At the end of Azuolas Tubelisβ weekend to remember, Arizona coach Tommy Lloyd expressed concern that the Wildcatsβ Lithuanian big man maybe isnβt appreciated as much as he should be.
"He's having an All-American-type season," Lloyd said. "I've coached those guys, and he's at that level. He probably isnβt getting the due (recognition) that he deserves.β
He might be now.
After pouring in 40 points against Oregon last Thursday, then dropping another 19 on Oregon State on Saturday, Tubelis was named both the Pac-12 and NCAA.com Player of the Week.
On Monday, Tubelis was also one of only five players named first-team All-American on a Stadium poll of national college basketball analysts and writers. The Sporting News last month already had Tubelis on its first-team All-American list of five. Last week, Tubelis was one of 20 players named to the Wooden Awardβs late-season watch list.
Of course, Tubelis is already pretty well-known around the Pac-12, leading the conference in scoring and rebounding in both conference and overall play. In league play, Tubelis is averaging a double-double with 21.8 points and 10.2 rebounds.
βHe's just a freak,β UA guard Kylan Boswell said of Tubelis after Arizona beat Oregon State 84-52 on Saturday. βI don't really understand how he does what he does, but it's very fun to watch. Very fun to play with him.β
On Thursday, Tubelis scored 40 points on just 21 2-point field-goal attempts against the Ducks, falling one point shy of the most any UA player has scored at McKale Center. In Arizona's sweep over the Oregon schools, Tubelis shot a combined 71% from the field and averaged 8.5 rebounds.
The conferenceβs weekly honor was the third of Tubelisβ career and second this season. He was also named Player of the Week on Dec. 26 after averaging 20.0 points and 9.0 rebounds in Arizona's wins over Montana State and Morgan State.
Tubelis, who arrived at Arizona in 2020 without seeing campus because of COVID restrictions, also won two Pac-12 Freshman of the Week honors in 2020-21.
Among other players, Tubelis beat out UCLAβs Jaime Jaquez for the latest weekly honor. Jaquez led the Bruins to a home sweep over Washington and Washington State by averaging 19.5 points and 12.5 rebounds while shooting 50% from the field (2 for 4 from 3-point range).
USC's Tre White was named Pac-12 Freshman of the Week after averaging 18.0 points on 64% shooting along with 5.0 rebounds and 2.5 assists in the Trojans' wins over Washington and WSU.
Arizona forward Azuolas Tubelis draws a bead on a dunk finishing a Wildcat fastbreak against Oregon State in their Pac-12 game at McKale Center on Feb. 4, 2023.
Arizona moves to No. 4
Arizona moved up one spot to No. 4 in The Associated Press Top 25 poll, while Tennessee fell from No. 2 to No. 6 after losing to Florida.
The Wildcats (21-3, 10-3) remained slightly lower in the computer metrics: They are No. 6 in Sagarin, No. 9 in the NET and No. 10 in Kenpom.
Among UA's other opponents this season, UCLA moved up from No. 9 to No. 7, while San Diego State fell from No. 22 to No. 25.
In the latest bracket projections, both CBS (on Monday) and ESPN (on Friday) have Arizona as the West's No. 2 seed. That would mean the Wildcats would likely start in Sacramento or Denver, with the chance to advance to Las Vegas for the Sweet 16 and Elite Eight.
Rim shots
β’ Arizona announced that its Feb. 18 game with Colorado at McKale Center is set for a 6 p.m. tipoff and will be televised by ESPN2.
β’Β UCLAβsΒ Tyger CampbellΒ was the only Pac-12 player among the 10 named to the updated watch list for the Bob Cousy Award given to the top point guard in college basketball.
