Arizona women's hoops wins at McKale Center, upending Cincinnati 72-62

Adia Barnes may not have liked the way her team practiced on Tuesday afternoon, but she definitely liked the Wildcats’ intensity on both ends of the court from the tip. Her squad was rebounding, altering shots and scoring as Arizona defeated Cincinnati, 72-62, at McKale Center Wednesday night.

While the Wildcats started out dominating in nearly every aspect of the game, Cincinnati didn't give up, which was just what Barnes expected from this matchup.

"We know that their team was never going to die," Barnes said. "They play for their coach (Katrina Merriweather), and they play well and they play hard."

In the second half it turned into a battle and sophomore Skylar Jones was the spark off the bench the Wildcats needed. She stepped on the court with 6:35 left in the third quarter and went to work. It seemed like every time the Wildcats needed to extend their lead, Jones responded. She finished with 16 points, going 6 of 8 from the field and 2 of 3 from long range in 16 minutes of action.

"She's such a great scorer with great size," Cincinnati's Merriweather said of Jones. "Not only is she a three-point threat, but she can slash through the paint, she can get to the rim. She rebounded the ball, I thought, pretty well. ... It's tough when a player comes in the second half gets 16 points in 16 minutes and is the leading scorer. I would say we were surprised, but we expected at some point she would come in the game."

Jones was named the player of the game and banged the drum after the game – 13 times for 13 wins – for the first time in her Wildcat career.

Jones, who has gone through a rough patch over the last four games – scoring only 10 points – seems to have found her touch again. The last game she scored in double figures – 17 – was against UCF on Jan. 4.

The Wildcats needed Jones as Lauryn Swann, who was the star of the first 20 minutes, with 10 points, got hurt on an awkward play driving to the hoop in the waning seconds of the half. She was elbowed in the ear and was helped off the floor. She looked dizzy and couldn’t walk straight – even with the assistance.

After the game Barnes said that Swann was a bit woozy and would be evaluated on Thursday. 

Arizona won the first two wars – five-minute battles within the game – holding Cincinnati to only two points – scoring at the 2:30 minute mark.

The script was flipped on rebounds in the first 10 minutes as Cincinnati, known for its offensive rebounding, was shut down – only two in the first quarter. Meanwhile, Arizona, not known as a rebounding team, picked up 14 rebounds – 11 defensive – in that first quarter.

Once Swann came into the game with 3:27 left in the first quarter, she was firing on all cylinders, hitting a midrange jumper and a 3 on back-to-back offensive possessions. She backed this up with five more points in the second quarter, going 4 of 7 from the field and 2 of 3 from long range. 

The Wildcats took a 32-22 lead into the half after the Bearcats found some offensive rhythm in the second quarter that continued the rest of the game.

Arizona held Cincinnati to 33% shooting and shot 50%.

Jada Williams scored 14 points and Paulina Paris chipped in 10 points.

She said it

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"My coach (Barnes) put a little fire under my butt, and I need a little kick in the butt sometimes to get myself mentally in the right head space because when I'm in a good head space, that's when I play my best. I'm glad that my coach knows how to do that, even when I'm mad and I feel like it's not what I want, I know that she's doing it for a reason. ... I like that she's hard on me, because ... I know it's out of love." — Jones on what sparked her performance 

Stuffing the stat sheet

Williams: 4 assists, 4 rebounds

Paris: 2 steals

Breya Cunningham: 8 points, 15 rebounds (career high), 1 steal

Isis Beh: 5 rebounds, 2 steals

Jones: 5 rebounds, 2 assists

The other side

Jillian Hayes (20) and Tineya Hylton (25) combined for 45 of Cincinnati's 62 points. Hayes added 13 rebounds. 

By the numbers

31: The Wildcats had 31 defensive rebounds and held the Bearcats to only 18 on their offensive glass. Arizona out-rebounded Cincinnati 41-38.

28: Arizona had 28 bench points with 26 coming from Swann and Jones.

16: The Wildcats had 16 assists on 28 made field goals. 

9: For the second straight game, Arizona made nine baskets from long range — shooting exactly 41% 3s ( 9 of 22) in both games. 

Photos: Arizona edges past Cincinnati 72-62, Big 12 basketball