company are 0-7 vs +.500 P4 teams. That to me speaks volumes

So you want to fire Lloyd?

No, not even close. Just unfortunate that this is just not the team we thought it would be. Hopefully it’s a learning experience and we get after it again next year

Lloyd is who he is. He won’t change and it’s not right to think he will from a discipline standpoint. He can though change how he recruits and evaluates and te is smart enough to get help in those areas

[Abrahamarvel]

The only way we can salvage this season is to move on from Love IMHO. Also give more opportunity to Bryant over Townsend. Young players' development might give us a spartk toward the end of the season. Otherwise we are playing in NIT if we are lucky.

[PHXCATS]

No one is benching Love

He is THE way to a better season

For fuck sake

[Chicat]

3 point shooting will come around

Not worried

I think there is a whole third of the season against P4 teams to see this probably won’t happen with any consistency.

I am not sure we even finish at .500 on the season. Lloyd and company are 0-7 vs +.500 P4 teams. That to me speaks volumes

So you want to fire Lloyd?

Are you this dramatic offline?

“Sorry sir but we are out of the Santa Fe Chicken.”
“Oh, so I should douse myself in gasoline and just fucking light myself on fire? Is that what you’re saying??”

[Merkin]

I remember Miller pointing at players and telling them to get off the court -

I had an animated GIF one time of Miller using language that would make even Kevin O'Neill blush. Pissed I lost it.

Now we have: Gee I'm sorry you lost Wally. You tried your best but the other team was just better.

[pc in NM]

I remember Miller pointing at players and telling them to get off the court -

I had an animated GIF one time of Miller using language that would make even Kevin O'Neill blush. Pissed I lost it.

Now we have: Gee I'm sorry you lost Wally. You tried your best but the other team was just better.

Let's no forget that CSM was a control freak that stifled offensive flow for the entire time he coached here - and, BTW, significantly loosened up in that respect after having a year off (and watching the CTL offense thrive with many of his players...)

https://www.azdesertswarm.com/basketbal ... ion-xavier

Miller took a year off coaching before accepting the Xavier job in March. During that hiatus, Miller watched a lot of Arizona basketball and took notes on how Tommy Lloyd used his former players.

“He enjoyed watching Arizona, which at the beginning I think was harder, but he enjoyed watching it because he respects what Tommy did with the players,” Amy Miller said. “I think that was another thing where, never did I ever think he would change his philosophy in coaching. But the time off and watching the coaches has allowed him to do things differently.”

[IrishAzCat]

I remember Miller pointing at players and telling them to get off the court -

I had an animated GIF one time of Miller using language that would make even Kevin O'Neill blush. Pissed I lost it.

Now we have: Gee I'm sorry you lost Wally. You tried your best but the other team was just better.

Here are a few:

[cpt]

I miss Miller.

[AzCatFan2]

Miller's teams never lacked toughness. Tommy's teams, unfortunately, have a habit of only playing 25-30 minutes a game. And it's those time when you are struggling you need to be tough, play great D and maybe get yourself an easy transition bucket to right the ship.

No coach is perfect, and Miller was stubborn never switching up Ds and not opening up the offense to be more free flowing. Even Lute was perfect, as he wasn't a great late game coach, but do something in a game that displeased Lute, and you'd get the death stare and then a seat right next to Lute! Wouldn't mind seeing Tommy do something like this. You don't need to curse like a sailor to get your message across.

[Beachcat97]

Never wanted Miller to go.

Still, I like Tommy and think he’ll turn this around. If he doesn’t within a year or two, he’ll be let go.

[BBQ wildcat]

I never wanted Miller gone, either.

The thing that really is confounding to me -- After the first couple of games, Tommy said he thought the team should have been ranked higher than #10. But he has seen these players all through preseason practices. Were they really all that much better in practice? Or isn't Tommy very good at evaluating players/talent?

[Merkin]

I never wanted Miller gone, either.

The thing that really is confounding to me -- After the first couple of games, Tommy said he thought the team should have been ranked higher than #10. But he has seen these players all through preseason practices. Were they really all that much better in practice? Or isn't Tommy very good at evaluating players/talent?

Not sure about Tommy, but I thought Murph excelled at it. Robinson too has over 40 years experience coaching basketball.

[Beachcat97]

It was always going to be dicey leaping out of the Pac and into a MUCH better league, right as the NIL era was moving into full swing. Tommy benefited greatly from inheriting some of the talent left on Miller's final roster (and his incoming recruits). But we're now entirely on the other side of things. Tommy deserves props for winning the Pac and getting to the S16 twice in his first three seasons of ever being a HC. That's awesome.

