UCLA rivalry

Bordercat · Post by **Bordercat** » Sat Jan 29, 2022 6:00 pm

not sure if I should be putting this thread up on this board but I wanted to get some insight from some of the more knowledgeable posters on this topic of the AZ/UCLA rivalry (so I can better talk shit on Twitter etc).

Seems like Miller kind of ran off Howland. As Miller won 4/5 after dropping his first game against UCLA. In fact, as far as I can tell Miller had a winning record against UCLA 13-11 (until Cronin arrived).

Furthermore, if you begin looking at head to head since the arrival of Lute in 1983 we are 41-44 against UCLA. (modern era).

Other than this current losing streak of 6 games to the Bruins, we've only had one other such worse streak of 8 straight losses from 2006 to 2009 since the late 70's and early 80's (remember Lute last year was 2008 and things got ugly before he retired with interim stints and whatnot).

My question is how do our post season ncaa tourney records compare since Lute arrived in 83?

And I would love any other thoughts and insight into the history of our rivalry one could offer.

Are the Cats close (modern day) to UCLA in this rivalry?

where do these fuckers get off thinking they are so much better than us when they haven't won a conference championship since 2012? Since 2012 they have one reg season chip and one tourney chip. Az has 4 and 3 respectively 7 combined in those same ten years. UCLA has one lucky run to the FF and now gawd they are unbearable.

EastCoastCat · Post by **EastCoastCat** » Sat Jan 29, 2022 6:09 pm

I’m not a knowledgeable poster by any means but have no idea what you are trying to ascertain. You can easily look up records and make your own determination on the rivalry.

Lately both teams have been up and down.
For 25+ years they were the best 2 teams in the conference ( with Stanford poking it’s nose in the mix).
Natty wise it’s no comparison.

Bordercat · Post by **Bordercat** » Sat Jan 29, 2022 7:39 pm

Since Lute- 83

National Championships
UCLA-1
Arizona-1

Runner up
UCLA-1
AZ-1

Final Fours
UCLA- 5
AZ-4

Elite 8
UCLA-7
AZ- 10

Sweet 16
UCLA-16
AZ-21

Tourney appearances
UCLA-29
AZ-33

Con champs reg season
UCLA-9
AZ-17

Conf tourney champs
UCLA-4
AZ-8

head to head
UCLA-44
AZ-43

updated- would rather be a Wildcat.

Postmaster · Post by **Postmaster** » Sun Jan 30, 2022 9:22 am

They used to recruit the same kids. That boosted the rivalry. Now recruiting is so national and international that , IMO, the rivalry has lost some luster.
Does Arizona have any SoCal kids on roster?

Obviously the head to head swung to UCLA over the last few years, so overall they are fairly close.

You also had Lute - Wooden connection and the Walton connection.

Now we have the Hazzard connection.

Bordercat · Post by **Bordercat** » Sun Jan 30, 2022 1:48 pm

I started school at UA in 93. Other than the Howland era (on the downward for Lute), seemed like AZ always had the upper hand.

I always felt that when Howland, and the Bennetts came to WSU, the conference officiating shifted to tailor to those guys and the physical nature of their style of play.

Then Arizona finally countered with Miller who somewhat ran off Howland and UCLA countered back with Alford so the refs went back to a "free flowing" emphasis and not allowing as much contact.

Now I sense that with Cronin they are going to allow UCLA to play physical.

No question in my mind that the conference caters to the LA big markets.

UAEebs86 · Post by **UAEebs86** » Sun Jan 30, 2022 1:55 pm

Bordercat wrote: ↑Sun Jan 30, 2022 1:48 pm
No question in my mind that the conference caters to the LA big markets.

It's not like there's any proof the refs are biased against Arizona and would favor an LA school during a big game situation. Oh, wait....

"He touched the ball!"

azcat49 · Post by **azcat49** » Sun Jan 30, 2022 2:54 pm

Well let’s see, media right coming up, largest TV audience in america. Statements from commissioner saying he will do all he can to promote top teams. Naw, nothing here to see

Spaceman Spiff · Post by **Spaceman Spiff** » Mon Jan 31, 2022 10:22 am

Bordercat wrote: ↑Sat Jan 29, 2022 7:39 pm Since Lute- 83

This post says it all about the modern era. I tend to go Arizona because we haven't had as many barely over .500 and below .500 seasons, but it's pretty comparable.

