Everything seems to be coming at the Wildcats fast these days.
Pac-12 play started last week, a month earlier than usual. Arizona’s first conference game came against a UCLA team ranked in the top 10.
Arizona won, then beat USC, and this week is ranked No. 6 in the Associated Press top 25 poll.
And now it’s rivalry week. Arizona (3-0, 2-0 Pac-12) takes on Arizona State (4-1, 1-1 Pac-12) Thursday at 4 p.m. in McKale Center.
“All these games are so much different, because there are so much earlier, so they are just a lot harder,” UA coach Adia Barnes said. “For (ASU coach) Charli (Turner Thorne), this is early to play — we usually don’t play until the end of December. For both of us I think it’s a disadvantage. We both have new pieces. I think whoever is going to execute the most and I think defend the best is going to win the game. We’re both two defensive teams. It’s going to be a battle.”
The Wildcats are trying to extend their winning streak over the Sun Devils to three games. Last year, they swept ASU for the first time since 2000.
That’s no guarantee of success.
Arizona’s players are showing improvement each game, understanding the system more and learning more about their teammates’ tendencies. But Barnes said it’ll take more time for it all to come together.
Consider the play of Trinity Baptiste, who has been stellar in the post after transferring to the UA from Virginia Tech.
“We really haven’t had someone who camps in the paint and really wants the ball in the low post,” Barnes said. “What that means is that we had a lot of openings for drives. Now with someone who wants to post up that wants to take advantage of the mismatches … sometimes the guards want to drive and she’s supposed to know. …
“Trinity has only practiced with us for a month and a half. Learning everybody, learning what to expect, learning what I want as a coach. We focus a lot more on defense here. Virginia Tech focused more on offense, so it’s different. … It just takes time.”
Trinity Baptiste
To help the Wildcats prepare for ASU during a short week, Barnes dusted off a technique she’s used in the past. She’s simplifying things.
“They’re young, and there’s a lot of information — there’s finals, there’s COVID, there are a lot of stressors,” Barnes said. “Finding a way to make things more simple, where they’re not hesitant and thinking, that’s my job to put them in better situations. … We’re not playing great now, which I think everybody in the country is going through. But I have to figure out a way to get us kind of going. We’re doing some great things, but we’re doing them for half the game.”
The Wildcats are also adapting to being ranked in the top 10, where everything seems to be magnified.
“I think that getting my team to understand that we have a target on our back — we’re the hunted. We’re not hunting,” Barnes said. “Before we used to say, ‘Oh, we had no pressure going into Oregon. No pressure going to Oregon State because Oregon State should have won or Oregon.’ Now it’s vice versa. You get everybody’s best shot. That’s different, because then that means teams play better — like USC came in here — and play with a lot of confidence. We have to figure out how to be good.
“That’s what I say about the experience. Like (Stanford coach) Tara (VanDerveer) for example, her team knows, because they’ve been there. They know what it’s like to get everybody’s best punch. We don’t know what that’s like, because we’ve never been on this side. For us to be on this side now and know what it’s like to take care of everybody’s best punch and still be able to compete at a high level, it’s just uncharted territory. We have to get better at that.”
