The Star's Bruce Pascoe previews all of the game day essentials, from projected starting lineups to storylines and series history, ahead of Arizona's showdown with Eastern Washington.
Game info
Who: Eastern Washington (0-1) at Arizona (1-0)
Where: McKale Center
When: Saturday, Noon
TV: Pac-12 Networks
Radio: 1290-AM, 107.5-FM
Follow: @TheWildcaster on Twitter / TheWildcaster on Facebook
Probable starters: Arizona
G James Akinjo (6-0 junior)
G Jemarl Baker (6-5 junior)
F Dalen Terry (6-7 freshman)
F Jordan Brown (6-11 sophomore)
C Christian Koloko (7-0 sophomore)
Probable starters: Eastern Washington
G Jack Perry (6-2 senior)
G Jacob Davison (6-4 senior)
F Jacob Groves (6-7 sophomore)
F Kim Aiken (6-7 junior)
C Tanner Groves (6-9 junior)
How they match up
University of Arizona's Salim Stoudamire, left, flies over and around Eastern Washington's Jake Betinger for a reverse lay-up in the second half of their game in the first round of the Fiesta Bowl Basketball Classic Dec. 28, 2004, at McKale Center.
The series: Arizona and Eastern Washington have only played once before, and it wasn’t close. UA beat the Eagles 79-45 on Dec. 28, 2004 in the first round of the Fiesta Bowl Classic, when the Wildcats had five players score eight or more points, led by Channing Frye with 13.
Game agreement: Eastern Washington was a late replacement for Northern Colorado, which was forced to back out of Saturday’s game after announcing on Nov. 25 it had paused for COVID issues. It is a one-time arrangement.
Eastern Washington overview: Upon being added to UA’s schedule this week, the Eagles instantly became possibly the Wildcats’ toughest nonconference opponent. They have four starters back from a team that won the Big Sky last season, and was a landslide pick to win the league again this season in conference polling. The Eagles did lose Big Sky MVP and double-double machine Mason Peatling but they return the leagues leading rebounder, forward Kim Aiken, plus boxscore-stuffing guard Jacob Davison, the league’s fourth-leading scorer (18.4) last season. The Eagles also return point guard Ellis Magnusen, but he did not play at WSU and is doubtful Saturday because of COVID issues, while the Eagles have been using efficient shooting guard Jack Perry to handle the ball more often.
Eastern Washington runs a fast tempo and takes a lot of 3-pointers, ranking second in ratio of 3s to overall field goals in the Big Sky last season and taking half of their 58 shots at WSU from 3-point range (hitting 9 of 29). Last season, the Eagles hit 3s at a 34.4% rate overall.
He said it
Arizona Wildcats head coach Sean Miller and associate coach Jack Murphy yell at the offense during the first half of Arizona vs New Mexico State men's basketball game at McKale Center in Tucson, Ariz., on November 17th, 2019.
“This is a very concerning game for a number of reasons. You get geared up for Colorado and then have a letdown when that’s canceled. Then our next game gets canceled and you get Eastern Washington, which is the elite of the Big Sky. They play a different style, and one through five can shoot. You’re going to have to ask our guys to defend 3-point shooter, come out of their comfort zone and guard cutters. It really puts a heavy emphasis on your defense, your execution and your discipline.
“They’re picked to win the Big Sky for a reason. The guy they lost was the MVP but with Tanner Groves, it’s not one of those things where they had a huge dropoff. They’ve always shot a lot of 3s. They are looking for 3s especially in transition. In halfcourt, they’ll play through the post up. They’ll drive, they’ll penetrate. And their best player, Jacob Davison, only a third of his shots are 3s – the rest of the time he’s driving, he’s attacking.
“Out of the post-up they do a good job of cutting off the ball and if you suck in at all defensively, they’ll kick it out to the shooters. They have the ability to make the perimeter shots to kind of open up the court.”
“(Defensively) they’ll play man-to-man. Just depends on the matchups whether they’ll switch ball screens or not. They really pack in the paint, try to take away driving lines, contest 3s. They’ve shown some press back to zone, some changing defenses for sure. They’re not afraid to play some zone but are mainly a man team.”
— Arizona associate head coach Jack Murphy, who helped scout the Eagles.
Key player (Eastern Washington): Jacob Davison
Eastern Washington guard Jacob Davison (10) walks on the court during the first half of an NCAA college basketball game against Gonzaga in Spokane, Wash., Saturday, Dec. 21, 2019. (AP Photo/Young Kwak)
Call him the anti-grad transfer. After landing on nearly every Big Sky statistical leader list last season, Davison was in line academically and athletically to transfer to a high-major team this season as a grad transfer. But he stayed in Cheney and the Eagles are expected to play at a higher level because of it.
