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WHAT IS PRODUCTIVITY RATING?:
PP: Productivity Points (Points, assists, rebounds, steals, blocked shots, FGs made, FTs made added together and then subtracted by missed FGs, missed FTs, personal fouls and turnovers)
MIN: Minutes played overall
PR: Productivity rating per minute played (Productivity points divided by minutes played)
ARIZONA 63, UNLV 58
PRODUCTIVITY RATING
* — STARTERS
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#arizonawildcats go with six-player rotation, more on T.J. McConnell and other notes after UA's 63-58 win over UNLV: http://t.co/sx8azgAlmo
— Bruce Pascoe (@BrucePascoe) December 8, 2013
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Khem Birch: "I played against McConnell when he was at Duquesne & I was at Pittsburgh. He was very tough in that game too." #ArizonaWildcats
— Javier Morales (@JavierJMorales) December 8, 2013
How appropriate for Arizona to potentially reach No. 1 tomorrow because of the play of its point guard, the No. 1 position.
In the game mentioned above by Khem Birch, a UNLV junior who transferred from Pitt after completing the fall semester in 2011, former Duquesne guard T.J. McConnell had 15 points and four steals for the Dukes.
T.J. McConnell played his best game in his brief Arizona career yesterday
That was not enough as Duquesne lost 80-69 to their cross-town rivals at a sold-out Consol Energy Center on Nov. 30, 2011. Birch had two points and five rebounds for the Panthers. McConnell made 6 of 9 attempts from the field, including 3 of 4 from three-point range.
Both players moved West from Pittsburgh during or after that 2011-12 season. They met again yesterday at McKale Center with another solid all-around performance by McConnell. This time it translated into a victory, a 63-58 win over UNLV, that improves Arizona’s record to 9-0 and gives the Wildcats a likely No. 1 ranking tomorrow.
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No stitches, was a quick fix. But u can see Aaron Gordon's eye starting to swell after "friendly elbow" #CutMeMic pic.twitter.com/TnW2CBQ6j2
— Dave Cooney (@Cooney247) December 7, 2013
Birch, a one-time recruiting target of Arizona out of high school in Massachusetts, finished with a double-double for UNLV (12 points and 10 rebounds).
McConnell had his best game at Arizona, tallying an .829 productivity rating with 13 points, seven rebounds and six assists (with only one turnover) in a team-high 35 minutes. He scored or assisted Arizona’s last five field goals in crunch time.
Once again, Arizona showed its resourcefulness, with McConnell’s best game when the Wildcats needed him most. Arizona’s Sixth Man — freshman Rondae Hollis-Jefferson — came through again as a spark off the bench with nine points, seven rebounds and six assists (and only one turnover).
Most of Arizona’s starters had subpar games but in place of their gaudy stats was an obvious effort to do whatever it takes to claim victory.
UNLV post player Roscoe Smith, whose UConn team beat Arizona in the Elite Eight in 2011, came into yesterday’s game saying Arizona is likely intimidated by a Running Rebel team that lost to Dixie College and UC-Santa Barbara.
Smith led the nation with 16.2 rebounds a game before yesterday. He managed a season-low six against Arizona, which outrebounded UNLV soundly 41-29. Smith told reporters afterward that he felt like he was boxing out three players every time.
The Wildcats also put the clamps on UNLV in the second half after allowing the Rebels to shoot 64 percent from the field. They shot only 28 percent (7 of 25) and were held to 16 points in the second half. They made only one shot in the last six minutes.
Not a pretty game for Arizona but one that merits the Wildcats a No. 1 ranking. McConnell and Arizona proved they could handle a challenge.
“We talked a lot at halftime about if we truly are a good defensive team, then we should be able to turn this around,” Arizona coach Sean Miller said.
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ARIZONA OVERALL PRODUCTIVITY RATING
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ARIZONA PAC-10/12
PLAYERS OF THE YEAR:
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With a great ranking comes great responsibility. Sean Miller on Arizona' impending move to No. 1: http://t.co/bDLTgThrGG
— Anthony Gimino (@AGWildcatReport) December 8, 2013
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ARIZONA SCHEDULE/PRODUCTIVITY RESULTS
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WILDABOUTAZCATS.net publisher, writer and editor Javier Morales is a former Arizona Press Club award winner. He also writes articles for Bleacher Report, Lindy’s College Sports and TucsonCitizen.com.
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