Arizonaโs win over Cal Baptist improved the eighth-ranked Wildcatsโ record to 11-0, making UA head coach Tommy Lloyd the first Pac-12 coach since Stanfordโs Walter Powell in 1920-21 to win the first 11 games of his career.
Lloyd, the Wildcatsโ first-year coach, has done it in spectacular fashion. Saturdayโs 84-60 win over Cal Baptist was the No. 8-ranked Wildcatsโ eighth victory by 20 points or more this season.
The Wildcats beat UT-Rio Grande Valley by 54 points and Sacramento State by 46.
Voice of McKale Center returns after COVID-19 battle
The Wildcats were wihtout public-address announcer Jeff Dean for the beginning stages of the season, after McKale Centerโs voice had a month-and-a-half-long bout with COVID-19.
Arizonaโs win over Northern Colorado Wednesday night marked the first regular-season game for Dean, who also hosts โThe Jeff Dean Showโ on ESPN Tucson.
โI hadnโt had a chance to see the team up close and personal since the exhibition game, so Iโve been at home watching it on TV and obviously as well as theyโve been playing, itโs been a lot of fun to watch, but I really missed being there courtside and interacting with the coaching staff and the players and everyone that I work with,โ he said. โIt was great to be back and great to be feeling normal again.โ
Dean added that during his time in quarantine and battling the coronavirus, โgetting back to work was my focus all along.โ
โIโm one of those types of people that needs to work. โฆ Unfortunately, I need my voice to go to work, and with my lung capacity after the pneumonia that I ended up getting, I had to wait a little bit longer to get back to work,โ Dean said.
โBut I feel great and Iโm very, very happy to be back just at the right time as things are heating up.โ
Mathurinโs draft stock rises
Arizona star guard Bennedict Mathurin was widely projected as a potential first-round NBA draft pick entering the season, but his statistics over the last few weeks, coupled with the Wildcatsโ undefeated start, has garnered more attention from online mock drafts.
After averaging 27.6 points on 60% shooting from the field and 7.6 rebounds in a three-game stretch against Oregon State, Wyoming and Illinois, Mathurin was named Pac-12 Player of the Week โ twice โ and won the Oscar Robertson National Player of the Week award.
NBADraft.net projects Mathurin as the sixth overall pick to the San Antonio Spurs. Sports Illustrated NBA draft writer Jeremy Woo has Mathurin going No. 11 overall, while Stadium’s Jeff Goodman projects the UA standout going fourth overall to the Oklahoma City Thunder. USA Today has Mathurin listed at fifth overall.
Vols scrimmage for fans โ after game canceled
The No. 18-ranked Tennessee Volunteers, Arizonaโs next opponent, were unable to play its game against Memphis in Nashville on Saturday following COVID-19 issues within the Tigersโ program.
The announcement to cancel the game was made just an hour before tipoff.
โWe got a call when we got on the bus that there was a possibility. That was it,โ Tennessee head coach Rick Barnes told reporters. โAnd then we got here, we were going through our regular routine and then they called and said the game was off.โ
Before fans began to exit the arena, Barnes took the public-address microphone and told the fans who showed up that the team would scrimmage โ and that they were welcome to stay.
โWe felt that because of their loyalty and the fact that our guys did want to play, they were excited,โ Barnes said. โThey had great days of preparation and they felt like, โWeโre here, letโs go out and thank our fans some way, somehow.โโ
Arizona and Tennessee will face each other on Wednesday in Knoxville in a game that will be shown on ESPN2. Itโs the first showdown between the schools since the 1998-99 season, when 18th-ranked UA edged the ninth-ranked Vols, 73-72 in the season opener.
For the record
Arizona wraps up the 2021 calendar season with a 12-4 record at McKale Center. The Wildcatsโ four losses came last season against USC, UCLA, Stanford and Oregon.
The Wildcatsโ next home game is scheduled for Jan. 13 against Colorado.
Arizona guard Kerr Kriisa adjusts his Christmas socks before Saturdayโs game between the Wildcats and Cal Baptist.
Feeling the holiday spirit
Kerr Kriisa and several other Arizona players donned green and red Christmas-themed socks for Saturdayโs game against Cal Baptist. The Nike socks featured a snowflake pattern. Members of the UA pep band also wore holiday sweaters for the final home game before Christmas.
In the house
Former Arizona guard Khalid Reeves was in attendance for Saturdayโs game. Reeves starred for the Wildcats under the late Lute Olson from 1990-94.
During his senior season in 1993-94, Reeves averaged 24.2 points. 4.3 rebounds and 2.9 assists per game, and helped lead Arizona to the Final Four, where the Wildcats fell to eventual champion Arkansas.
The UA football program was honored during a first-half timeout for landing Anaheim, California, recruit Tetairoa McMillan.
The 6-foot-4-inch, 185-pound wide receiver headlines Jedd Fischโs first official class at Arizona.