If it wasn't for Howland's 3 FF's in a row, we'd have even more of a decided edge.

Beachcat97 · Post by **Beachcat97** » Mon Jan 31, 2022 10:26 am

Spaceman Spiff wrote: ↑Mon Jan 31, 2022 10:22 am

If it wasn't for Howland's 3 FF's in a row, we'd have even more of a decided edge.

That's a pretty big "if"!

If we'd have beaten Duke in '01, if we'd have beaten Illinois in '05, if we'd have beaten UConn in '11.

It's crazy how close we came to another national title and two more FFs. I didn't even mention Wisconsin in '14.

Spaceman Spiff · Post by **Spaceman Spiff** » Mon Jan 31, 2022 10:38 am

Beachcat97 wrote: ↑Mon Jan 31, 2022 10:26 am
Spaceman Spiff wrote: ↑Mon Jan 31, 2022 10:22 am

If it wasn't for Howland's 3 FF's in a row, we'd have even more of a decided edge.
That's a pretty big "if"!

If we'd have beaten Duke in '01, if we'd have beaten Illinois in '05, if we'd have beaten UConn in '11.

It's crazy how close we came to another national title and two more FFs. I didn't even mention Wisconsin in '14.

It's just one of the things that keeps Arizona from a pretty decided edge. Those 3 years account for over half their Final Fours and almost half their Elite Eights.

I mean, of course they made it and deserve that credit, but outside that 3 year run, they have 4 EE's and 2 Final Fours across 40 years. We have a Final Four drought, but have 3 EE's in each of the 90's, 00's and 10's.

Bordercat · Post by **Bordercat** » Mon Jan 31, 2022 3:13 pm

as a fan I would much rather have the stats of our team than UCLA (in modern era). Don't get wrong they had quite a heyday with Howland. And fuck give me a break with that run they had last year. Miller's run was really great, even with some tough EE and SS losses. Remember, UCLA has one conference championship way back in 2014. Miller 7 in that same time.

I guess AZ has had some rough times with interims KO and Pennell, or the ESPN conspiracy. But nothing negligent like UCLA hiring Alford or Lavin (another give me a break lucky run). Lavin=Ollie guy for UCONN. I'm gonna say Cronin=Frank Martin SC run. The tourney is a cruel bitch to measure success. I really think conference championships are important. I remember Miller once saying he is bent on conference championships. I like that.

I've been telling the Bruin trolls on Twitter they still don't have a conf chip since 2014. And if they want to come get one it comes through Tucson this Thursday. Bring it mutha fuckahs.

Bordercat · Post by **Bordercat** » Mon Jan 31, 2022 3:18 pm

also- for the game Thursday....

maybe we should slow it down and play their game and pound those guys in the paint with our bigs.

Beachcat97 · Post by **Beachcat97** » Mon Jan 31, 2022 3:26 pm

Bordercat wrote: ↑Mon Jan 31, 2022 3:18 pm also- for the game Thursday....

maybe we should slow it down and play their game and pound those guys in the paint with our bigs.

I'll leave it to the tacticians on this board to address this, but I'll just say that Thursday is probably the biggest test so far of Coach Lloyd's very young career in Tucson. Our guys were tired and banged up last week, and we couldn't impose our style of play. Lloyd has a lot of days here to watch tape and throw some different looks at ucla. I expect a much closer game, and it'll probably just come down to who's hitting big shots in the second half. They've already shown they have guys who can do this. Can our guards make big plays in the waning minutes?

azcat49 · Post by **azcat49** » Mon Jan 31, 2022 5:48 pm

I agree it’s a big test for his coaching chops. I am interested to see how he changes u the defense or if he will just hope our guys go better at home and they miss more.

Beachcat97 · Post by **Beachcat97** » Mon Jan 31, 2022 6:22 pm

azcat49 wrote: ↑Mon Jan 31, 2022 5:48 pm I agree it’s a big test for his coaching chops. I am interested to see how he changes u the defense or if he will just hope our guys go better at home and they miss more.

