The stats suggest Arizona’s defense fell apart in the second half of its 82-73 win over Colorado, and there’s no doubt some truth to that.
Colorado shot 51.5 percent in the second half after shooting just 34.5 percent before halftime. The Buffs also scored nine second-chance points in the second half off five offensive rebounds.
But UA coach Sean Miller says he thinks UA’s offense – not its defense – had a lot to do with it, too. Arizona had nine turnovers in the second half.
Some of those turnovers were among the odd second-half miscues Miller described as follows:
1- With 10:33 left, Lauri Markkanen had three fouls when he tried to pick up a charge but instead was called for a blocking foul. That gave him four fouls and limited him down the stretch.
“That was a big reason they went on a comeback,” Miller said. “He has to learn there’s a time and a place to draw a charge, and that wasn’t the time or the place. You be smart and let him go. That two points (Colorado can score) is less important than his value to stay in the game.
“But he’s 18 years old and he has to go through some of these moments to learn. If this happens in our next game or down the road, I hope he can recall this and not make the same play.”
2 – Arizona was up 67-51 with 6:36 left when Chance Comanche picked up a personal and technical foul. Colorado’s Dominique Collier hit one of two ensuing free throws, then Xavier Johnson hit a 3-pointer 10 seconds later. The Buffs also went on to get a putback layup from George King and a 3-pointer from Wesley Gordon to cut UA's lead to just seven points with 4:27 to go.
“That was the biggest play of the game for us,” Miller said. “We were in total command. Instead of (it being) our ball with a commanding lead they get four points in a row, then they get in the press. It’s always plays like that that can sometimes turn the tide.
“It’s learning from it, being smart, being composed, making sure we don’t put ourselves at risk in any of those situations.”
3 – With just over five minutes left and Arizona leading 67-57, Dusan Ristic throws the ball purposefully (and somewhat inexplicably) from just past the midcourt line toward Parker Jackson-Cartwright in the backcourt, for a turnover.
The way Ristic has been playing lately, Miller said with a smile, “he’s earned the right to throw the ball the wrong direction” and blamed it in part on the fact that Ristic was put in an unexpected situation.
But he still couldn't help but scratch his head a bit over that one.
“I thought his pass into the backcourt from the frontcourt was something I’ve never seen in my 48 years on this planet,” Miller said. “We were sloppy. It was Dusan’s job not to be there, it should have been in Parker’s hands, but if you throw to your center, in that position and he’s not used to it, you know, crazy things happen …
“That was one of about four or five plays there that really sparked their comeback because we really had a commanding lead. Our turnovers and their offensive rebounding really fueled a great comeback. You give up 46 points in the second half, and that’s not good.”
Miller heaped praise on Kadeem Allen for his play offensively (18 points, four assists, no turnovers) and defensively (helping hold Derrick White to seven points).
“Tonight was about Kadeem Allen,” Miller said. “He was an amazing player. It was one of the best games a guard has played here since I’ve been at Arizona.
"What he did against Derrick White ... I think Derrick White is an NBA guard. His statistics are overwhelming. He’s had his way virtually with every team that he’s played. I watched him against Xavier, which is an excellent team, and he took over at the end. At ASU, he had 35 points. So we really issued a challenge to our team and especially Kadeem from a defensive perspective. I don’t know if I’ve ever seen anybody play better defense against a great opponent.
“He embodies a lot of qualities about this year’s team. Our team feeds off of Kadeem because he doesn’t say much. He just lets his play do the talking. However on offense he had four assists, no turnovers, led our team in defensive rebounding (five), scored 18 points, was 3-3 from three, 9-11 from the line. He was the best player on the court and he was the biggest story on our side.”
Miller said Allen ranked among the top defenders he’s had at UA so far.
“He’s right there,” Miller said. “During the eight seasons I’ve been here, he’s right there with the best. I would think Rondae (Hollis-Jefferson), Aaron (Gordon), Nick (Johnson), T.J. (McConnell), those guys really stand out.
“The difference between Kadeem and them is he’s surrounded by a young group. Sometimes when you’re a really good defender, it helps to have others out there who are equally adept. T.J. had Nick, Nick had T.J., Rondae always had somebody. Our other guys are really getting better but Kadeem really stands out. His effort tonight on the ball off the ball, I mean, he was just fantastic.”
Allen said he isn’t doing anything drastically different in his routine or shooting.
“It’s just confidence, from my teammates to the coaches… coach tells me every day just one, two step and shoot the ball,” Allen said.
Kobi Simmons missed his first five shots and averaged only 5.5 points on 30.7 percent shooting in two games this weekend at McKale – after averaging 14.5 points on 50-percent shooting last weekend at Cal and Stanford.
Asked about Simmons’ wide range of highs and lows, Miller said:
“Kobi is in a long line of very good talented players, freshmen who are gonna have their moments, and when you haven’t had that moment as much and you’re as talented as they are it, kind of takes your confidence,” Miller said. “Like I told him after the game, I’ve watched Aaron Gordon lose his confidence, I’ve watched Rondae lose his confidence. Stanley Johnson clearly lost his confidence.
“It just happens and Kobi, he just came from the Bay area, where he was our best player. He took over the Cal game, so as much as you can lose it quickly you can get it back. But he doesn’t have a lot of confidence and he’s letting his shot bother him maybe a little too much.
“It’s up to me, it’s up to our staff, to get him going because he’s too important to our team. He’s had a great start to his freshman year and now we have to get him out of this rut. Hopefully the next game he’ll be ready to go.”
Miller’s press conferences with local media are always prefaced with a spokesman saying Trier’s status cannot be addressed, but the Pac-12 Networks’ Jill Savage reported during the game that Miller told her he believes Trier will play sometime this season.
Allen was asked about ASU coach Bobby Hurley’s postgame comment to his team Thursday after the Sun Devils' win over Colorado that if any team wants to come into Arizona, they’d better to go to "(bleeping) Tucson."
“That’s his comment and we play on Thursday,” Allen said. “We’re gonna practice hard this week and be ready Thursday. ... We’ll let our game do the talking.”
Our full coverage is attached to this post, as are PDFs of the box score and updated stats.
