It’s not easy selecting the Arizona women’s basketball team’s top five games this season.
Do you go with all comebacks? Do you focus on the games they completely dominated? How about the sweep of the Los Angeles schools in L.A. — the first time the Wildcats had done that in 21 years? Or maybe it’s stealing two from the mountain schools at home? Or beating rival ASU twice?
As No. 7-seeded Arizona (21-9) prepares for its first-round matchup against No. 10-seeded West Virginia (19-11) in the NCAA Tournament on Friday in College Park, Maryland, here are our selections for the top five games of 2022-23:
Dec. 18: UA leads wire to wire, beats No. 18 Baylor
What went down: This was supposed to be a neutral-site game in Dallas. However, the stands were full of Baylor fans as the drive was less than an hour and a half from Waco. UA came out and dominated on both ends of the court. The Wildcats forced 20 turnovers — scoring 25 points off them — and had six blocks. UA held Baylor to 32% shooting and only 54 points in a 75-54 triumph. UA went on 10-0 run in the second quarter, forcing five consecutive turnovers. Three Wildcats — Shaina Pellington (18), Jade Loville (16) and Cate Reese (13) — combined to score 47 points.
What stood out: This was the first big win of the season in which everyone played their part. Esmery Martinez (15) and Reese (13) combined for 28 of UA’s 35 rebounds. For Martinez, this was a season high. She collected 15 three other times — against NAU, ASU and Cal. She also grabbed three steals and blocked two shots. Loville hit 4 of 5 three-pointers, and Pellington dished eight assists and had three steals.
She said it: “(We) are capable of being a really good team. I’m excited to see what the future is, and we have good momentum going into the Pac-12.” — Arizona coach Adia Barnes
Arizona guard Shaina Pellington is defended by Oregon State guard Talia von Oelhoffen in the second half of their game at McKale Center on Jan. 6, 2023. Arizona won 72-69.
Jan. 6: Comeback for the ages vs. Oregon State
What went down: This was the best of the Wildcats’ comebacks this season. With Arizona down by 10 points with 3:24 left, Helena Pueyo kick-started everything with a steal and a basket — the typical UA basketball moment where the defense sparks the offense. Pellington collected two more steals during a 17-4 run as Arizona prevailed 72-69.
What stood out: This was one of the first games in which the Wildcats dug deep to pull it out. After not scoring all game, Lauren Fields knocked down eight of her nine points — back-to-back 3-pointers and a layup — in 40 seconds. UA made seven 3-pointers with three coming in that last stretch (Pueyo hit the other one). Pueyo, Reese, Martinez and Pellington each had three steals.
She said it: “It was all part of the plan. Play 37 minutes awful and then wait to the last 3:24 to play defense and actually play. No, I’m proud of our team. This was a really big win for us. We showed resiliency after having a tough game against Stanford, and we found a way. That sense of urgency we had with the press down the stretch ... we were tired and found a way to (win) when different people stepped up big. Lauren’s big shots, stuff that she’s capable of doing. We did a good job of finding her, feeding her and just finding a way to gut it out.” — Barnes
UCLA forward Lina Sontag, left, and Arizona forward Cate Reese go after a loose ball during the second half of their game Friday, Feb. 3, 2023, in Los Angeles.
Feb. 3: Wildcats push UCLA to overtime
What went down: This time UA went on an 11-0 run to tie it up and send it into overtime. Pellington slipped on a wet spot near the basket as she was attempting a wide-open layup that would have won the game in regulation. She regrouped and led the Wildcats in OT, scoring six of the 10 points, to give Arizona the 71-66 victory over No. 14-ranked UCLA — the Cats’ third win over a ranked team.
What stood out: The Wildcats never gave up. Pellington finished with 21 points and three assists. Martinez put up her sixth double-double of the season (17 points, 13 rebounds) in 38 minutes. Arizona held UCLA to 31% shooting and forced 15 turnovers.
She said it: “For me in that moment (before the overtime), after looking at everybody individually, I was like, ‘Oh yeah, we got this.’ I could just tell everybody was just so dialed in. And I could tell that everybody was going to do whatever (we) needed to win that game. ... I knew that I made a decision within myself that I was going to do whatever was possible to win that game. I think everybody did. And everybody stepped up huge. People stepped up throughout different points in the game, and it really helped us in the end. We never gave up.” — Pellington
Feb. 5: UA outlasts USC in double OT
What went down: Loville scored on a jumper to give UA a two-point lead with 44 seconds left in the second overtime, and Pueyo and Reese knocked down all six of their final free throws to seal the 81-75 victory. Reese scored a career-high 33 points and pulled down seven rebounds. Pellington scored 17 points, dished seven assists, grabbed five rebounds and picked four steals.
What stood out: Freshman Maya Nnaji made a statement with less than two minutes left in the first overtime when she subbed in for Martinez, who had fouled out. Nnaji blocked a shot, pulled down a defensive rebound and took a jumper just inside the 3-point line in the corner to tie the game with less than six seconds left in the first overtime. Nnaji added another blocked shot and two more rebounds in the next five minutes to finish with seven points, eight rebounds and three blocks.
She said it: “I wasn’t really thinking while I was out there. I was just playing basketball. … I just went back to my roots of things I’ve learned, things I’ve practiced and worked on. I knew I’d be able to do what I do and do it well.” — Nnaji
Arizona guard Shaina Pellington drifts around Utah forward Kelsey Rees for a lay-in during her 35-point night in the No. 18 Wildcats’ 10-point win over No. 4 Utah at McKale Center on Feb. 17, 2023.
Feb. 17: Total team win as UA knocks off No. 4 Utah
What went down: The Wildcats took a four-point lead into halftime and never relinquished it in an 82-72 victory. Everything was going down for Pellington, who didn’t miss a shot until the beginning of the third quarter, scoring 23 in the first half and finishing with 35 points (13 of 18 from the field). She had five of UA’s 10 steals. Arizona held Utah to 25% shooting in the third quarter. The Wildcats shot 51%, with Reese adding 16 (7 of 11) while Pueyo had 12 (3 of 6). The Wildcats forced 16 turnovers and blocked four shots, including two by Fields.
What stood out: The number 20. Barnes reached 20 career wins over ranked teams, and this one gave the Wildcats their 20th win of the season. Barnes is the only UA coach to win 20 or more games in five consecutive seasons. The last time UA beat a team in the top four was against Stanford in 2020 on a game-winner in overtime by Aari McDonald. Pellington was named Player of the Week by the Pac-12, ESPNW and USBWA. She also earned a spot on the NCAA’s “Starting Five.”
She said it: “That was a cool team win, I thought everybody did a great job. (Pellington) was on fire. Madi (Conner) was cold off the bench and hit free throws. Maya gave good minutes. Paris (Clark had) great offensive rebounds. I thought a really good team effort. Jade and Esmery we’re limited on minutes because of foul trouble. Other people stepped up, so this is a great definition of a team win.” — Barnes
The Arizona women's basketball team learned its fate for the upcoming NCAA Tournament Sunday, March 12, 2023 at a viewing party on the UA campus. Arizona, a seven-seed in the "Greenville 1" quadrant of the bracket, will take on 10-seed West Virginia Friday, March 17, in College Park, Maryland. Video by PJ Brown/Arizona Daily Star