It's not a good place to be in when you're relying on hot shooting but your guys are not exactly lights-out shooters. ucla has a few guys who are very efficient from the perimeter, and that's what allowed them to get a big lead. Our turnover count wasn't terrible (14), and we outrebounded them by 15. The difference was that they made shots, and we didn't. It's really that simple, imo. We can't survive a night when Kriisa and Mathurin shoot poorly. Can probably be okay with one of them stinking it up, but not both. And we need Larsson and Kier to hit a few too. I'm not even mentioning our bigs because CK and OB are very efficient. If Tubelis isn't feeling better, that obviously hurts us. I actually think Tubelis' injury has been more significant than I first realized.

make no mistake: this is the same ucla team that almost took Gonzaga to OT in the FF. exact same roster. it's not exactly surprising to see them finding their stride right about now. No one (myself included) expected to have a chance to actually win the Pac this season, so Lloyd and our team deserve a ton of credit. I hope they can play better on Thursday and set things up for a very exciting conference race the next few weeks.

If we lose again, we're playing for 2nd place from here on out. Not a bad spot to be in, but it would be really fun for Lloyd to get this big win in his first year.

Bordercat · Post by **Bordercat** » Tue Feb 01, 2022 4:33 am

Yes people are not making a big enough deal of the AT injury. He could be our best player.

Lloyd made a comment the other day about whether he should change his approach or "double down"?

We have a size advantage against them. Let's use it. Let's make it a half court game. That's my thought.

Spaceman Spiff · Post by **Spaceman Spiff** » Tue Feb 01, 2022 7:26 am

Bordercat wrote: ↑Tue Feb 01, 2022 4:33 am Yes people are not making a big enough deal of the AT injury. He could be our best player.

Lloyd made a comment the other day about whether he should change his approach or "double down"?

We have a size advantage against them. Let's use it. Let's make it a half court game. That's my thought.

I see it differently. First off, I always think you're building until March. You're building and learning how to execute what you want to execute for when games are one and done.

Second, I posted about how I think most people overrate the margins in big games. UCLA is a good example. First, we had an EFG of 36%, which is just bad and also way below our norm. A more normal shooting night and we're equal with UCLA in the prior game without changing anything else.

On D, I don't think we're far off. 3 missed shots and one more turnover and we're holding them to 65-70 points in that last game. That would be what I tell my team. Sharper execution gets you 3 missed shots and a to. 3 missed shots and a to get you a W.

Most of all, we have a few guys slumping shooting the ball. I hate large style changes when guys are slumping. In a slump, you want to provide a security blanket where players go to what they know and what they do. If you try to get them executing a new style, that's another thing to complicate their play. In a slump, complication is the enemy. Make it simple, do your thing and the shots will fall sooner or later.

EastCoastCat · Post by **EastCoastCat** » Tue Feb 01, 2022 8:02 am

Yeah, I don't think we change anything drastic imo.

As much as everyone talks about our offense it's really the defense that dictates the outcome. Hold UCLA to 65-70 points at home and I like our chances.

On offense, the approach has always been to get the best shot each possession whether that takes 3 seconds or 30. That's what I will be watching for. Just take quality shots and hopefully we shoot percentage-wise close to our norm.

Spaceman Spiff · Post by **Spaceman Spiff** » Tue Feb 01, 2022 8:14 am

EastCoastCat wrote: ↑Tue Feb 01, 2022 8:02 am Yeah, I don't think we change anything drastic imo.

As much as everyone talks about our offense it's really the defense that dictates the outcome. Hold UCLA to 65-70 points at home and I like our chances.

On offense, the approach has always been to get the best shot each possession whether that takes 3 seconds or 30. That's what I will be watching for. Just take quality shots and hopefully we shoot percentage-wise close to our norm.

Maybe a few half court counters to try to take advantage of what UCLA showed us in game 1. That's about all I'd do offensively.

Look, if we put ourselves in a position where 70+ points beats a top ten team at our normal tempo, you can't ask for much more. We're averaging 76.4 possessions per game and a full 170 teams get at least a point per possession. That has to be enough to win.

