Triple play: 3 questions and answers as Arizona Wildcats prepare for NCAA Regional
- Updated
Unlike last year, Arizona has experience on its side heading into Lubbock Regional.Â
- Michael Lev Arizona Daily Star
- Updated
The Arizona Wildcats begin postseason play against Sam Houston State in the Lubbock Regional on Friday afternoon.
You have questions. We have answers. Letâs get to âem:Â
- Michael Lev Arizona Daily Star
- Updated
Theoretically, it should help a lot. The 2016 team played in all kinds of weather and in faraway, unfriendly environments. It survived multiple elimination games.
âI think itâs invaluable,â UA coach Jay Johnson said. âSuccessful experience can be a great teacher and can establish confidence. In this particular case, we have a new team, but we have enough guys that played enough of a role (last year) that thereâs a lot they can draw from. And Iâm sure they will.â
They already are. Before the NCAA Tournament bracket was announced, senior shortstop Louis Boyd was recalling the lessons learned from last yearâs senior class. Atop that list: Be the same guy you were throughout the season.
âThey led the way, even though we had no clue what we were getting into,â Boyd said. âDonât be too high, donât be too low. Guys like (Nathan) Bannister and (Cody) Ramer were unbelievable at that. Same with (Zach) Gibbons. They would just show up to the park, and you knew exactly what you were going to get out of them.â
Boyd is one of five returning âstartersâ from last yearâs College World Series runners-up â six if you include utility player Kyle Lewis, whoâs now the starting second baseman. Seven pitchers are back, as well as four reserves. The latter group includes junior Ryan Haug, who late in the season emerged as the starting left fielder. Thatâs more than half the team.
Contrast that to a year ago, when the only Wildcat with postseason experience was left-handed reliever Tyler Crawford.
âThis year we know exactly what to expect,â Boyd said. âWeâll know what to do.
âWeâll have a routine.âÂ
- Michael Lev Arizona Daily Star
- Updated
Despite returning several regulars from last yearâs finalists, the Wildcats are the No. 2 seed in Lubbock, Texas. Any No. 2 seed in a regional is inherently an underdog.
Further cementing Arizonaâs status: Host Texas Tech is the No. 5 national seed. Oh, and the Red Raiders defeated the Wildcats 13-1 in Lubbock earlier this season.
Bovada has posted odds to win the College World Series â for the 16 regional hosts. The Red Raiders are listed at 10-to-1, putting Texas Tech in a tie with Stanford as the No. 6 betting favorite.
Does any of that mean anything? Well, Arizona won the Lafayette Regional as a No. 2 seed last year before sweeping No. 6 national seed Mississippi State in Starkville.
The Wildcats were season-long underdogs in 2016. Pac-12 coaches picked them to finish ninth in the conferenceâs preseason poll. Arizona hadnât made the postseason since 2012.
Picked to finish third this year, Arizona ended up fourth with an identical 16-14 league record. Johnson said this season felt âa little more successfulâ than last. The Wildcats were ranked in the top 20 in all the major polls all year long.
But the players still see themselves as underdogs. That perception fueled them a year ago.
âPeople are going to say weâre the underdog,â senior left-hander JC Cloney said. âGoing up against a national seed, you probably are.
âPeople can label it all they want. Whether youâre the No. 1 overall seed in Oregon State or the 5-seed in (Texas) Tech, youâve still got to go out and play. For us, call us the underdog, whatever you want to do, youâve got to go out and play baseball just like everybody else does.âÂ
- Michael Lev Arizona Daily Star
- Updated
Most pundits â particularly those who subscribe to analytics â believe that momentum is a myth. Most coaches and players believe itâs real, at least from a psychological standpoint.
Johnson adheres to a day-by-day, inning-by-inning, pitch-by-pitch philosophy. In his view, the fact that Arizona lost its final two regular-season games at home to Cal is irrelevant.
âItâs so day to day âĻ with young players,â Johnson said. âWhat matters is how they feel about themselves right now. I think itâs a group thatâs proud of the accomplishment and ready to go. Somebodyâs going to have to be great to beat us.â
With Arizonaâs postseason spot secured, Johnson conceded that he was looking ahead to Friday while managing Sundayâs regular-season finale. Last year, Johnson guided Arizona to a season-ending sweep at Hawaii. That gave the Wildcats a six-game winning streak entering the playoffs, although only one came against a Pac-12 opponent.
âI remember last year they were saying we were moving downhill going into the regional. We felt like we were going uphill,â Boyd said. âNow, people are probably thinking weâre going downhill (again). We feed off that. If we listen to the outside noise, itâs probably going to be negative, and we love that.âÂ
- Michael Lev Arizona Daily Star
- Updated
Junior first baseman JJ Matijevic lingered in the UA dugout for several minutes after the regular-season finale. More than likely, it was the last game at Hi Corbett Field for Arizonaâs eight seniors â and for Matijevic, whoâs projected to be a second- or third-round pick in the upcoming MLB draft.
âSunday was tough for me,â Matijevic said. âThose seniors â Iâve been with them for three years. It got to me a little bit.
âThis place is special. The most important thing to me is the players and coaches.â
Arizona could play at Hi Corbett again if the Wildcats advance and a lower seed wins the Tallahassee Regional. Matijevic isnât counting on that or thinking that far ahead. All he knows is that âthereâs a lot more baseball to be playedâ in Lubbock, Tucson or parts unknown.Â
- Michael Lev Arizona Daily Star
- Updated
The TV announcers for the Lubbock Regional are Trey Bender and Jerry Kindall, the legendary former UA coach who led the Wildcats to three national championships. The first two games of the regional will be streamed on ESPN3/WatchESPN. The rest of the broadcast schedule has not been determined, but all games will be streamed. Â
The Arizona Wildcats begin postseason play against Sam Houston State in the Lubbock Regional on Friday afternoon.
