After playing Adama Bal for 17 minutes in Arizona’s regular-season finale against Cal on March 5, UA coach Tommy Lloyd said it wasn’t necessarily a sign the lightly-used freshman would play more of a role in the postseason.
“I want to reward him for having a great year in practice and behind the scenes,” Lloyd said after UA’s 89-61 win that day.
A week later, things changed.
Not only was starting point guard Kerr Kriisa out with a sprained ankle for UA’s Pac-12 Tournament championship game against UCLA on Saturday, but guards Justin Kier and Pelle Larsson both picked up three fouls in the first half while wing Dalen Terry picked up two.
Lloyd needed another capable body. So he put in Bal with 9:21 left in the first half and, exactly 36 seconds later, the French wing hit a 3-pointer against a Bruins defense who may not have known who he was. About three minutes after that, Bal hit another.
“When Justin got in foul trouble it was next man up,” center Christian Koloko said. “Adama checked in and he hit two big 3s. It’s just next man up. We love each other. We trust each other.”
This was not playing Cal at home, either. This was the conference tournament final against the team expected to win the league coming into the season.
Bal’s first 3 gave Arizona a two-point lead. His second tied it up at 24, with five minutes to go.
“I’m the least surprised person he did that,” Lloyd said. “Right when those balls left his hand I’m like, `He’s gonna make that,’ so it’s cool moment for him and a great moment for our team. Because when you have something happen like that, you know, these seasons are long, and these guys are together a lot. So when they see one of their brothers step up and have a moment, it kind of ignites the whole group.”
It also might have been a preview of the future. Lloyd has compared Bal to a hot pitching prospect a major-league baseball team might keep in the minors while his confidence builds up. He has played in 22 games this year, averaging 1.4 points in 4.3 minutes per contest, while shooting 50% from 3-point range.
Lloyd said he Sunday hoped Bal’s moments against UCLA let him know “he’s on the right path” and headed for a bigger role in the future. Even before then, after the Cal game, Lloyd was already breaking down exactly what that role could be.
“I think he’s gonna be do-everything guard,” Lloyd said then. “I think he’s got a really good feel for the game, a high IQ, and he’s getting a little nastier. He’s getting a little more physical and he’s a shot-maker.
“I just said a lot of good things right there. So his role is gonna be hopefully being one of our best players down the line.”
“I think he's got a really good feel for the game, a high IQ, and he's getting a little nastier," said UA coach Tommy Lloyd of Adama Bal earlier this month. "He’s getting a little more physical and he's a shot-maker.
Kriisa shares injury photo
While Lloyd said the outlook is “hopeful” that Kriisa will be able to play in the NCAA Tournament this weekend, the guard posted a picture of his ankle sprain to Twitter that indicated he still has some work to do.
The picture showed a lower right leg that was solidly bruised for two inches above the ankle joint, which remained swollen, while bruises also ran in a line up the side of his foot.
“Not easy but doing everything I can to get back on the court with my brothers!” Kriisa tweeted along with the photo. “It’s March. Time to go!!”
On the tweet, Kriisa tagged UA athletic trainer Justin Kokoskie, who is working with him on rehabilitation this week.
Lloyd said Kriisa’s ankle sprain didn’t appear as bad the one forward Azuolas Tubelis suffered on Jan. 20 at Stanford, limiting the forward for two weeks, but that Kriisa’s was a “real sprain” that is keeping Kokoskie and his staff busy.
“They’re attacking it,” Lloyd said. “I know we’ve had this issue pop up a couple times this season and J-Rock (Kokoskie) has done an incredible job with the medical staff at getting guys back — and not only back but confident in being back.”
Wildcats finish at No. 2 in AP Top 25
Arizona finished No. 2 in the final Associated Press Top 25 poll, earning Lloyd a $30,000 bonus for finishing in the Top 10 of either the AP or coaches poll.
The coaches poll, which also has UA at No. 2, is updated after the NCAA Tournament ends but the AP Poll is not.
The Wildcats picked up one more first-place vote in the AP poll, getting a total of seven while No. 1 Gonzaga received the other 54. Gonzaga and Arizona are also 1-2 in three major metrics: NET, Kenpom and Sagarin.
Among teams in the South Region bracket along with Arizona, Tennessee is No. 5, Villanova No. 6, Houston No. 15, Illinois No. 19 and Colorado State is 24th.
UCLA rose from 13th to 11th after losing to Arizona in the Pac-12 championship game and USC rose from 21st to 19th after losing to UCLA in the conference semifinals.
Rim shots
The First Four game between Wright State and Bryant will tipoff at 3:40 p.m. on Wednesday and be carried on TruTv. The winner will fly immediately afterward to San Diego and prepare to face Arizona at 4:27 p.m. on Friday.
Arizona will hold its mandatory open workout at Viejas Arena on Thursday between 3:25 and 4:05 p.m. That appearance is open to the public, but the Wildcats may hold an additional practice offsite that will likely be closed.
On3 moved UA commit Kylan Boswell up to No. 5 in its updated 2023 player rankings.