TheCat · Post by **TheCat** » Tue Feb 01, 2022 8:33 am

Beachcat97 wrote: ↑Mon Jan 31, 2022 3:26 pm
Bordercat wrote: ↑Mon Jan 31, 2022 3:18 pm also- for the game Thursday....

maybe we should slow it down and play their game and pound those guys in the paint with our bigs.
I'll leave it to the tacticians on this board to address this, but I'll just say that Thursday is probably the biggest test so far of Coach Lloyd's very young career in Tucson. Our guys were tired and banged up last week, and we couldn't impose our style of play. Lloyd has a lot of days here to watch tape and throw some different looks at ucla. I expect a much closer game, and it'll probably just come down to who's hitting big shots in the second half. They've already shown they have guys who can do this. Can our guards make big plays in the waning minutes?

Well I'm not sure it is a big test of Tommy. UCLA was ranked 2 to start the year and we were not ranked. UCLA is an experienced team and we are one of the youngest. True test for Tommy will not be the top teams in the conference it will be if we see improvement and what they can accomplish on the season as a whole. We are about one game past half way. We will see.

Beachcat97 · Post by **Beachcat97** » Tue Feb 01, 2022 8:46 am

TheCat wrote: ↑Tue Feb 01, 2022 8:33 am
Beachcat97 wrote: ↑Mon Jan 31, 2022 3:26 pm
Bordercat wrote: ↑Mon Jan 31, 2022 3:18 pm also- for the game Thursday....

maybe we should slow it down and play their game and pound those guys in the paint with our bigs.
I'll leave it to the tacticians on this board to address this, but I'll just say that Thursday is probably the biggest test so far of Coach Lloyd's very young career in Tucson. Our guys were tired and banged up last week, and we couldn't impose our style of play. Lloyd has a lot of days here to watch tape and throw some different looks at ucla. I expect a much closer game, and it'll probably just come down to who's hitting big shots in the second half. They've already shown they have guys who can do this. Can our guards make big plays in the waning minutes?
Well I'm not sure it is a big test of Tommy. UCLA was ranked 2 to start the year and we were not ranked. UCLA is an experienced team and we are one of the youngest. True test for Tommy will not be the top teams in the conference it will be if we see improvement and what they can accomplish on the season as a whole. We are about one game past half way. We will see.

That's fair, but over how long a period are you planning to assess this "improvement"? Is it week to week? Is it between now and the tourney? Good coaches, imo, actually do need to make quick adjustments from week to week, especially in the thick stretch of a difficult schedule. I hear you about our being unranked, but clearly that was a mis-evaluation by national media. This AZ team has shown that it's probably no worse than the top 15. Thursday is a home game for us, and we'll have had nearly a week of rest and preparation. Not saying I 100% expect a win, but I do expect improvement from last week.

Postmaster · Post by **Postmaster** » Tue Feb 01, 2022 8:51 pm

I’d be a lot more comfortable if we hadn’t repeated the poor shooting against TNTC.

MrBug708 · Post by **MrBug708** » Tue Feb 01, 2022 9:34 pm

This is the first time I've heard of the "Miller ran off Howland" conversation. Could you flesh it out a bit more?

Bordercat · Post by **Bordercat** » Wed Feb 02, 2022 6:00 am

Bug- that was just my perception. I looked it up and there isn't anything there.

Miller arrived in 2009 but didn't win his first conference championship until 2014.

Howland won the Pac 12 in 2013 and was ironically fired that year. Weird.

So I was wrong on that. My bad.

EastCoastCat · Post by **EastCoastCat** » Wed Feb 02, 2022 6:22 am

F*ck the Bruins.

(just wanted to remind everyone).

UAEebs86 · Post by **UAEebs86** » Wed Feb 02, 2022 6:34 am

What ECC said

Spaceman Spiff · Post by **Spaceman Spiff** » Wed Feb 02, 2022 7:57 am

Bordercat wrote: ↑Wed Feb 02, 2022 6:00 am Bug- that was just my perception. I looked it up and there isn't anything there.

Miller arrived in 2009 but didn't win his first conference championship until 2014.

Howland won the Pac 12 in 2013 and was ironically fired that year. Weird.

So I was wrong on that. My bad.