Key player (Arizona): Jordan Brown
Arizona Wildcats forward Jordan Brown (21) dunks the ball during the second half of Arizona Wildcats's season opener against the Grambling State Tigers at McKale Center, 1721 E. Enke Rd., in Tucson, Ariz. on Nov. 27, 2020. Arizona won 74-55 against Grambling State.
The Nevada transfer was the best player on the floor in UA’s season opener against Grambling State despite not playing in a game for 614 days, but he’ll face some stiffer inside competition under the basket this time.
Sidelines
Merry (maybe) Christmas
Colorado head coach Tad Boyle and Arizona head coach Sean Miller both use the same gesture to organize their teams in the second half of their Pac-12 game at McKale Center, Thursday, January 25, 2018, Tucson, Ariz.
That Arizona rescheduled its postponed Dec. 2 game with Colorado to Dec. 28 was not a surprise, since it was one of the few open spots the Wildcats had left on their calendar this month.
But that game, coupled with COVID protocols players must go through if they leave town on their own, means their Christmas break may be threatened. Plus, the Wildcats also have to play at Washington on Dec. 31 and at Washington State on Jan. 2, making for a difficult lead-in to the bulk of conference play.
“We all have to kind of do what’s best for our players’ health and safety, but we also have to do some things that normally wouldn’t be the smart move,” Miller said of the rescheduling. “We’re not there yet, but Thanksgiving has come and gone. That was different. I’m sure the Christmas holidays will come and go and that will be unique for everybody in the world, not just our team.”
In past seasons, the Wildcats have returned to their homes immediately after their final pre-Christmas game and then returned to campus two to four days later, depending on when their Pac-12 schedule was set to begin. Miller said UA is discussing what to do in this case, talking with county and university health officials as well as players’ families.
“It’s not just a black and white decision, spur of the moment,” Miller said. “It has to be very well thought-out.”
Voices needed
Arizona Wildcats forward Azuolas Tubelis (10) warms ups in front of a half filled ZonaZoo crowd made up of cutouts before the Arizona Wildcats's season opener against the Grambling State Tigers at McKale Center, 1721 E. Enke Rd., in Tucson, Ariz. on Nov. 27, 2020.
Usually when he has a less-experienced team about to face a veteran opponent who could pull off an upset at McKale, Miller will mention something along the lines of how much the Wildcats will need the support of their five-figure crowds.
Well, that’s not really an option anymore, no matter how much red and navy there is in the stands.
“Unfortunately, those cardboard cutouts can’t talk,” Miller said. “That’s the other part of this, learning to play in a quiet atmosphere. We’ve had one opportunity to do it and hopefully we can be more comfortable in that setting than we were against Grambling. It is very unique for all of us when you walk out there and it’s as quiet as it is.”
Making matters worse for the Wildcats this time is that their families won’t even be able to attend under UA’s new policy. Guard Terrell Brown said it was nice having his family come down from Seattle to watch the Grambling game, but that the players are managing to maintain focus on the floor.
“You don’t really worry about it,” Brown said. “You kind of just play together as a team because your’e the only ones who went through the grind.”
He’ll take it
Eastern Washington coach Shantay Legans received an assist from his wife, Tatjana Sparavalo, when it came to replacing Northern Colorado on the UA’s basketball schedule.
But one guy who probably won’t miss the McKale Center fans too much Saturday will be Eastern Washington coach Shantay Legans, who played point guard for Cal teams between 1999-2002 that never escaped Tucson without a loss.
“They seemed to come out there and kick our butts pretty good,” Legans said. “That’s when they had Gilbert Arenas and Jason Gardner and all those guys. It was fun times, fun to play in those games. That’s one of the best environments in all of college basketball, at least when I was playing. It’s a great venue and the fan support is unbelievable.”
Numbers game
2 - Gold practice jerseys earned by James Akinjo and Jordan Brown for weekly practice production so far this season, after Akinjo earned his second this week.
3 – Eastern Washington victories in 50 games against current members of the Pac-12 teams since the Eagles joined Division I in 1983-84.
6 – Players Eastern Washington used in a 71-68 loss at Washington State on Nov. 28 because of a positive test and contact-tracing-related quarantines.
85 – Percent of combined votes in preseason Big Sky media and coach polls that voted Eastern Washington to win the conference.
