For the first time in Adia Barnes’ tenure as coach at Arizona, she doesn’t know who will be in the Wildcats’ starting lineup.
Barnes is expected to start a different group in Wednesday’s exhibition game against Cal State Los Angeles. Shaina Pellington, Cate Reese, Lauren Fields, Jade Loville and Esmery Martinez all got the nod in last week’s exhibition opener against West Texas A&M.
“I’m not a coach that typically, in the past, wouldn’t change the starting lineup every game. But if that’s what I have to do, and that’s what this team needs, I’m going to do that to keep people motivated on their game,” Barnes said. “I think as a coach, you have to do what you need to do for your team to be successful. That’s not ideal. Even if you have to do that early, and then you find a set (of starters) later. That’s OK. I think that that’s what the preseason is for. And that’s what you have to do, but in the end, the end result is winning games and what I can do to make this team the best.”
This isn’t the norm for Barnes, who usually knows her starters ahead of the season opener and only rarely makes changes. This year’s team is different: The Wildcats have added three transfers and a quartet of highly touted freshmen to a veteran core.
Barnes is trying to use their skillsets in the right ways.
“I think you adjust to what you have in your players,” Barnes said. “Kailyn (Gilbert) is young and used to really being dominant on the ball. (That’s) not bad. I have to find ways as a coach to create a situation where she gets it, gives it up, gets it back. So, she’s not stuck with it because she’s learning how to read the game,” Barnes said.
“That’s the fun part, I think, and that’s the hard part. One example is Aari (McDonald), if Aari took the ball, she can go one-on-one anytime. But then, I knew the four people around her (were) sitting there watching, so I had to create, as a coach, stuff where she would give the ball up, maybe get it back on the backend and do something and create for someone else.”
So Barnes has been thinking about how to get players out of certain habits during the flow of the game and use those them differently. It’s all about being creative.
“I think there will be some rough patches now that are worth it later,” Barnes said. “I think we’re doing some cool stuff that’s cutting edge. That’s what you want.”
The biggest change
Thursday marked the first time in five years that Sam Thomas wasn’t in the Wildcats’ starting lineup.
“Oh, it feels different,” Barnes said. “I think you don’t realize like Sam was such a staple in such a glue person and just knew the system so well, was such a quiet assassin but always in the right spot, always helping then you think of just all the things ... (she) knew every position. I think you realize how much you miss that when I look on film (it’s) like whoa … it’s all new.”
However, Barnes was quick to recall that Thomas developed into a leader over time. She started as a freshman too.
And while everything may look new now, Barnes is confident it will all come together.
“I think we score better, but now I think the challenge is always: Can you score the same and play the same defense?” Barnes asked. “…I think everybody’s trying to do good the first game get into their own, which is good. I think their confident (it’s) positive but just getting in sync and getting adjusted and then bringing the freshmen in there. … Getting them game experience. That’s the balance early in the season. You want to get game experience and you want to work on these things, (yet) you want to win games. That’s the balance. We have a lot of work, but I think we’re going to be a really good team, on paper. This is the best team we’ve had.”
Defensive-minded
Arizona has worked extensively on defense in practice this week.
Barnes said it’s been a long week, but a good one. She said that while it’s too early to expect the swarming defense to be fully on point, the Wildcats are taking the right steps to get there.
“We’re going to be a little tired tomorrow,” Barnes said. “We have a lot of defensive work, but we’ll get there. And I think it’s fun, just the process of it. But (it’s) a lot of work.”
Rim shots
Barnes said she chose to play two exhibitions at home in part to reward loyal fans. “We missed some home games last year and with our crowd, and everybody’s so excited, selling all the tickets, I thought there was momentum. I wanted to do to this to get us out in front of people,” Barnes said. “I think there was like 3,000 people or 4,000 people (at) the (West Texas A&M) game, which is good for an exhibition. But I wanted us to get us in uniforms, have them feel what this is like. This is a way different crowd than anybody’s played in front of.”
Barnes said fans should expect to see improvements against Cal State Los Angeles: better defense, everyone touching the ball on offense and not taking shots early in the shot clock.
