Assistant Sunny Smallwood leaving Adia Barnes' staff at Arizona for Montana State

There’s never a good time to lose an integral part of your coaching staff.

Arizona women’s basketball coach Adia Barnes had just welcomed three members of her new freshman class to Tucson when the news hit: Her assistant coach, Sunny Smallwood, was about to accept a new assistant coaching position at Montana State.

Smallwood joins a squad that finished seventh in the Big Sky Conference last year. The previous two seasons, the Bobcats claimed back-to-back conference championships.

Smallwood was one of Barnes’ first hires when she arrived at UA three years ago.

“As soon as I got the head coaching position at Arizona I knew that I wanted to pursue Sunny Smallwood,” said Barnes. “I respected her, she had similar morals and values. I loved her experience and I knew she experienced success in other programs. I was fortunate to keep her for two years.”

“I will miss her enthusiasm, her cultural values and experiences. She is going to be great wherever she is because she brings value in so many ways.”

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One of those ways is on the defensive side of the court. Smallwood served as the Wildcats’ defensive coordinator the past two years. Last season, while UA only won one game in Pac-12 play, their defense kicked it up a notch with 115 blocked shots and 235 steals. The Wildcats hadn’t produced that many blocks since the 2003-04 season, when they swatted 120. And, the last time they grabbed more steals was the 2012-13 season with 276.

Prior to joining the Wildcats staff, Smallwood had stops at Boise State, Nebraska, Cal, Washington and Washington State.

What is Barnes focused on as she looks for a new coach to round out her staff?

“Now, I am on the hunt to fill her void,” said Barnes. “I am looking for a new addition to my family, someone who is aligned with me, a blue collar worker with tremendous energy and drive, a dynamic recruiter, with ties on the West Coast, and someone with strong on-the-court skill with a high basketball IQ.

“I have a good list to choose from, but the most important thing for my basketball family is finding someone that fits in with my staff and that my players will love.”

The UA’s vacancy must be posted for 10 working days before a new hire is announced.