Miller's 2010-11 team was first in the Pac? Unless you're referring to the tournament only.

CatFanOneMil · Post by **CatFanOneMil** » Wed Feb 02, 2022 11:41 pm

I think we often under-estimate a few things here. especially regarding the UCLA game...

1st...the 3rd game on a road trip, so far Pac teams are something like 1 in 7 on the final game in three game road trips...so it's a very hard win to get no matter who is playing...so far UCLA has not had a "3 game road trip"...as far as I can tell they haven't played a 3 game road trip so far and I will be interested to see how the conference schedules their other games...it is a serious disadvantage to strap any team with 3 road games in a row and personally if it was YOUR team that had covid protocol issues then YOUR team should be doing the 3 road game scenario...they are about to have to spend the next few weeks on the road...lets see how well they handle it. (Although having to play in Tempe should never count as a road game for anyone)

Second it was also the first time they've had fans back how friggin convenient for them (although in general I am not against them having fans because their financials are a HUGE train wreck right now, the AD is operating in a HUGE red condition at Pauley)...fans help the refs decide which team they like...pretty well known fact that "home-cooking" is a real thing.

3rd UCLA is a very good veteran team, their final game was a 3 point loss to the runner up in the National Championship last year, while the wildcats sat on their thumbs with absolutely NO post conference play...they've been in lots more big games together as a team under the same coach and as a general rule the ENTIRE team is at least a year older in every position...in college thats a HUGE difference.

4th the fast pace style of play that is the new UA approach probably requires fresh legs...and a full bench, b=neither of which the Cats had in Pauley...its one thing to play fast, its another thing to play fast 3 road games in a row and if I was the opposing coach I'd want the last game on the schedule...

5th our depth was thin for that game...Tubellis was maybe 60% at most and granted he won't be 100% he also won't be beat on every single drive he encounters...he's faster than he looks and better than he has been...

I think all of those elements combined to create the perfect storm of fail for the Cats and to their credit they fought tooth and nail until the end...I am convinced that many of those elements contributed to Krissa and Mathurins "off shooting" if you rewatch the game the MAJORITY of their missed shots were the clunkers that hit the front of the rim that is indicative of tired legs...there was no "lift" in either one of their games, and Kolokos hands were also very reminiscent of Zeus...but I think thats because passes were soft...everyone was tired but trying...the only guy with much energy at all was Ballo, but he is really just starting to get the same kind of minutes the starters have been getting so fatigue has probably not hit him as much.

THAT perfect storm does not exist for tomorrow's game...only a few of the elements are there...mainly their experience and our lack of full bench depth with Tubellis being less than 100% and Aiken MIA...but honestly I think Vegas has it right...I think if we defend and play physical get a few more calls, make a few more shots then vegas is right and we win by 6-8 points.

azcat49 · Post by **azcat49** » Thu Feb 03, 2022 6:09 am

Interesting to see the line move higher. Now cats -6.5 or -7 and that is with Juzang clearing protocol

Olsondogg · Post by **Olsondogg** » Thu Feb 03, 2022 8:02 am

My wife got covid and I told her she had to play Arizona in basketball. She was covid free in 20 minutes.

True story.

Spaceman Spiff · Post by **Spaceman Spiff** » Thu Feb 03, 2022 8:27 am

I see this game pretty simply. It's a benchmark game, really the first major one for this team and coaching staff.

The first UCLA game was the first one where we objectively got outplayed. Vs Tenn, we caught some terrible reffing and made a bunch of mental mistakes, but we really didn't get outplayed. UCLA was better than we were.

How teams and coaches respond to that in a rematch winds up being a benchmark for how the season goes. Not even win vs loss, it's how you play. If you outplay a team and they hit some crazy miracle shots and you lose, fine. What matters is whether we change what happened the first time, which is simply being outplayed.

Quick edit to add a thought. Tonight we'll find out whether we belong in the top 5-7 national team conversation or not...at least for the time being.

Beachcat97 · Post by **Beachcat97** » Thu Feb 03, 2022 10:51 am

Spaceman Spiff wrote: ↑Thu Feb 03, 2022 8:27 am Quick edit to add a thought. Tonight we'll find out whether we belong in the top 5-7 national team conversation or not...at least for the time being.

