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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 77, NAU 44
PRODUCTIVITY RATING
* — STARTERS
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ICYMI: Video of @UACoachMiller with @catspbp after the game last night here –> http://t.co/x6JZPauH68
— Arizona Basketball (@APlayersProgram) December 24, 2013
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Arizona Wildcats basketball coach Sean Miller started his postgame press conference last night commenting on his team’s 13-0 record in the regular-season non-conference portion of the schedule.
It’s the second consecutive season the Arizona Wildcats went unscathed in that part of the schedule, improving to 25-0 in that span. In Miller’s previous three seasons (from 2009-12), when the young coach was getting acclimated to the major-college level, the Arizona Wildcats lost 12 regular-season non-conference games.
UNBEATEN REGULAR-SEASON NON-CONFERENCE TEAMS
2012-13 & 2013-14
VsRank-Against ranked teams both years. (WILDABOUTAZCATS.net research)
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Two of those losses were routs at the hands of BYU and Jimmer Fredette (who scored a combined 82 points). Jimmer, if you’re reading this, you played the Arizona Wildcats at the right time. This is not the kind of defense (opponents shooting only 29.4 percent from three-point range) that you played against.
“We have some players in our program who have never lost a non-conference game,” said Miller, referring mostly to sophomores Brandon Ashley, Kaleb Tarczewski and Gabe York. “That’s really hard to do and I may be the only coach who can say that. If there’s another one than maybe there’s one or two others. I’m not sure.”
Miller is the only one. The closest to his non-conference mark are Wichita State’s Gregg Marshall and Syracuse’s Jim Boeheim.
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TOP FIVE ARIZONA REBOUNDING TEAMS
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Marshall and Boeheim have only lost one regular-season non-conference game in 2012-13 and 2013-14. Wichita State is 24-1 in that span and Syracuse is 23-1. Wichita State and Syracuse went to the Final Four last year and Arizona was a jump shot away against Ohio State from potentially advancing to the Elite Eight.
“I know here at Arizona that’s something we have a lot of pride, in that accomplishment,” Miller said about the 25-0 non-conference mark the last two seasons. “We don’t look at it as a burden. We look at it as a fantastic great honor, not only for this year’s team, but for our fans and our program here at the University of Arizona.”
With great non-conference records comes great responsibility in the conference season.
Happy holidays! Glad to spend this Christmas as the #1 team in the nation. #BearDown
— Nick Johnson (@Air_Zona13) December 24, 2013
Arizona did not do so well out of the gate in that regard last season, immediately struggling against Colorado in the infamous Sabatino Chen game in the Pac-12 opener at McKale Center. The Wildcats were not the team that defeated Miami and San Diego State the previous week in Honolulu.
After going 12-0 in the non-conference slate, the Wildcats started the Pac-12 season with an 8-4 record, including two losses at home to UCLA and Cal and a 13-point no-contest game at Colorado.
The Wildcats had eight days between beating San Diego State on Christmas night last season to playing Colorado on Jan. 3. They have nine days between playing NAU last night to facing Washington State in the Pac-12 opener at McKale on Jan. 2. Miller is hoping his players do not lose their edge during the break. They resume practice Friday.
ARIZONA 2012-13 VS. 2013-14
[table “” not found /]“One thing that happened to last year’s team is we got back from Christmas and we lost our defense,” Miller said. “Our defense last year was not nearly as good as now but it was very good. We went through a four-week period during conference play that we were mediocre at best.
“As a matter of fact, out of 12 teams, I think we were 12th in defending the three-point goal. It cost us.”
The Wildcats finished 12-6 in the Pac-12, in a three-way tie for second place behind regular-season champ UCLA (13-5). Non-conference opponents shot only 39.1 percent from the field, including 34.1 from three-point range. Pac-12 foes shot 43.4 percent from the field and 37.7 percent from three-point range.
This season, non-conference opponents are shooting only 37.2 percent from the field and 29.4 percent from three-point range.
“We just have to keep it going,” said Arizona guard Nick Johnson, far-and-away the MVP of the team to this point. “Last year, we lost our identity as far as being a defensive team and maybe went a little south.”
What happened to big role Zach Peters was expected to have? And more after #arizonawildcats end nonconference play: http://t.co/08QgvNli5X
— Bruce Pascoe (@BrucePascoe) December 24, 2013
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ARIZONA OVERALL PRODUCTIVITY RATING
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ARIZONA PAC-10/12
PLAYERS OF THE YEAR:
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ARIZONA AS NO. 1 TEAM
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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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