Game Thread: Arizona vs. Mizzou Maui Invitational

[GumbySquad]

4 point win. Not inspiring... but the Cats still have the talent to be one of the top-5 teams in the country, they just have not put it together yet.

on a side note, Bruce Webber is an ass-hat, as per the usual. Coach Miller shook his hand as the game ended and was about to say something (likely "good game, good luck the rest of the way...") and Webber didn't even make eye contact, and walked past him like a soccer mom in the park with shake weights in each hand.

His team reflects his personality: A total clown, willing to do whatever it takes, to bend whatever rules that they can to get a win. That guy is one of the worst head coaches in the country... not Xs and Os wise, but class wise. So glad that Arizona has a head coach who knows how to put family/program first and to give respect to other coaches and programs. I shudder to think what it must be like to be a fan of a team with a head coach like that clown.

 

[The Derski]

Yeah we have to work on FTs. I'm starting to think Rondae is our best FT shooter.

 

[Monte Carlo Wildcat]

4 point win. Not inspiring... but the Cats still have the talent to be one of the top-5 teams in the country, they just have not put it together yet.

Frustrating to watch only because of the level of talent we have. At this point we have no offensive flow or rhythm. Are we an inside team? Are we a perimeter team? Or something else? We have too many people standing around and not enough penetration to break down the defense and/or kick it back out for an open look. Also, I've said this many a times but we need to put our bigs in better position down low and generate more fouls or force the defense to collapse on them. Lots of things to figure out still.

However, I will give them props for pulling out a win tonight. Kstate came to play and they wanted to win. We didn't play our best but the guys stuck together and grinded out a tough win. Kstate was gritty and showed some strength down low. How many shots did kaleb take in the chest or mouth guarding their bigs? Haha. Just happy we pulled it off in the end. Bring on STATE!

 

[The Derski]

I really like how York played today. Looked like Miller told him to be more aggressive. IMO he is one of the best pure scorers on the team.

 

[GumbySquad]

I really like how York played today. Looked like Miller told him to be more aggressive. IMO he is one of the best pure scorers on the team.

agreed. I would have no problem whatsoever if he got up 10 shots a game.

As odd as it may sound, the issue atm IMO is that they are being too unselfish. There are too many scorers on this team for them to score so few points. They need to focus on feeding the post early in the halves, and when they really need a bucket, but otherwise they need to take the best shot available.

one of the big issues is that TJ has let the "McGenneral needs to score more for the UofA to be a good offensive team" nonsense go to his head. He is hunting shots out there at times. A 15 foot contested jumper off the dribble with 15+ seconds left on the shot-clock is not what we need from him.

They will settle in to their roles. Lots of time for them to figure things out. I am not worried about the future, but clearly they are not a good offensive team atm.

 

[The Derski]

Watching SDSU and Pitt right now and we need to bring our A game vs SDSU tomorrow assuming they don't choke.

 

[johnson]

Strange to see SDSU as a one point favorite. Cats starting to get disrespected with getting jumped in the polls by Wisconsin and now this. On a neutral site, the much higher-ranked 5-0 team you'd think would be the 1-point favorites.

They kind of remind me of last years team. This squad is still one of the most talented in recent Cats history, but they just never have those games from years past where they blitz someone with points like back in the Gardner/Channing days. Winning with defense is great too, but it's just not as flashy.

 

[The Derski]

I see Arizona -4.5

 

[gordontrue]

Sean Miller's teams go through seasons the same way they go through games.

They start off slow, but get better and better until they peak at the end of the game/season.

 

[GumbySquad]

Sean Miller's teams go through seasons the same way they go through games.

They start off slow, but get better and better until they peak at the end of the game/season.

So true.

IMO the offensive lethargy has very little to do with coaching... and everything to do with execution. Clearly they have made a concerted effort to get the ball on the block to Zeus, or Bash... but the post-feeding has been atrocious. Many of their turnovers this year have come from bad passes into the paint.

The only problem that I have with Miller's coaching this year is a simple fix: He needs to tell them to run more. I understand that they are never going to be a run-after-a-made-basket (or FT) type of team, as they were in some of the the guard-heavy Olson years, but he needs to focus on running more when the opportunity presents itself.

There have been far too many possessions this year already, when TJ, or PJC will get the ball off of a long rebound, with the potential to push hard and have a 4 on 3, or 3 on 2 break, but they never do. They always bring it up and set up the 1/2 court.

If they were to push tempo, even if it's only 10-15 possessions a game, the sheer number of finishers on this years team is mind-boggling. They could/should be getting a lot more easy baskets, which in turn, will make so that the 1/2 court offense doesn't have so much pressure to execute.

 

[GumbySquad]

... so... McConnel picks up his 3rd foul with 5:40 left in the first half on a reach in that he has NO buisness doing as a 5th year senior leader...

...and then when he gets to the bench, he is blowing kisses to the SDSU fans who are heckling him? Man, I have always been a huge fan of him, but TBH, I hate where his head is at this year. He needs to pull it out of his ass and be the leader we need. Without TJ playing smart basketball, this team is nowhere near as good as it should be.

 

[Monte Carlo Wildcat]

That's 33 consecutive non-conference wins. When do you guys think it ends? Phenomenal streak

 

[GumbySquad]

That's 33 consecutive non-conference wins. When do you guys think it ends? Phenomenal streak

No doubt an impressive streak, especially considering the level of Non-Con opponents the Cats have faced over the last 2+ seasons. It's not as if they are scheduling cupcakes, they have wins over Duke, Michigan, SDSU, Florida, etc in this stretch.

I don't know when the streak is going to end... but I do know that the game against Gonzaga next weekend is going to be a very, very, very difficult matchup. My guess is, if they get by the Zags, and can win the return trip from Michigan to McKale the following week, then the streak will continue into 2015.