But as the B12 era begins, the margin for error is now razor thin. He's gotta turn this roster over year after year and not skip a beat. He's gotta land elite freshmen and elite recruits, and things have to come together in time to reach the NCAA tourney.

This year's team will not make the NCAA tourney, and when Selection Sunday happens and our name isn't called, it's going to be a tough pill. The pressure will intensify on Tommy, and we'll see what he can do. I don't think fans and boosters are going to be pleased missing the NCAA tourney back to back years.

[TheCat]

Oh and our coach sucks too. fortunately his record says he doesn't.

His record this year?

Or should I be watching replays of the ‘22/23 season?

Maybe overall record as a head coach. You think he forgot how to coach in a year? Or he won because of all those soft Euro you complain about that were on the team? I hope you guys don't have kids that ever disappointed you. I'm sure in your career you never were anything other than stellar. UCONN lost three in a row with a bunch of guys that played on the National Championship team, Kansas lost 2 last week. If you were fans of those programs Im sure you would be calling for the head coaches head.
Struggle is part of life and how you deal with it is what will show the kind of person you are. I think we can see how some people deal with it on this board. Make yourself happy and take a season off and rediscover some thing that brings you joy not pain.

“SQUIRREL!!!”

My dude, try to hold a coherent thought through to the end. I’m talking about how Tommy’s record in past years doesn’t make this year’s record any more palatable and you’re like but but but … UCONN! … Kansas! … Fortune Cookie self-help guru bullshit!

We aren’t very good TheCat. And you can point to Dan Hurley or Bill Self but last time I checked they have a few nattys between them and Tommy Lloyd absolutely does not.

Holy shit it’s like you want to live in an emotional dictatorship. If anyone is upset about the Cats not winning against any team with a pulse and being under .500 they need to “take a season off”? Get bent. People are allowed to be disappointed.

No idiot boy. You indicated that maybe you should be watching replays of 22/23 and I simply tried to get you to understand that in the big picture since he has been a head coach he has won the 4th most games in all of NCAA in that time period. He has won the second most ever in NCAA history for a new coach. That fn mean anything to you? Everything is about NOW for short sighted folks. Ring a bell?
Bill Self or Hurley did not have a national championship or even close to it in year 4. Bill Self won 6 games his first year as a head coach. In fact after 3 years he won as many game as CTL won his first year. That put things in perspective for you? Probably not. How about Hurley in 2015/2016 (Rhode Island) since he is your flavor of the month. Lost to powerhouses Valparaiso, Nebraska,
Old Dominion, St Joes (twice), St Bonny's, George Washington, Fordham (twice), Massachusetts (twice), George Mason, VCU and Davidson. I did not list any ranked team he lost to or the list would be longer. All those unranked losses and he had been a previous head coach.
Well this team is certainly not palatable to you and that is why I suggest you step away. We all know something being palatable to you is the most important thing. Do I think we are a great team no. Have we played really well at times yes. My hope is we continue to improve but Mo being out is another hurdle for us. Since you only consider them soft Euro maybe to you that is a good thing.
There is no self help that I could suggest for you since failure to meet your expectation is all that matters.
Hope your wife and kids meet all your expectations at all times.

[TheCat]

I've said this before, he needs help with recruiting. He needs to revamp his staff and coaching style or we're going to be the laughingstock in both money sports.

Bullshit.

The only thing CTL needs is $5-6M more in NIL every year.

With sufficient NIL Ballo is still our starting center, Sanon would be playing for us, and CTL would not have to settle for low $$$ Portal players like ADO/Awaka/Townsend.

Unfortunately I don't think its going to improve (unlesss a number of wealthy alumni step up). AZ is currently 6th in NIL in the Big12 (for basketball). With revenue sharing coming next year every team in the B1G/SEC (32 teams) will have more $$$ than CTL to attract the top players (and that doesn't include a half dozen private schools who will also have more). People need to be realistic and start calibrating their recruiting expectations to what CTL has to work with (NIL$$$).

Is the propaganda machine now saying Ballo would still be in uniform if not for $$$ ?

I ask because that was most definitely not the messaging coming out of the machine the day he declared and bailed.

Seems like the machine is changing the message to fit/explain away the current crisis.

Also, is it widely accepted that Arizona’s hoops NIL isn’t enough to compete? I ask that because if you titrate for “we could always use more” that isn’t what I hear from the staff and more importantly in my view Lloyd’s record on transfers is decidedly meh overall.

