Arizona guard Pelle Larsson (3) gets smothered by Southern forward Jalen Reynolds (12), top, and guard Bryson Etienne (23) in the first half of Friday nightβs game in McKale Center.
Believe it or not, Kerr Kriisa says he was fine without the headband.
Until some Arizona Wildcat fans apparently convinced him otherwise, that is.
So, with his signature headband strapped back on after a one-game absence, Arizonaβs demonstrative guard from Estonia posted his second career triple-double to lead the Wildcats to a 95-78 win over Southern on Friday at McKale Center.
Kriisa collected 14 points on 4-for-7 shooting (3 for 6 from 3) and had 11 rebounds and 12 assists with only three turnovers against the Jaguars. He posted his first triple-double at Utah last season, when he had 21 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists.
Over the summer, there were signs Kriisa was going to have nights like he did Friday. He put on 10 pounds and played well with the Estonian national team in the offseason but then struggled from 3-point range earlier this fall: He shot 1 for 6 in the Red-Blue Game and missed both 3s he took in a Nov. 1 exhibition against Western Oregon.
Quietly, Kriisa took the headband off behind the scenes and felt good about it. Then he kept it off Monday in UAβs 117-75 win over Nicholls, when he had nine points, seven assists and only one turnover.
βThe reason I didnβt really wear a headband in the last game was I felt like Iβd been practicing pretty good without it,β Kriisa said. βBut I got really bad comments and bad messages. Then I was like, `Oh, damn, like Iβm still trying to live.β So I guess I had to pull my headband back out.
Asked where, exactly, he was getting all those messages from, Kriisa declined to say.
βAll right, letβs not dig too deep,β Kriisa said, drawing laughter in UAβs media room. βThere were some guys who said `You should wear it.β I didnβt know it was that deep. I guess it is. I have to wear it now.β
While Kriisa played a starring role Friday in weaving the Wildcatsβ offense past Southernβs aggressive, oft-pressing defense, three fellow starters all chipped in 17 points β Pelle Larsson, Oumar Ballo and Azuolas Tubelis β while Arizona shot 54.5% overall from the field.
The Jaguars shot only 36.2% and had only 33 rebounds to UAβs 51. The Wildcats also dominated the smaller Jaguars in the paint, 48-26.
Up 49-31 at halftime, Arizona went ahead by 26 when Kriisa hit a 3-pointer with 17:30 left to make it 60-34 and the Wildcats led by 20 until Southern cut it to 90-72 with 2:12 left against a lineup of all Arizona substitutes.
The Jaguars then cut the lead to 15 points with 1:50 left but UA coach Tommy Lloyd stuck with the reserves, saying he was considering the length of the season and the possibility of a starter getting hurt if they were re-inserted.
βI thought for stretches of the game we played really well, and in other stretches we didnβt,β Lloyd said. βThatβs what happens in the early season. But I take my hat off to Southern β they played their tails off and they were relentless. It was kind of an eye-opener for some of our guys.β
It was also physical and chippy. Both teams combined for 54 fouls and 76 free throws, with technical fouls assessed to Southernβs T.J. Byrd, Arizonaβs Cedric Henderson and Larsson.
In the first half, Larsson had 15 points while Kriisa had eight points and eight assists to help the Wildcats take a 49-31 halftime lead.
Ballo added 10 points for the Wildcats, who shot 57.7% overall from the field and held Southern to 28.1% before halftime. Arizona raced to a 10-0 start, breaking away from the Jaguars for easy layups while Southern missed its first six shots.
However, Southernβs defense proved more physical and disruptive to UA in the first half than Nichollsβ defense was on Monday. Larsson and Byrd were even called for offsetting technicals after a brief confrontation along the sideline midway through the half.
βIn competitive moments, emotions are going to rise,β Lloyd said. βYou canβt be afraid of it but youβve got to be able to temper it a little bit.β
The Wildcats and Jaguars will tangle again under what could be a much rowdier environment when they meet on Nov. 12 on Southernβs campus in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, part of the Pac-12/SWAC Legacy Series.
βThe cool thing for them is next year they get us back there in the second game of the year,β Lloyd said, when asked about the significance of the series with the SWACβs HBCU schools. βI think itβll probably have a little more meaning and impact when we get back there and have that full experience. Weβre looking forward to it.β
Photos: University of Arizona notches a 95-78 win over Southern, men's basketball