Arizona Wildcats basketball: On the starters' carousel, Boucher's bummer, a tourney title
- Updated
Seen and heard at T-Mobile Arena during Arizona's win over Oregon in the Pac-12 Tournament championship game.Β
- Zack Rosenblatt Arizona Daily Star
- Updated
When the calendar turns to March, itβs rare to see coaches make any sort of drastic changes to the lineup.
Sean Miller doesnβt believe in that.
The Arizona coach made a lineup switch Saturday, inserting reserve big man Keanu Pinder into the starting group in place of center Dusan Ristic, who has started every game heβs played this season.
The likely reason β Pinder is athletic with a shot-blocking skill set, and Oregon was going to play small-ball after center Chris Boucher suffered a career-ending knee injury Friday.
It was a curious move, as Pinder has played 10 minutes or less in 14 of the last 16 games, and twice not played at all. Pinder played seven minutes in Fridayβs semifinal win over UCLA.
Miller has recently praised Pinder, saying he deserves a spot in the rotation.
The bold switch didnβt exactly pay off β the Australian committed three fouls and two turnovers within the first five minutes, though he did score on a layup before he was removed for the remainder of the half.
Miller trotted Pinder back out to start the second half, and things went better β he dunked on Arizonaβs first play and grabbed two rebounds before being taken out again.
The Star spoke with Pinder on Friday night about his postseason experience and Arizona making it to the title game, in which he finished with four points and three rebounds in 12 minutes.
On the title run: βItβs a great feeling because we worked so hard to get here and itβs just one of our goals, and weβre here now so itβs huge. Itβs huge for us.β
On the Pac-12 Tournament: βItβs been awesome. The fans are crazy, I love the fans. Arizona fans are unbelievable, always coming and bringing us energy. Just through the games, they make it more fun.βΒ
- Zack Rosenblatt Arizona Daily Star
- Updated
9:Β Different starting lineup combinations this season for Arizona after Pinderβs start. In 34 games, freshman Lauri Markkanen is the only Wildcat to have started every game.Β
- Zack Rosenblatt Arizona Daily Star
- Updated
Boucher emerged out of nowhere last season as an NBA prospect for the Ducks. As a 6-foot-10-inch big with top-notch shot-blocking ability and shooting range past the 3-point line, heβs posed matchup problems across the Pac-12 for the last two seasons.
Unfortunately for Boucher β and Oregon β it appears his college career has ended prematurely.
Not long before Saturday nightβs game, the Ducks announced that Boucher, a senior, tore his ACL and will miss the rest of the season, a troubling blow for an Oregon team with Final Four aspirations.
Boucher still was in good spirits for most of the game, walking around on crutches. During the game, Boucher pumped up his replacement, Kavell Bigby-Williams. The junior from London had both a big dunk and block in the first half, and Boucher was visibly the most excited player on Oregonβs bench.
βIt was a tough morning,β Oregon coach Dana Altman said before the game. Chris is sad, his teammates are sad. ... But you are judged by how you respond to adversity.βΒ
- Zack Rosenblatt Arizona Daily Star
- Updated
Miller went viral during the NCAA Tournament last year when he was visibly, and profusely, sweating through his button-up t-shirt.
Sweaty Shirt made a return on Saturday, noticeable as Miller conducted a halftime interview on the way to the locker room.
Miller made a wardrobe change in the second half, likely thanks to UA equipment manager Brian Brigger, who always has spare shirts handy for Miller in case of emergency.Β
- Zack Rosenblatt Arizona Daily Star
- Updated
Oregon kept the title game close for most of the second half, but that wasnβt the case two years ago when the UA won the Pac-12 title in dominant fashion over the Ducks.
Oregonβs Jordan Bell, the Pac-12 defensive player of the year, certainly hasnβt forgotten that moment.
Saturday afternoon, Bell tweeted out a photo of the scoreboard from that 2015 final, which Arizona won 80-52.