His record with Euros (as I used to love to try to explain to the other board and took immense heat for) is decidedly worse than meh. More like an abject failure and the most surprising facet of his tenure imo.

And, his record overall — for his players — is pretty damn spotty to be charitable.

Including allowing Love back (which occurred expressly because of NIL $$$, something the machine would like you to ignore).

All of which had led us to this island of misfit toys lineup.

In a way, I hope it’s the lack of $$$. Because the alternative — Tommy Lloyd doesn’t know wtf he is doing — and/or — is incapable of recruiting without the Few name — is way worse.

Still pissed.

Yes you're still pissed and acting like a three year old. Tommy Lloyd doesn't know what he is doing? I'm sure you do Winger (you already declared your evaluation prowess) why don't you volunteer to coach?

[Chicat]

No idiot boy.

Sick burn if you’re a nine year old.

*skips to the end of what is surely a screechy dumb post not worth my time…

Hope your wife and kids meet all your expectations at all times.

Oh wow, it got more embarrassing for you. Rough night, huh?

But for anyone wondering, I only get disappointed in my family when they fail to out-hustle and out-rebound their opponents and are sloppy with their dribble and shot selection.

[TheCat]

No idiot boy.

Sick burn if you’re a nine year old.

*skips to the end of what is surely a screechy dumb post not worth my time…

Hope your wife and kids meet all your expectations at all times.

Oh wow, it got more embarrassing for you. Rough night, huh?

But for anyone wondering, I only get disappointed in my family when they fail to out-hustle and out-rebound their opponents and are sloppy with their dribble and shot selection.

This whole season is not worth your time. You have made that clear. It was a sick burn because I thought I was talking to a nine year old. Your reaction to disappointment tells me your family might answer that question different. Your self esteem is tied to a bunch of 20 y/o's you have clearly demonstrated that. I will once again suggest you just step away so all your sensibilities remain intact.
I guess you couldn't really respond to the realities of being a new head coach and the unqualified success Arizona has had compared to other top coaches. No let's just say or coach sucks. It is easier and equal to your ability to analyse a coaches ability.

[Chicat]

Just to be clear, you’ve now accused me of saying our Euros are soft (never said this), our coach sucks (never said this), and my family of being the victims of my unnecessary disappointment (which is just embarrassing for you).

It may be time for you to step away from the internet if a stranger being less than happy at their team being under .500 at this point in the season has you this unhinged. Just a suggestion.

[Beachcat97]

Gonna be a long season

[Chicat]

Gonna be a long season

It already has been.

[Winger]

Tommy Lloyd doesn't know what he is doing?

Ok Cat you explain it to me:

1. Why is this season's lineup a mess of players who can't shoot, can't dribble, can't pass, can't defend; and collectively don't fit together and aren't any good?

2. Why is it that so many of Lloyd's Euros have been abject failures?

3. Why is it that so many of Lloyd's mid-major transfers have been meh?

4. He was really really good with/for Miller's guys, why is his track record with his own guys in comparison so iffy?

5. Why isn't he signing more elite players out of high school? Is < 1 per class enough?

I don't have good answers for those questions FTR.

Do you?

[PHXCATS]

Season still young

Every player last year was a Lloyd guy

Fucking relax people

[TheCat]

1. Got no idea but I trust that our coaching staff is working day and night to try and solve that dilemma. I don't think they forgot how to coach or are in over their heads which seems to be your and Chi conclusion. I think Love who was rated as the top portal transfer by experts, player of the year in the PAC, and All American this year is not living up to those expectation. Maybe it is the realization the dream he has since being a child is not going to be realized. I don't know.

2. Pelle, Zeus, Ballo? I also think Mo is going to be really good if he stays healthy and Henri we haven't seen enough of this year to know how he will turn out.

3. You mean the mid majors that contributed to 2 titles in 3 years? Are you considering the transfer we got from SDST last year as a mid major because many on here are saying he is exactly what we need?

4. I love Sean Miller and think he got a raw deal from Arizona but let's talk reality. Sean's record in his last 3 years:
2018-2019 17-15 and 8-10 in conference
2019-2020 21-11 and 10-8 in conference
2020-2021 17-9 and I think 9-9 in conference
So either Tommy is getting a lot more out of these recruits than Sean did or he has them in a style and comfort zone that capitalizes on their abilities.

Sean is a great coach and should have never been fired. I loved that guy but I would like to remind you that Sean went to the Bahamas with the number 1 NBA recruit and lost 3 straight and the same panic I see now reflected on these boards occurred then.

