We have gotten to that time of year when Arizona football has officially wrapped up its season and the main focus for UA fans shifts to the hardwood with men’s and women’s basketball. After coming off a solid 19-point win over Utah, the Wildcats were back in action at home to take on Kansas State for a Wednesday night showdown.
Last season, Arizona (15-0, 2-0 Big 12) fell to Kansas State on the road 73-70 in the only meeting between the two programs a season ago.
Now, No. 1 Arizona got the chance to face off against K-State (9-6, 0-2) at home and completely dominated the game running away with a 101-76 win over the Wildcats from the Midwest.
Much like Arizona has done the whole season, it dominated the glass 55-32 over K-State, leading to the strong performance for Tommy Lloyd’s team.
With the game in the books, we at All Sports Tucson have come up with our three top takeaways from Arizona’s win
Henri Veesaar Who?
One of the biggest blows to the Wildcats’ roster during the offseason was the departure of forward Henri Veesaar, who established himself as one of the top players on the team and averaged 9.4 points, 5.0 rebounds, and 1.1 blocks a game.
Many questioned if Arizona could overcome the loss of Veesaar and it was going to be up to center Motiejus Krivas to fill the hole left behind.
Although Krivas was coming back from a season-ending injury from the previous year, the big man slowly got back to full-form and over the last several games has been a force in the paint for the Wildcats on both sides of the court.
“You’re seeing a guy [Krivas] who is really coming into his own. This is really his second year in college basketball with the previous year being cut short. He was injured and then ready to play. And then got really injured,” said Lloyd.
“I just think you’re seeing a guy, who we knew was going to be a dominant player in this program but it’s finally coming to fruition.”
Against Kansas State, Krivas scored a career-high 25 points and recorded 12 rebounds for a double-double and shot 70% from the field. It was his first 20-plus points and 10-plus rebounds game of his career.
Not only has Arizona been able to overcome the loss of Veesaar but the team might have a better defensive presence in the paint than a season ago.
Developing Wings
One thing that I personally questioned heading into the season was who would be the do-it-all wing for the Wildcats? And, did this Arizona team have a defensive stopper?
Well, much like the question about Veesaar, the Wildcats have answered that with flying colors in freshmen Dwayne Aristode and Ivan Kharchenkov.
Kharchenkov has been in the starting lineup since the opening game against Florida and has quickly established himself as a Swiss Army Knife type of player that can do everything on the court. And he has been perhaps the best defensive player on the team and can guard positions 1-through-4 for Lloyd.
Meanwhile, Aristode has been one of the options off the bench for Arizona. Although he is only averaging 6.4 points per game at the moment, he is shooting 50% from 3-point range and is growing as a defensive player.
“It gives you options. And everything depends on what the other teams are trying to do and how you match up with it,” said Lloyd.
“But, switching sometimes can be a simple option. Switching keeps the ball in front and kind of keeps you out of rotation. So, it’s a good card to be able to pull out of your back pocket at certain times.”
Aristode’s growth on defense gives Lloyd another option as we get closer to March as a player he can switch on multiple players.
Koa “Rebound” Peat?
So far throughout the season, forward Koa Peat has been an elite offensive weapon in the paint for the Wildcats and has been really good on the defensive side of the court as well. However, Peat has had games where he has been underwhelming on the glass.
But in his last four games, Peat has been averaging 7.5 rebounds and has recorded two double-double performances.
Against Kansas State, Peat scored 15 points and snagged 10 rebounds, helping the Wildcats dominate the glass.
“He’s a special player and he’s so versatile. It’s really impressive,” said Lloyd. “But, I always tell him, his cheat code is the effort and energy he can play with when it’s packaged with the physicality he delivers.”
Now, he still has room to grow when it comes to rebounding the ball. But, it is clear that Lloyd and the team are seeing progress from Peat when it comes to crashing the glass.
Arizona will hit the road to play TCU (11-4, 1-1) on Saturday with the game tipping off at 2 p.m. on ESPN.
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