You have questions. We have answers. Letâs get to âem:Â
Theoretically, it should help a lot. The 2016 team played in all kinds of weather and in faraway, unfriendly environments. It survived multiple elimination games.
âI think itâs invaluable,â UA coach Jay Johnson said. âSuccessful experience can be a great teacher and can establish confidence. In this particular case, we have a new team, but we have enough guys that played enough of a role (last year) that thereâs a lot they can draw from. And Iâm sure they will.â
They already are. Before the NCAA Tournament bracket was announced, senior shortstop Louis Boyd was recalling the lessons learned from last yearâs senior class. Atop that list: Be the same guy you were throughout the season.
âThey led the way, even though we had no clue what we were getting into,â Boyd said. âDonât be too high, donât be too low. Guys like (Nathan) Bannister and (Cody) Ramer were unbelievable at that. Same with (Zach) Gibbons. They would just show up to the park, and you knew exactly what you were going to get out of them.â
Boyd is one of five returning âstartersâ from last yearâs College World Series runners-up â six if you include utility player Kyle Lewis, whoâs now the starting second baseman. Seven pitchers are back, as well as four reserves. The latter group includes junior Ryan Haug, who late in the season emerged as the starting left fielder. Thatâs more than half the team.
Contrast that to a year ago, when the only Wildcat with postseason experience was left-handed reliever Tyler Crawford.
âThis year we know exactly what to expect,â Boyd said. âWeâll know what to do.
âWeâll have a routine.âÂ
Despite returning several regulars from last yearâs finalists, the Wildcats are the No. 2 seed in Lubbock, Texas. Any No. 2 seed in a regional is inherently an underdog.
Further cementing Arizonaâs status: Host Texas Tech is the No. 5 national seed. Oh, and the Red Raiders defeated the Wildcats 13-1 in Lubbock earlier this season.
Bovada has posted odds to win the College World Series â for the 16 regional hosts. The Red Raiders are listed at 10-to-1, putting Texas Tech in a tie with Stanford as the No. 6 betting favorite.
Does any of that mean anything? Well, Arizona won the Lafayette Regional as a No. 2 seed last year before sweeping No. 6 national seed Mississippi State in Starkville.
The Wildcats were season-long underdogs in 2016. Pac-12 coaches picked them to finish ninth in the conferenceâs preseason poll. Arizona hadnât made the postseason since 2012.
Picked to finish third this year, Arizona ended up fourth with an identical 16-14 league record. Johnson said this season felt âa little more successfulâ than last. The Wildcats were ranked in the top 20 in all the major polls all year long.
But the players still see themselves as underdogs. That perception fueled them a year ago.
âPeople are going to say weâre the underdog,â senior left-hander JC Cloney said. âGoing up against a national seed, you probably are.
âPeople can label it all they want. Whether youâre the No. 1 overall seed in Oregon State or the 5-seed in (Texas) Tech, youâve still got to go out and play. For us, call us the underdog, whatever you want to do, youâve got to go out and play baseball just like everybody else does.âÂ
Most pundits â particularly those who subscribe to analytics â believe that momentum is a myth. Most coaches and players believe itâs real, at least from a psychological standpoint.
Johnson adheres to a day-by-day, inning-by-inning, pitch-by-pitch philosophy. In his view, the fact that Arizona lost its final two regular-season games at home to Cal is irrelevant.
âItâs so day to day âĻ with young players,â Johnson said. âWhat matters is how they feel about themselves right now. I think itâs a group thatâs proud of the accomplishment and ready to go. Somebodyâs going to have to be great to beat us.â
With Arizonaâs postseason spot secured, Johnson conceded that he was looking ahead to Friday while managing Sundayâs regular-season finale. Last year, Johnson guided Arizona to a season-ending sweep at Hawaii. That gave the Wildcats a six-game winning streak entering the playoffs, although only one came against a Pac-12 opponent.
âI remember last year they were saying we were moving downhill going into the regional. We felt like we were going uphill,â Boyd said. âNow, people are probably thinking weâre going downhill (again). We feed off that. If we listen to the outside noise, itâs probably going to be negative, and we love that.âÂ
Junior first baseman JJ Matijevic lingered in the UA dugout for several minutes after the regular-season finale. More than likely, it was the last game at Hi Corbett Field for Arizonaâs eight seniors â and for Matijevic, whoâs projected to be a second- or third-round pick in the upcoming MLB draft.
âSunday was tough for me,â Matijevic said. âThose seniors â Iâve been with them for three years. It got to me a little bit.
âThis place is special. The most important thing to me is the players and coaches.â
Arizona could play at Hi Corbett again if the Wildcats advance and a lower seed wins the Tallahassee Regional. Matijevic isnât counting on that or thinking that far ahead. All he knows is that âthereâs a lot more baseball to be playedâ in Lubbock, Tucson or parts unknown.Â
The TV announcers for the Lubbock Regional are Trey Bender and Jerry Kindall, the legendary former UA coach who led the Wildcats to three national championships. The first two games of the regional will be streamed on ESPN3/WatchESPN. The rest of the broadcast schedule has not been determined, but all games will be streamed. Â
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