5. First I think there was a wait and see if he failed or was successful. No top talent was going to commit until that question was answered. Secondly recruiting today is different than when Sean was here. Sean signed numerous top 10 ranked recruiting hauls. I don't think you will ever see that kind of recruiting success at Arizona again. It is a different world. Tourneys that promise $1M to participating teams or think of it as $200K per starter or bank for recruits. Conferences whose payout per person next year will dwarf anything our conference can give. What you are seeing now is the rise of the SEC because of those factors.

I will continue to hope for improvement and will be disappointed in losses but I won't lose perspective and call into question the character of our players who sacrifice more for this University than anyone reading this and I won't doubt a staff that has won an incredible amount of games their first 3 years has the ability to do that again. They have earned it.

[FreeSpiritCat]

I'm done in following UA Sports this year. For one, I rarely get to seem them live, living on the east coast. This has been the most disappointing team in both football and basketball I remember. I don't think UA is worth more than highlights, even if I want to see it. Really disappointed, and not worth spending money to watch the Cats. I will always follow them, and when they are worth the money to follow them I will return. I don't like where college football and basketball is heading, and I've lost interest. I will probably still follow the Chicago Cubs. I can pay $130 to follow all games during the entire season. Right now I am done with college sports.

[Merkin]

Tommy going to pull Stephen's redshirt. https://www.azdesertswarm.com/basketbal ... Wkb2eMnj6g

[Chicat]

Tommy going to pull Stephen's redshirt. https://www.azdesertswarm.com/basketbal ... Wkb2eMnj6g

Something I wish I had known before setting RAP prices.

[TucsonClip]

I was all over Lloyd for a lot of things the last few weeks. Most notably, our offense looked like a shell of what we should expect. The efficiency was garbage, ball movement, and most of all the design. Yeah, Lloyd mentioned many of the concepts are still the same, and they are. However, how we initiate and the design/flow of the offense changed this year.

Typically, we would see a lot of side to side, empty ball screen action, with one big posting up, the second catching a reversal into the DHO, posting up big lifts to replace on the side PNR, swing and repeat.

This year, we adjusted our initial offense to put more of an emphasis on the Love and Bradley high PNR. Wayyyyyy too often, we would be setting a screen away for Love to get a touch, or off a DHO, or off a staggered screen, but all of them feeding directly into a high PNR for Love. I have no problem going to that when we need to get Love a touch. However, that has resulted in a stagnant offense, a massive decrease in ball movement and side to side action.

Tonight, Love didnt even get a touch for a high PNR until the 13:30 mark of the 1H, and that was through the flow of the offense, and not via a set play. Instead, what Lloyd was doing was using Love as a play finisher and not nearly at all as an initiator or creator. What this resulted in was using the threat of Love scoring to space the floor via his gravity. Leaving him on the wing, lettings him circle up for a touch, cut back door for a layup, spring off a wide pin down, slash off a ball reversal, ect.

Because of this, and him helping keep the floor spaced, you saw a ton of ball movement side to side, big to big hi-low action, empty corner PNR, and Bradley serving as the initiator with a lane to attack due to the spacing.

THIS is the type of offense we need more of with Love on the floor. Use him as a play finisher, use him as a threat to open the floor up, get him a touch on the move, allow him catch and shoot opportunities.

The second half reverted back to what we had seen the previous few games, but the 1H was as good of a half (on both ends of the floor) Love has played here, and our offense has played all season. 2H was far less of this, more stagnant offense, pounding the ball into the floor, lack of ball movement, but it wasnt as bad as we had seen previously. If we can take what we were running in the 1H, and apply that moving forward, things will start turning in our favor.

The offense wasnt all due to the ball movement and using Love as a play finisher, it was also built on our defense.

The ball pressure, playing up the line, trapping, jumping passing lanes, and leaking in transition. This all looked much more like Lloyd's year 1 defense, than anything we have seen this year. You could see the defensive intensity energizing the ball on offense, and keeping it moving, keeping guys cutting, keeping the bigs active. Additionally, and I know this is a small team, but we were able to switch 1-5 as well as we did all season.

All of this led to us pushing the ball in transition, we saw Townsend sprint the floor and seal for a duck in and a foul (which he should be doing every possession), Love attacking off a secondary break step up screen and hitting Townsend on a duck in.

