Another day, another milestone.
At least that’s how it feels with Arizona.
First, the Wildcats got off to their best start — 13-0 — in program history. Then they posted the longest active winning streak in the nation — 19 games — dating to last year’s WNIT championship.
Then they beat rival Arizona State in Tempe for the first time since 2000. They’re been ranked in the Top 25 poll for eight weeks, and currently sit at No. 21 nationally.
Now, Arizona’s facing one of the toughest schedules in recent history. The Wildcats played three top-10 teams in as many games, losing all three. They’ll be trying to turn things around Friday night, when they face Washington State (9-7, 2-2) at 8 p.m. The team will play at Washington on Sunday at 1 p.m.
So how good are the Wildcats (13-3, 2-3) heading into the weekend?
The Star talked to Pac-12 Networks analyst Joan Bonvicini, a former UA coach; Pac-12 Networks host and analyst Ashley Adamson; and Brian Agler, coach of the WNBA’s Dallas Wings, to find out:
Arizona Wildcats forward Dominique McBryde (20) flexes after scoring a contested layup during the third quarter of the No. 18 Arizona Wildcats 71-64 loss to No. 2 Oregon Ducks at McKale Center in Tucson, Ariz. on January 1, 2020.
What brings more national recognition: a star player or winning?
Bonvicini: “Generally, it takes having star players or a special player. If you have a special player like (UA coach) Adia (Barnes) has in Aari (McDonald), it brings recognition.”
Adamson: “I think it’s a chicken-and-egg thing. They sort of go hand-in-hand to get true recognition. When Sabrina (Ionescu) got to Eugene, the program got recognition right away and started winning. But Jillian Alleyne was a big-time player and didn’t have the supporting cast or the coaching staff. And (look at) what ASU did this past weekend. (ASU coach) Charli (Turner Thorne) doesn’t have a star player. You know who their leaders are, but they got a ton of recognition for beating Oregon and Oregon State. If they are really big wins, people will recognize the team. I don’t think you really need a star player if you are truly getting big wins.
“Although, obviously, I think Aari is a household name in college basketball … Cate (Reese) has the ability to be one of the top players in the Pac-12. The strides she’s made in the one and a half years in her career — her future is bright. Arizona has got star power and Aari is the straw that stirs the drink. If they had knocked off Oregon State or Oregon we’d be talking about Arizona; we’d be talking about Aari.”
Agler: “Winning, without a doubt. But you have to have star players to win, and you can’t win without star players. Players who seem interested in other things besides winning become irrelevant.”
Barnes has said the program is climbing; where do you think it is?
Bonvicini: “I think they have significantly improved from a year ago. They are deeper. The difficult thing is they have had injuries. On Friday (against Oregon State), they were one possession away — they have improved so much. The difficult thing is that so has everyone else in this league. The biggest thing they can control is better rebounding. In order to win big games at home and on the road, they have to be a better rebounding team.”
Adamson: “To me, so much is fit. I think Adia is the perfect fit. She can sell young women on the vision and the place that she bought into years ago. I’ve never seen a town, a community embrace a team like Tucson did during the WNIT. Now, I see she is trying to get 10,000 (fans) for (next week’s) Territorial Cup game. It’s awesome. It took someone like Adia coming in and churning up the excitement. I like Adia. She is authentic. She has a vision for what she wants to the program to be and it’s very clear.”
Agler: “From what I saw the other day, the attendance and the quality of play … like I said before the UCLA game, they could lose these three games and they’d be OK. I don’t base what I’m seeing on wins and losses. I agree with Adia and the fans do, too. Why? I understand how good those three teams were.”
How impressive is it that Arizona is playing well with injuries? (Tee Tee Starks will miss the season, Dominique McBryde missed six games and Helena Pueyo is currently injured).
Bonvicini: “It’s impressive. (Now) they need a sweep to get back in the conference picture. …To compete with Oregon, for Arizona to hang with all these teams, is impressive. If they beat teams they should beat and steal one or two from teams above them, they are right there. They have good chemistry, a good culture and they play great defense.
“I think Aari is the most exciting player in the country and Cate is really good. I like it when Sam (Thomas) is aggressive and looks for herself. Or Dominique and thank god Lucia Alonso is looking for herself. In order to take that next step, other players need to step up.”
Adamson: “You can hear the frustration in Adia’s voice, but as she said it’s not an excuse. When Tee Tee Starks was lost for the season, I was so sad. Every team deals with injuries, but teams hit a stride and find rotations that work. One thing you do wonder is what could have happened? They lost three in a row to three legit Final Four teams. You can always play ‘what if?’ It’s like whack a mole. As soon as one comes back (McBryde), another goes down (Pueyo). This team can make a big run in March. This is going to be a team I think can be special. Their defense is phenomenal.”
Agler: “They are playing well. Injuries happen to everyone. They have to find a way to have success now. When you talk about it and worry about it, it becomes an excuse. Great teams don’t have excuses. It gives someone else an opportunity to step up.”
What do you think we’ll be saying about Arizona at the end of the season?
Bonvicini: “This is a key road trip, as is next week’s game against ASU. These next two weeks are telling. How they handle teams that aren’t ranked, but are hungry. And ASU is playing really well. It’s important to see how they react. They need to get on a roll going into the ASU game.
“Adia has done a fabulous job. She has brought attention to Arizona locally and nationally.”
Adamson: “I think they have the opportunity to make postseason noise in the NCAA Tournament. They are poised for it. I believe in this team.”
Agler: “I think the Pac-12 is the best conference in the country. I think they will have good wins in conference before the season is over and make a little bit of a run in the NCAAs. When I say that, I mean they have the potential to get to the Sweet 16 and then anything can happen.
“(Arizona’s) record is not an indication of how strong a team they are, so buyer beware.”
