Senior moments

Shortly after the Arizona Wildcats won the WNIT title on Saturday, seniors Destiny Graham and Lindsey Malecha walked over to center court, accepted the championship trophy and were immediately swarmed by their teammates.

Malecha was a walk-on before earning a scholarship prior to this season. Graham, meanwhile, played a vital role in Arizona’s success this season, averaging 16 minutes off the bench and logging three points and three rebounds per game.

Eugenie Simonet-Keller also celebrated Saturday’s championship with her teammates. The 6-foot-8-inch Simonet-Keller medically retired from basketball in 2017, but stayed on as a manager with the team.

McDonald caps historic season

Saturday marked the end of arguably the greatest season-long performance in program history.

Aari McDonald was named the WNIT MVP after scoring 19 points against Northwestern. She was placed on the all-WNIT team along with Arizona freshman Cate Reese.

McDonald is the fourth player in Pac-12 history to score at least 800 points in a season, joining Kelsey Plum (Washington), Chiney Ogwumike (Stanford) and Nnemkadi Ogwumike (Stanford).

Hottest ticket in town

Current look at fans waiting outside of McKale Center for the #WNIT championship. pic.twitter.com/muobxBdbKT

— The Wildcaster (@TheWildcaster) April 6, 2019

UA coach Adia Barnes originally wanted to draw more than 12,000 fans for Saturday’s game after 10,135 showed up for the WNIT semifinal on Wednesday. Barnes then challenged Tucson to pack McKale Center for a sell-out crowd of 14,644. UA fans — and some Northwestern travelers — accepted the challenge and met the goal, which was officially announced during the second half.

Fans started lining up just after 8 a.m. Brooklyn Nets forward and former Wildcat Rondae Hollis-Jefferson teamed up with the UA alumni group in New York to purchase tickets for the game.

UA community rallied behind Cats

In the days leading up to Arizona’s WNIT championship, the Wildcats received videos of former and current UA icons wishing the team good luck. The list of Wildcats included Jennie Finch, Teddy Bruschi, Andre Iguodala, Jason Terry, Channing Frye, Joan Bonvicini, Lance Briggs, Miles Simon, Dee-Dee Wheeler, Dave Heeke and coaches from other UA sports.

“I didn’t think they were paying attention to our season, but when we saw the videos last night and during warmups, I was like ‘Wow, they’re really following us and rooting for us.’ So it felt good,” McDonald said.

Looking for a date

It’s prom season, and one Sabino High School student in attendance Saturday was hoping to score a date with UA freshman forward Cate Reese. The unnamed fan held up a sign that read “Cate, prom? Please?”

The big number

100

Decibels recorded at McKale Center. According to the “Decibels Meter” app, the sound at McKale resembled a combination of a rock concert and car horns. The average decibel rate on Saturday was 92.

The important number

5

Players from Arizona’s starting lineup that are expected to return next season. McDonald, Reese, Tee Tee Starks, Sam Thomas and Dominique McBryde all have eligibility left.

She said it

Aari McDonald and the Wildcats are eager to return to the gym over the summer and prepare for next season. “We can build something special.” pic.twitter.com/EkU61UU86B

— The Wildcaster (@TheWildcaster) April 6, 2019

“Next year they’re going to be more hungry and they’re going to want to make it to the (NCAA) Tournament. It’s kind of like when I was here. We won it and then the next year, the WNIT wasn’t good enough. … It’s steps in the right direction and we’re only at the beginning. Hopefully we’ll sell out a lot more games here at McKale.” — Barnes on the expectations for the 2019-20 season.