A few quick notes:

* For as high an IQ as ADO may have on offense, it is the inverse on defense. Dude just need to be more aware of what is happening around him. You cant plant yourself under the rim as your man cuts baseline to the opposite corner for an open 3. You cant be the first close out on an x-out (teammate helps on the drive, you are defending 1v2 on the backside, close out to the ball, the man who helped on the drive closes out on your man in the corner), but decide to stunt at the shooting receiving the pass, only to try to stop the pass to your previous man in the corner, and end up with two guys on one, and nobody on the ball.

* I liked Carter getting all his minutes at the 4. Unsure if it is due to pressure, missing Krivas, ect. But it allowed him to play a bit more free and show off in transition.

* Henri was an absolute stud in the short roll (PNR -> catch the pass from the guard -> head up and make a play attacking the basket instead of just steamrolling to the rim). He had a few really nice passes for assists out of the short roll, finished decently around the rim, but showed that he has the skills to make those reads with the ball in his hands.

* Stephen just looks different than anyone we are used to seeing, sans Koloko. His athletic ability, length, and motor can help change the geometry of the floor if he can play without thinking what to do next.

[Postmaster]

Clip, do you have a hypothesis as to why the difference in offensive from 1H to 2H?

When we got very sloppy I would have like CTL to sub multiple guys. It seemed like he let them play through it as if were a shooting slump as opposed to poor play.

[TucsonClip]

Clip, do you have a hypothesis as to why the difference in offensive from 1H to 2H?

When we got very sloppy I would have like CTL to sub multiple guys. It seemed like he let them play through it as if were a shooting slump as opposed to poor play.

The ball was sticking, we weren't getting out in transition, having to take the ball out of the net, less side to side action. The half court is where we really struggle, and this team seriously lacks connectors who can keep continuity and the ball moving.

[AzCatFan2]

Out in transition, we're deadly. In the halfcourt, we're flat, and fall in love too much with the 3 ball. Some of our best halfcourt offense in the 2nd half was when we ran pick and rolls and got the ball inside.

I know it's their style, but I doubt we see too many teams try to speed us up like Samford. And in the second half, their press was more of a show press, as they only committed to one person on the ball, doubling only when the dribble was picked up. We really picked them apart in the first half when they pressed harder. I think the 1H press only lead to one turnover and easy bucket for the Bulldogs, and we must have gotten 10-14 easy points off it.

Going forward, in the halfcourt, we need to run the offense through the paint. No halfcourt shots until there's at least one paint touch. We're just not a great outside shooting team. We do better when we get the ball down low and get to the FT line.

[pc in NM]

Out in transition, we're deadly. In the halfcourt, we're flat, and fall in love too much with the 3 ball. Some of our best halfcourt offense in the 2nd half was when we ran pick and rolls and got the ball inside.

I know it's their style, but I doubt we see too many teams try to speed us up like Samford. And in the second half, their press was more of a show press, as they only committed to one person on the ball, doubling only when the dribble was picked up. We really picked them apart in the first half when they pressed harder. I think the 1H press only lead to one turnover and easy bucket for the Bulldogs, and we must have gotten 10-14 easy points off it.

Going forward, in the halfcourt, we need to run the offense through the paint. No halfcourt shots until there's at least one paint touch. We're just not a great outside shooting team. We do better when we get the ball down low and get to the FT line.

I do think we moved the ball better in the halfcourt offense. But, against good rebounding and long perimeter defenders, we're still vulnerable...

... Hard to project from an opponent like this.

[Chicat]

We look great against teams where we have a distinct advantage in talent and athleticism.

If only those were the only teams on our schedule…

[Alieberman]

Big 12 doesn't have many talented and athletic teams do they?

[pc in NM]

I predict Arizona goes undefeated in Big-12 this year until March 8th in Lawrence. (That is a toss-up!!)

Bet the house on it!!!

(Fair Warning: Note my signature below!)

[PHXCATS]

Speed bumps happen

Losers run away

Winners press on

Team will come together

[EastCoastCat]

I’m still hoping this year is a role reversal for Arizona basketball.

Instead of looking like world beaters in the beginning of the year beating good teams and being highly ranked, we instead come on strong in the second half of the year…including March.

I will pull a Merkin/Jethro Tull/Living in the past comment…just like in ‘97.

[dirtbags]

I’m still hoping this year is a role reversal for Arizona basketball.

Instead of looking like world beaters in the beginning of the year beating good teams and being highly ranked, we instead come on strong in the second half of the year…including March.

I will pull a Merkin/Jethro Tull/Living in the past comment…just like in ‘97.

sounds good to me, some of the arizona's best basketball is when our guys play with a huge chip on their shoulder

[U.P. Zona Fan]

Good, so I'm not the only one that forgot to do my RAP for CMU.