|
 "It's something that you see but don't really pay attention to,"
Gordon said. "I think everyone noticed that, but you just keep
playing defense like you have been."
The top-ranked Wildcats were far too big and athletic and never
stopped played defense against the short-handed Cougars, winning
60-25 Thursday night in a game in which Washington State set
multiple marks for futility in 41-year-old McKale Center.
The Cougars set an arena record for fewest points scored in a game.
The previous mark was 37, set by Northern Arizona in 1989.
Washington State also set McKale Center records for fewest field
goals in a game (nine) and lowest shooting percentage (20 percent,
9-for-45).
"Arizona jumped on us early," Washington State coach Ken Bone said,
"and it never really ended."
Washington State (7-6) didn't reach double-digit points until Will
DiIorio hit a 3-pointer with 12:17 left in the game. Arizona led
38-9 before that basket.
"Our goal all year was to be a top-10 defense," Arizona guard Nick
Johnson said. "I think we should push that to top five and
eventually the No. 1 defense in the country. I think we have the
tools to make it happen. I guess this is an example of what we can
do."
The Wildcats are off to a 14-0 start for the second consecutive
season.
Arizona, coming off a 10-day holiday layoff, was sharp from the
start, opening with an 18-1 run against Washington State, which
played without guard DaVonte Lacy. The Cougars' leading scorer,
averaging 18.9 points, is recovering from an emergency appendectomy
performed Dec. 28.
Washington State starting guard Dexter Kernich-Drew, averaging 6.3
points, also was out because of a concussion.
"DaVonte Lacy is having a great year. To me, he's an All-Pac-12
performer," Arizona coach Sean Miller said. "You take that firepower
off an opponent, sometimes things like this can happen, especially
on the road.
"We certainly didn't get their best shot. ... Having said that, I
thought our defensive effort was outstanding. We had a lot of
players concentrating, being where they were supposed to, and we
tried to use our size around the basket. We did that very well."
[to top of second column] |
Arizona's success is built around defense and rebounding — the Wildcats outrebounded every opponent to date this season — but the offense wasn't great in a game that Washington State
tried to slow down to a crawl. Only one player reached
double-figure points on either team, Arizona center Kaleb
Tarczewski, who scored 11. Gordon had 10 rebounds. Wildcats
guards T.J. McConnell and Johnson each scored eight.
Forward Junior Longrus led Washington State with six points. The
Cougars even had trouble when no one was guarding them; they
shot 5-for-13 from the free throw line.
Washington State didn't score a field goal until guard Royce
Woolridge made a fast-break layup with 6:42 left in the first
half to cut Arizona's lead to 21-5. The Cougars, intent on using
most of the shot clock against Arizona's man-to-man defense,
missed their first 16 shots from the field.
"They're big in the paint, and it was just really hard to score
on them because they're so active," Woolridge said. "It's a good
learning experience, though, and we won't let this happen
again."
Arizona, which entered the game allowing opponents to shoot just
37.1 percent, was so dominant that Washington State also set
three McKale Center records for offensive futility for a half:
fewest points (seven), fewest field goals (two) and lowest field
goal percentage (9.5 percent).
Arizona led 28-7 at the break, holding the Cougars to 2 of 21
shooting.
NOTES: Arizona debuted a new video board above midcourt. It
features four 12-by-19-foot screens plus LED rings above and
below the screens. Coach Sean Miller called the new board
"awesome" in how it contributes to the game atmosphere in
41-year-old McKale Center. ... Washington State freshman G Que
Johnson started his second consecutive game in place of G
DaVonte Lacy (appendectomy), and he scored three points. ...
Arizona 7-foot sophomore C Kaleb Tarczewski, who missed the
previous two games because of a sprained right ankle, returned
to the starting lineup. ... Cleveland Indians manager Terry
Francona, a former Arizona All-America outfielder who lives in
Tucson in the offseason, sat courtside. ... Arizona will play
Washington on Saturday. ... Washington State plays Sunday at
Arizona State.
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reserved.]
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