It took Adia Barnes 17 games to finally notch a victory over a ranked opponent at Arizona — a 51-39 win over No. 17 Arizona State on Dec. 30, 2018 at McKale Center — in her third season after her alma mater hired her before the 2016-17 season.
“We’re playing as a cohesive unit,” said Barnes, whose team won its 10th straight game that season with the victory over the Sun Devils. “We have a great culture. We’re doing some good things.”
Not until her 32nd game against ranked teams did a win come for Barnes and Arizona against a top 10 team. That happened Jan. 30, 2020, in Barnes’ fourth season at home against No. 8 UCLA in a 92-66 rout.
Her record against ranked teams at that point: 5-27. Against top 10 teams: 1-13.
“We always talk in this program about leaving a legacy and a game like this is how you start,” Barnes said after the win over the Bruins, the program’s first over a top 10 team since the 2003-04 season.
Two games after that, in her 34th game against a ranked opponent at Arizona, Barnes coached the Wildcats to their first road victory against a top 10 team. The 65-58 overtime win over No. 9 Oregon State at Corvallis, Ore., came after nine losses to start her tenure on the road against teams in the top 10.
“We’re tough,” Barnes said after the win over the Beavers. “We didn’t show it Friday (in an 85-52 loss at No. 3 Oregon in the previous game) but we showed it today. I think that was important. It showed who we are.”
Including that win over the Beavers, Barnes and Arizona have reversed the fortunes against ranked teams, going 8-5 against ranked teams through the national championship game against No. 2 Stanford on April 4.
The Wildcats are 6-4 against top 10 teams in that stretch, including the program’s first win over a No. 1-ranked team — against UConn 69-59 in the Final Four game April 2.
Now comes another power for No. 22 Arizona — No. 6 Louisville on Friday at 2:30 p.m. at the Sanford Pentagon in Sioux Falls, S.D. in a made-for-TV matchup on ESPNU. KTUC (1400-AM) will also broadcast the game with Brian Jeffries’ son Brody Dryden handling the play-by-play.
Barnes would have never scheduled such a game through her first three seasons at Arizona. In her sixth season, coming off a missed jumper from winning a national title, the Wildcats are much more equipped for the challenge against Jeff Walz’s elite program.
When Arizona upset No. 17 Arizona State three seasons ago, it came after a non-conference slate that was not what the Wildcats will encounter now with the program more established. They were 11-1 after that win and Barnes was asked questions about the strength of schedule playing teams such as Incarnate Word, South Carolina State, UTEP and NAU.
Those days are gone.
“I normally, a couple years ago, would have never played such a strong team so early,” Barnes said about Louisville, “but it’s a good test to see where you’re at and what you need to work on.”
The Thanksgiving-time tournament, the Paradise Jam at Jamaica, will include games against Vanderbilt and Rutgers. Arizona also plays Texas in the Coast-to-Coast Challenge at Las Vegas on Dec. 19.
Arizona goes at least 10 deep and is more apt to handle the challenge of facing a program such as Louisville in the second game of the season (the Wildcats opened with an 86-44 win over Cal State Northridge at McKale Center on Tuesday).
The starters appear to be guards Shaina Pellington and Bendu Yeaney, wing Sam Thomas, forward Cate Reese and post player Lauren Ware with freshman center Aaronette Vonleh and sharpshooting guards Taylor Chavez and Madison Conner rounding out the top eight rotation.
Wing players Helena Pueyo and Koi Love and forward Aariyah Copeland also figure to get a considerable amount of playing time.
“It’s not realistic to play everybody, especially against the No. 6 team in the country,” Barnes said. “It’ll look different, but I’m excited to see how people fulfill those roles. It’s also going to look different now than it will in 10 games, because things change.
“I just have to figure out the best pieces, and the best cohesiveness on the court. I don’t know yet completely. I know our starters, but I don’t know the next because it’s kind of changing.”
Walz is 386-107 in his 15th season at Louisville. He coached the Cardinals to the national title game in 2012-13 and another Final Four trip in 2017-18.
The Cardinals, who are playing their season opener, have Arizona and Pac-12 connections.
Sophomore guard Hailey Van Lith comes from Wenatchee, Wash.
