University of Arizona vs Utah

Arizona head coach Adia Barnes calls her Wildcats to the sideline for talk as things get nervy in the final minutes against Utah in their Pac 12 basketball game at McKale Center, Tucson, Ariz., January 22, 2021.

 Kelly Presnell / Arizona Daily Star

Arizona women's basketball head coach Adia Barnes was named a Naismith Coach of the Year finalist Wednesday morning. 

Barnes was one of 10 coaches named a Naismith finalist, along with Geno Auriemma (Connecticut), Gary Blair (Texas A&M), Mike Carey (West Virginia), Jose Fernandez (South Florida), ex-Wildcat Brenda Frese (Maryland), Wes Moore (NC State), Joni Taylor (Georgia), Tara VanDerveer (Stanford) and Jeff Walz (Louisville). 

In her fifth season at the UA, Barnes led the Wildcats to a top-two record in the Pac-12, the highest finish for the program since the 2003-04 season. Arizona has also remained in the Associated Press Top 25 poll for 32 straight weeks. 

The 11th-ranked Wildcats (15-4) will gear up for the Pac-12 Tournament in Las Vegas as the No. 2 seed, where they will face the winner of the Washington State-Utah game on Thursday at 6 p.m. 

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Contact sports content producer Justin Spears at 573-4312 or jspears@tucson.com. On Twitter @justinesports