Another Twitter user expressed shock at the lopsided score, and Bell responded βman did us like some lil kids but that ainβt happening again.β
Saturday, Arizona won 83-80.Β
- Zack Rosenblatt Arizona Daily Star
- Updated
βEasy to overrate a conference tournament, but Arizona w/no-rust Trier, non-slumping Markannen and a Sean Miller defense will be a tough out.β β Yahoo Sports writer Jeff Eisenberg (@JeffEisenberg) on Arizona as a threat in the NCAA TournamentΒ
- Zack Rosenblatt Arizona Daily Star
When the calendar turns to March, itβs rare to see coaches make any sort of drastic changes to the lineup.
Sean Miller doesnβt believe in that.
The Arizona coach made a lineup switch Saturday, inserting reserve big man Keanu Pinder into the starting group in place of center Dusan Ristic, who has started every game heβs played this season.
The likely reason β Pinder is athletic with a shot-blocking skill set, and Oregon was going to play small-ball after center Chris Boucher suffered a career-ending knee injury Friday.
It was a curious move, as Pinder has played 10 minutes or less in 14 of the last 16 games, and twice not played at all. Pinder played seven minutes in Fridayβs semifinal win over UCLA.
Miller has recently praised Pinder, saying he deserves a spot in the rotation.
The bold switch didnβt exactly pay off β the Australian committed three fouls and two turnovers within the first five minutes, though he did score on a layup before he was removed for the remainder of the half.
Miller trotted Pinder back out to start the second half, and things went better β he dunked on Arizonaβs first play and grabbed two rebounds before being taken out again.
The Star spoke with Pinder on Friday night about his postseason experience and Arizona making it to the title game, in which he finished with four points and three rebounds in 12 minutes.
On the title run: βItβs a great feeling because we worked so hard to get here and itβs just one of our goals, and weβre here now so itβs huge. Itβs huge for us.β
On the Pac-12 Tournament: βItβs been awesome. The fans are crazy, I love the fans. Arizona fans are unbelievable, always coming and bringing us energy. Just through the games, they make it more fun.βΒ
- Zack Rosenblatt Arizona Daily Star
Boucher emerged out of nowhere last season as an NBA prospect for the Ducks. As a 6-foot-10-inch big with top-notch shot-blocking ability and shooting range past the 3-point line, heβs posed matchup problems across the Pac-12 for the last two seasons.
Unfortunately for Boucher β and Oregon β it appears his college career has ended prematurely.
Not long before Saturday nightβs game, the Ducks announced that Boucher, a senior, tore his ACL and will miss the rest of the season, a troubling blow for an Oregon team with Final Four aspirations.
Boucher still was in good spirits for most of the game, walking around on crutches. During the game, Boucher pumped up his replacement, Kavell Bigby-Williams. The junior from London had both a big dunk and block in the first half, and Boucher was visibly the most excited player on Oregonβs bench.
βIt was a tough morning,β Oregon coach Dana Altman said before the game. Chris is sad, his teammates are sad. ... But you are judged by how you respond to adversity.βΒ
- Zack Rosenblatt Arizona Daily Star
Miller went viral during the NCAA Tournament last year when he was visibly, and profusely, sweating through his button-up t-shirt.
Sweaty Shirt made a return on Saturday, noticeable as Miller conducted a halftime interview on the way to the locker room.
Miller made a wardrobe change in the second half, likely thanks to UA equipment manager Brian Brigger, who always has spare shirts handy for Miller in case of emergency.Β
- Zack Rosenblatt Arizona Daily Star
Oregon kept the title game close for most of the second half, but that wasnβt the case two years ago when the UA won the Pac-12 title in dominant fashion over the Ducks.
Oregonβs Jordan Bell, the Pac-12 defensive player of the year, certainly hasnβt forgotten that moment.
Saturday afternoon, Bell tweeted out a photo of the scoreboard from that 2015 final, which Arizona won 80-52.
Another Twitter user expressed shock at the lopsided score, and Bell responded βman did us like some lil kids but that ainβt happening again.β
Saturday, Arizona won 83-80.Β
- Zack Rosenblatt Arizona Daily Star
βEasy to overrate a conference tournament, but Arizona w/no-rust Trier, non-slumping Markannen and a Sean Miller defense will be a tough out.β β Yahoo Sports writer Jeff Eisenberg (@JeffEisenberg) on Arizona as a threat in the NCAA TournamentΒ
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