Fifth-year senior guard Kianna Smith, who comes from Fullerton, Calif., is a former Cal player who is the top returning scorer for the Cardinals (11.4 points a game last season). Smith was a potential target for Arizona after she left the Golden Bears following the 2018-19 season but she chose Louisville.
Senior guard Ahlana Smith played at UCLA out of high school in 2018-19.
Adia Barnes vs. ranked opponents as Arizona's coach
* - neutral site.| Date | Opponent | Result |
|---|---|---|
| 4/4/2021 | #2 Stanford* | L/54-53 |
| 4/2/2021 | #1 UConn* | W/69-59 |
| 3/29/2021 | #11 Indiana* | W/66-53 |
| 3/28/2021 | #4 Texas A&M* | W/74-59 |
| 3/5/2021 | #9 UCLA* | L/58-49 |
| 2/22/2021 | at #4 Stanford | L/62-48 |
| 2/8/2021 | at #11 Oregon | W/79-59 |
| 1/14/2021 | #10 Oregon | W/57-41 |
| 1/1/2021 | #1 Stanford | L/81-54 |
| 12/4/2020 | vs. #9 UCLA | W/68-68 |
| 3/7/2020 | vs. #3 Oregon* | L/88-70 |
| 2/28/2020 | vs. #4 Stanford | W/73-72 OT |
| 2/9/2020 | at #9 Oregon State | W/65-58 OT |
| 2/7/2020 | at #3 Oregon | L/85-52 |
| 1/31/2020 | vs. #8 UCLA | W/92-66 |
| 1/24/2020 | vs. #16 Arizona State | W/59-53 |
| 1/12/2020 | vs. #2 Oregon | L/64-71 |
| 1/10/2020 | vs. #3 Oregon State | L/61-63 |
| 1/5/2020 | at #10 UCLA | L/70-58 |
| 11/17/2019 | at #22 Texas | W/83-58 |
| 3/8/2019 | vs. #6 Oregon* | L/63-77 |
| 3/3/2019 | vs. #9 Oregon State | L/65-60 2OT |
| 3/1/2019 | vs. #6 Oregon | L/83-54 |
| 2/22/2019 | at #7 Stanford | L/56-54 |
| 2/1/2019 | at #21 Arizona State | L/60-47 |
| 1/20/2019 | at #5 Oregon | L/60-93 |
| 1/18/2019 | at #10 Oregon State | L/86-64 |
| 1/13/2910 | vs. #6 Stanford | L/78-48 |
| 1/11/2019 | vs. #24 California | W/60-55 |
| 12/30/2018 | vs. #17 Arizona State | W/51-39 |
| 2/25/2018 | vs. #8 Oregon | L/74-61 |
| 2/23/2018 | vs. #12 Oregon State | L/65-40 |
| 2/9/2018 | at #8 UCLA | L/69-46 |
| 1/26/2018 | at #23 California | L/63-39 |
| 1/14/2018 | at #22 Oregon State | L/88-48 |
| 1/12/2018 | at #8 Oregon | L/62-44 |
| 1/7/2018 | vs. #23 California | L/53-51 |
| 1/5/2018 | vs. #24 Stanford | L/61-46 |
| 2/24/2017 | vs. #15 UCLA | L/79-56 |
| 2/10/2017 | at #10 Washington | L/91-55 |
| 2/5/2017 | vs. #11 Oregon State | L/65-57 |
| 1/29/2017 | at #13 UCLA | L/69-49 |
| 1/20/2017 | at #10 Stanford | L/73-46 |
| 1/13/2017 | vs. #8 Washington | L/90-73 |
| 1/1/2017 | vs. #13 Stanford | L/77-55 |
| 12/29/2016 | vs. #21 California | L/74-64 |
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ALLSPORTSTUCSON.com publisher, writer and editor Javier Morales is a former Arizona Press Club award winner. He is a former Arizona Daily Star beat reporter for the Arizona basketball team, including when the Wildcats won the 1996-97 NCAA title. He has also written articles for CollegeAD.com, Bleacher Report, Lindy’s Sports, TucsonCitizen.com, The Arizona Republic, Sporting News and Baseball America, among many other publications. He has also authored the book “The Highest Form of Living”, which is available at Amazon. He became an educator five years ago and is presently a special education teacher at Gallego Fine Arts Intermediate in the Sunnyside Unified School District
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