Sam Thomas finished Friday night’s game with 13 points, three steals, three rebounds, three blocks and countless deflections and altered shots. She sparked the a third-quarter run that may have been the difference in the Wildcats’ eventual 59-53 win over rival Arizona State in McKale Center.
Despite all that, coach Adia Barnes says Thomas is still underrated — especially on defense. Her reasoning: most of what Thomas does — disrupting her opponents’ offense — can’t be counted in the box score.
“Sam’s stats do not show what she does, and it does not show how valuable she is,” Barnes said. “She constantly disrupts things. She is the unsung hero — she does so many things. I don’t think they (opponents) approach her like (star guard) Aari (McDonald), who is fast. Sam is not as visible.”
It might help explain why Thomas was left off the All-Pac-12 defensive team last season despite being the only player in the league to average at least 1.4 steals and 1.4 blocks per game. In less than three full seasons, Thomas ranks second to Oregon’s Ruthy Hebard on the Pac-12’s active blocked-shots list. Hebard has 137, while Thomas has 113.
Last week, McDonald was added to the Naismith Award’s midseason list for the women’s defensive player of the year.
In Arizona’s first matchup against ASU, Thomas knocked down key free throws late in the game and had two big blocks. In her last three games, Thomas has 11 blocks and seven steals.
“Sam Thomas blocks a jump shooter every single game. I don’t know too many people in America that do that,” Barnes said. “She’s got great timing. She’s athletic, and she just has long arms. And she’s really good at that.”
The 16th-ranked Wildcats (16-3, 5-3) host No. 8 UCLA (18-1, 7-1) on Friday night.
Another clip for the highlight reel
The Wildcats practice half-court shots at the end of their shootarounds.
On Friday, McDonald made her half-court attempt. Hours later, she did it in the game, cutting the Wildcats’ halftime deficit to 23-20 with her buzzer-beating bank shot.
What was McDonald thinking at the time?
“This better go in or I’m going to be mad,” McDonald said Monday night at Barnes’ radio show.
This shot was listed No. 1 in the Pac-12’s #12Best Plays of the Week. McDonald’s shot beat out three plays by Oregon’s Sabrina Ionescu, a dunk by UA men’s player Ira Lee and a no-look pass from Wildcats guard Dylan Smith to Zeke Nnaji.
Reaction to losing a legend
Barnes said Sunday’s death of Kobe Bryant still “doesn’t feel real; it’s a shock.”
“He’s a legend,” Barnes said. “He was so genuine, so authentic, so approachable, and doesn’t have a star attitude. He was the advocate for women’s basketball, and he loved the game. He was a role model for so many people, especially in the NBA. He took a lot of younger NBA guys under his wing — because he was one of those guys that was smart, well-rounded, worldly. He’s a perfect mentor for young guys that get into league, like he did, and make like a hundred million dollars their first year. It’s not easy to balance, but he was helping people.”
Barnes has a unique perspective. She met Bryant while she was playing in the WNBA and reconnected with him at a basketball clinic a few years ago; her son, Matteo, tried to shush the NBA legend while he spoke to a group of players on the court. Bryant and Matteo took a photo together.
Barnes said her husband, UA assistant coach Salvo Coppa, was “devastated” by Bryant’s death. Bryant spent part of his childhood in Coppa’s home country of Italy.
“You can see how he impacted and left his footprint on the world, from Africa to China to Italy,” she said. “I mean, Italians are devastated because they felt like he’s an Italian because he grew up there, speaks perfect Italian. Salvo was getting tons of calls from Italy. He’s devastated. I think he touched millions and millions of people’s lives in different ways. And it’s just, it’s tragic. It’s unbelievable.”
Extra points
- Arizona’s No. 16 national ranking is its highest of the year.
- Barnes returned to Twitter Monday, asking for 10,000 fans to attend Friday’s game against UCLA. The last three UA home games have drawn more than 23,000 fans to McKale Center.