This is where I've been since the loss last week. There's no problem losing a road game to a top 10 team, especially in January. It's happening all over the country, with Auburn the only exception.

But now we're at home with several days of rest, and more recovery time for Tubelis (who still isn't close to 100%, according to Lloyd yesterday). If we win tonight, it more or less offsets any negative effect on our seeding from last week, and it keeps us in the Pac title race. If we lose, I just hope it isn't more of the same from our last game with them (horrible shooting, slow defensive rotations, their energy outmatches ours). We need to show up tonight and at least be within striking distance in the closing minutes. That's all I'm asking for.

Spaceman Spiff · Post by **Spaceman Spiff** » Thu Feb 03, 2022 11:00 am

Beachcat97 wrote: ↑Thu Feb 03, 2022 10:51 am
Spaceman Spiff wrote: ↑Thu Feb 03, 2022 8:27 am Quick edit to add a thought. Tonight we'll find out whether we belong in the top 5-7 national team conversation or not...at least for the time being.
This is where I've been since the loss last week. There's no problem losing a road game to a top 10 team, especially in January. It's happening all over the country, with Auburn the only exception.

But now we're at home with several days of rest, and more recovery time for Tubelis (who still isn't close to 100%, according to Lloyd yesterday). If we win tonight, it more or less offsets any negative effect on our seeding from last week, and it keeps us in the Pac title race. If we lose, I just hope it isn't more of the same from our last game with them (horrible shooting, slow defensive rotations, their energy outmatches ours). We need to show up tonight and at least be within striking distance in the closing minutes. That's all I'm asking for.

There's a difference between an off night and a pattern. If we play signifcantly better than at UCLA, it looks like that was just an off night.

If they outplay us again, the reality is we can't claim we're up there with the big dogs. We could still get there, but we're not there right now.

That's how I see the options tonight.

Beachcat97 · Post by **Beachcat97** » Thu Feb 03, 2022 11:33 am

Spaceman Spiff wrote: ↑Thu Feb 03, 2022 11:00 am
Beachcat97 wrote: ↑Thu Feb 03, 2022 10:51 am
Spaceman Spiff wrote: ↑Thu Feb 03, 2022 8:27 am Quick edit to add a thought. Tonight we'll find out whether we belong in the top 5-7 national team conversation or not...at least for the time being.
This is where I've been since the loss last week. There's no problem losing a road game to a top 10 team, especially in January. It's happening all over the country, with Auburn the only exception.

But now we're at home with several days of rest, and more recovery time for Tubelis (who still isn't close to 100%, according to Lloyd yesterday). If we win tonight, it more or less offsets any negative effect on our seeding from last week, and it keeps us in the Pac title race. If we lose, I just hope it isn't more of the same from our last game with them (horrible shooting, slow defensive rotations, their energy outmatches ours). We need to show up tonight and at least be within striking distance in the closing minutes. That's all I'm asking for.
There's a difference between an off night and a pattern. If we play signifcantly better than at UCLA, it looks like that was just an off night.

If they outplay us again, the reality is we can't claim we're up there with the big dogs. We could still get there, but we're not there right now.

That's how I see the options tonight.

This game also really decides who has the inside track to the Pac title. If we win, we control our destiny the rest of the way. If not, we need ucla to drop a couple.

Chicat · Post by **Chicat** » Thu Feb 03, 2022 11:45 am

Olsondogg wrote: ↑Thu Feb 03, 2022 8:02 am My wife got covid and I told her she had to play Arizona in basketball. She was covid free in 20 minutes.

True story.

We should have sent the team to play Wuhan back in November 2019. Could have nipped this whole pandemic thing in the bud.

gronk4heisman · Post by **gronk4heisman** » Thu Feb 03, 2022 11:49 am

Chicat wrote: ↑Thu Feb 03, 2022 11:45 am
Olsondogg wrote: ↑Thu Feb 03, 2022 8:02 am My wife got covid and I told her she had to play Arizona in basketball. She was covid free in 20 minutes.

True story.
We should have sent the team to play Wuhan back in November 2019. Could have nipped this whole pandemic thing in the bud.

