Arizona knew that getting a win over No.11 TCU (24-3, 12-2) was going to be a challenge. Playing the Horned Frogs without two main players made that challenge even tougher. Despite being down to a seven player rotation, Arizona (15-12, 6-8) gave TCU all it could handle for three quarters. Fatigue got the best of the Wildcats midway through the fourth quarter and the Horned Frogs left McKale with an 85-73 win on Sunday afternoon.
“I thought our team fought really hard. I thought we played probably almost 30 minutes of pretty good basketball. We played a better team than us tonight,” Arizona coach Adia Barnes said.
Starting point guard and floor general Jada Williams was still nursing a lower extremity injury sustained at the end of the first quarter in the Wildcats’ 83-64 loss to Oklahoma State. During the same game, Mailien Rolf, one of Arizona’s best defenders, hit her head and was out for concussion protocol against TCU.
Playing shorthanded isn’t a new concept for the Wildcats. Last year, Arizona played most of the year with a six-player rotation.
Paulina Paris at the Point
Paulina Paris, who was fighting the effects of the flu, was designated as the point guard against TCU.
“Having Paulina have to step in and play the one for 30 some minutes, and we didn’t have a backup one today? Very, very hard. I knew that was hard but wanted people to step up and wanted to challenge them,” Barnes said.
Paris played the point like she was made for the position, playing 35 minutes, with 14 points, six assists, one rebound and one steal.
Career game for Skylar Jones
Skylar Jones scored a career-high 30 points. The sophomore guard surpassed her previous career high of 24 points achieved last season in the Wildcats’ first round NCAA Tournament loss to Syracuse.
Jones went 9-for-11 from the floor and 4-for-4 from 3-point range, had five rebounds, one assist and one steal.
“I don’t know where my 3 shooting came from, I was just shooting the ball but it was going in,” Jones said chuckling.
Jones brought energy, excitement and toughness to the shorthanded Wildcats.
Madison Conner’s return to McKale
Barnes started recruiting Madi Conner when Madi was in eighth grade. The Chandler native who played high school basketball at Compass Prep committed to Barnes and the Wildcats in 2021. Conner transferred to TCU in 2023.
In her first game back in McKale since transferring, Conner was met with loud cheers from the Arizona crowd during team introductions.
“She’s a good person from a good family so, good job” Barnes said of Conner.
Conner on being back in McKale: “This fan base is amazing regardless of if you stay here or you go somewhere else; they always cheer for somebody who use to play here so I think that’s awesome. That’s something that they definitely have an advantage with because they get a great turnout every single game so that’s awesome for them.”
In Sunday’s game against her old team, Conner had 18 points, three rebounds, four assists, one block and one steal.
Cancer Awareness Pink Out Game: Survivor Highlight
Sunday’s game against TCU was Arizona’s annual Cancer Awareness game. The Wildcats and the Horned Frogs came out to warm up in pink t-shirts with the hashtag “Because It’s Personal” across the back.
Before the game I was able to touch base with someone I’ve been following on Twitter/X for a few years — a breast cancer survivor who through her fight never lost her passion for Arizona sports.
Melissa Korc, graduated from Arizona in 2005 with a Bachelor of Arts in Communication.
In August of 2023, Melissa was diagnosed with triple-negative breast cancer stage 1b at 39 years old. The cancer advanced to stage 2b. After a few rounds of chemotherapy, surgery took place in January 2024.
When asked how Arizona sports helped her through her fight with cancer, Melissa said, “When I was diagnosed in August 2023, I was sad I’d be missing the last season of the Pac-12. Chemo is tough and I was hospitalized after my first session. We stopped the immunotherapy drug and switched chemo drugs. I did some chemo, surgery and more chemo, radiation, and an oral chemo drug. I am cancer-free now. Being a Wildcat fan, gave me something to look forward to during treatment. I didn’t have the energy to do much, but watching the games, especially the wins, helped. There are things bigger than sports but the joy that sports brings is such a great feeling. Being able to cheer on the Wildcats for a few games in L.A. was great. The Bear Down spirit of Wildcats meant so much to me before cancer and even more now. Bear Down, always.”
Congratulations to Melissa on being cancer free and keeping that Bear Down spirit through her fight.
Arizona is back in McKale on Wednesday against BYU. Tipoff is 6:00 p.m.
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