Arizona isn’t a good team right now. One would argue it hasn’t been one all season, save for lopsided wins over inferior teams.
Those don’t count – given those teams likely won’t be in the NCAA tournament. Yes, it’s still November – and I’ve preached nothing matters in November when it comes to college basketball – but Arizona hasn’t showed much against teams of equal or seemingly better teams. It’s become a glaring pattern.
Friday afternoon was another example in its 83-77 overtime loss to West Virginia, a Big 12 Conference foe that you see can give Arizona fits – and did.
Because of it, Arizona likely will be out of the top 25 for the first time in 61 weeks and, UA’s record of 3-4 overall is its worst start In 15 seasons when Sean Miller went 16-15 overall and started 3-4.
Those weren’t good times.
Fast forward to now where coach Tommy Lloyd said before his team went to the Bahamas his offense looked “disjointed” and indeed it has and still does. It’s stilted and head scratching.
And that from a team you’d think has scorers in most every position.
Caleb Love – check.
KJ Lewis – check.
Jaden Bradley – check.
Anthony Dell’Orso – check.
Trey Townsend – small check.
This year, uncheck the boxes.
In a season when you have to recalibrate your roster and your system every year, things change.
It’s all changed.
Arizona has to re-find itself or find itself this year.
Question? Who is the team’s leader?
Your guess is as good as mine.
Love has taken a supposed new role – and that too isn’t working.
The three guard lineup – isn’t working.
Arizona’s bigs aren’t working.
It’s been a long time since it all hasn’t worked, maybe in the latter years of Miller’s time.
One could go even further as UA associate head coach Jack Murphy did, likening UA’s season so far to UA’s 2005-06 year when it lost three games early to Michigan State, Connecticut and Houston before finding its footing.
“No one is more disappointed in our start than we are. I’ve been around Tucson a long time and I know everyone listening is not very happy,” said UA associate head coach Jack Murphy said. “But … this reminds me of 2006 when we got off to a pretty poor start that year, losing some tough games in Maui (but) we battled back and made a run in the (NCAA) tournament. So, we can do the same thing this year.”
To put it in perspective, Arizona finished 20-13 and lost in the second round of the NCAA tournament.
That’s not what fans expect anymore and clearly don’t – or didn’t – expect that this year.
So, Arizona has some work to do. Like hit shots, rebound, hold on to the ball – and play defense.
Does preventing defeat come any better to explain?
Arizona is failing in most of those categories. All are issues but the two most apparent are Arizona’s inability to guard on the perimeter and to score in transition.
The second one is a cause of good teams having the players – and coaching – to keep Arizona from it should be doing best: run in transition. It hasn’t been able to with consistency or at all.
Every loss – Wisconsin, Duke, Oklahoma and West Virgina – have hit 12 or more 3s in the game. That never happens.
It has four times this season.
“When you have more time to prepare you can come up with different schemes,” Murphy said, before talking about Friday’s game and UA’s failure to stop UWV’s Tucker DeVries, who had eight 3s.
Being more aggressive will help. UA went small to get scores – but gave up rebound opportunities because of it. There’s a give and take, so again Tommy Lloyd will have to figure it out.
The combinations he’s using aren’t working, but he has what he has. He can’t go with too many different ones. That said, Mo Krivas will have to be better (no losing balls when it’s in his hands), Dell’Orso will have to live up to the reputation he had coming in. Henri Veessar will have to be better. Lewis and Love will definitely have to be better.
Or just maybe Bradley must take over again and again. I’m sure he’s ready for that.
Are you ready for what’s ahead?