Unfortunately I think Cody Riley is permanently banned from China so we could not have pre-emptively saved the world.

UAEebs86 · Post by **UAEebs86** » Thu Feb 03, 2022 12:19 pm

TheCat · Post by **TheCat** » Thu Feb 03, 2022 12:29 pm

Remember that well.

Spaceman Spiff · Post by **Spaceman Spiff** » Thu Feb 03, 2022 12:31 pm

UAEebs86 wrote: ↑Thu Feb 03, 2022 12:19 pm

The forcefully waving everyone else down to go 1-4 is such an alpha move.

Anyone who was an Arizona fan at the time remembers that shot.

Beachcat97 · Post by **Beachcat97** » Thu Feb 03, 2022 12:35 pm

Salim was about as cold-blooded a Bruin killer who ever lived. That guy does *not* get enough props as an all time AZ great, imo.

Spaceman Spiff · Post by **Spaceman Spiff** » Thu Feb 03, 2022 12:54 pm

Beachcat97 wrote: ↑Thu Feb 03, 2022 12:35 pm Salim was about as cold-blooded a Bruin killer who ever lived. That guy does *not* get enough props as an all time AZ great, imo.

Salim was before his time. If he'd graduated 10 years later, when the NBA was moving towards 3 centric, positionless basketball, he'd have had a great NBA career.

Unfortunately, he got there at a time where he was still pushed towards being a normal PG because he was short. Put him in today where guys like Trae pull from 30 all the time and there's much less concern about fitting a position, he'd have been so much better off.

Alieberman · Post by **Alieberman** » Thu Feb 03, 2022 1:05 pm

I wish Benn had a little Salim in him....

Beachcat97 · Post by **Beachcat97** » Thu Feb 03, 2022 1:15 pm

Alieberman wrote: ↑Thu Feb 03, 2022 1:05 pm I wish Benn had a little Salim in him....

I feel like a player with Salim's shooting ability and Benn's athleticism is pretty much the perfect college guard.

Bordercat · Post by **Bordercat** » Thu Feb 03, 2022 3:12 pm

U.P. Zona Fan · Post by **U.P. Zona Fan** » Thu Feb 03, 2022 5:23 pm

I haven't been this excited/nervous about a game in years!!!!

Not even attending the games in Vegas!

It makes me happy that I'm hearing about this game on the radio and in podcasts as a final four/national championship caliber game.

Man I hope they play free and have fun. So glad we are back in the mix, and it has been so fun to watch. So thankful to the players and coach for putting such a fine product on the floor.

I'll be disappointed if we lay a stinker but I still have lots of hope for this team and their ultimate success this season.

Go Cats!!!!!

Bordercat · Post by **Bordercat** » Thu Feb 03, 2022 6:58 pm

Arizona is showing right now we are better. We have better players. We have the size and the talent. Just play how you play and don't get all mental and it's your.

Spaceman Spiff · Post by **Spaceman Spiff** » Thu Feb 03, 2022 8:00 pm

Bordercat wrote: ↑Thu Feb 03, 2022 6:58 pm Arizona is showing right now we are better. We have better players. We have the size and the talent. Just play how you play and don't get all mental and it's your.

I'm not sure about better, but with 1:25 left, we've showed we deserve to be mentioned with the top 5 and national contenders.

Edit: and we showed we can rebound from a bad performance and pass a test.

Bordercat · Post by **Bordercat** » Thu Feb 03, 2022 8:09 pm

that was a huge mental barrier we just broke through. I feel like this team will play loose and free the rest of the way.

Bangkok Wildcat · Post by **Bangkok Wildcat** » Thu Feb 03, 2022 8:16 pm

The “over-rated” chant from the Student Section was just and funny…until Pelle turned it over with 17 seconds left lol….Seriously though, UCLA is NOT over-rated and a damn tough matchup for us IMHO. So very glad we won though and got that particular monkey off our backs. Will be a tough game if we meet them in the P12 Tourney! BTFD.

Bordercat · Post by **Bordercat** » Thu Feb 03, 2022 8:20 pm

Stat of the night.

NINE blocks.

Take that shit out of here Bruins.

Loved when Ballo wagged his finger at Juzang at the end.

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