This summer, each member of the Star sports team will assemble a list of the five most memorable Arizona games theyβve covered since joining the beat. This week, Justin Spears will reflect on five football and menβs basketball games:
Spearsβ No. 5:
Arizona outlasts Washington in Pac-12 Tournament before pandemic shuts down season
What went down: Fifth-seeded Arizona defeated Washington 77-70 in the first round of the Pac-12 Tournament on March 11, 2020, in Las Vegas.
What we wrote at the time: For one afternoon, on the court at least, all was right in the Arizona Wildcatsβ world.
In a 77-70 win over Washington in the first round of the Pac-12 Tournament, the Wildcats rediscovered the talents of freshman wing Josh Green, used a balanced offense and a stiff defense to avenge an embarrassing Senior Day loss to the Huskies just four days earlier, and prompted multiple βU of Aβ chants from the crowd of 8,048 at T-Mobile Arena.
However, T-Mobile Arena wonβt be βMcKale Northβ anymore β even if the Wildcats turn Wednesdayβs win into a four-game romp through the Pac-12 Tournament.
The conference announced about 90 minutes after the Wildcatsβ win that fans will not be allowed inside the Pac-12 Tournament starting Thursday due to concerns about the coronavirus, though staff, TV partners, credentialed media and limited family and friends will be permitted.
Arizonaβs Josh Green, left, scrambles for the ball against Washington during the second half of UAβs 77-70 win over the Huskies in Las Vegas in 2020.
βWhile we understand the disruption this will cause to our many fans, we have made this decision in an effort to do our part in helping to limit the spread of the virus,β the conference said.
So once their confidence-building win ended, moving them to 21-11 and into a Pac-12 quarterfinal game Thursday against fourth-seeded USC (22-9) at 2:30 p.m., the Wildcats couldnβt avoid the reality of what is now being called a pandemic.
β Bruce Pascoe
Player of the game: Arizona freshman guard Josh Green, who had eight points on 29% shooting against the Huskies in the regular-season finale, ended the afternoon with a team-high 19 points to go along with four rebounds, three assists and two steals.
By the numbers: 26%, the combined 3-point percentage for both Arizona and Washington during that game, although Green knocked down three 3s for the first time in 22 games.
The aftermath: Normally, if a team ends its season with a postseason win, that indicates a champion. But normal? In 2020? Yeah, right.
The Wildcats β led by the star freshman trio of Pac-12 Freshman of the Year Zeke Nnaji, point guard Nico Mannion and Green β ended their season 21-11 and left a lot on the table as the entire sports world shut down.
Arizona coach Sean Miller and his Wildcats missed out on the 2020 NCAA Tournament because of COVID-19.
The following season, a pandemic-influenced year that left McKale Center fan-less, Arizona took a self-imposed postseason ban for its NCAA infractions case. Former coach Sean Miller was fired that April following 12 seasons at the helm and was replaced by current UA leader Tommy Lloyd.
Earlier this year, during Greenβs Ring of Honor induction, the Dallas Mavericks guard said, βthere were a whole lot of emotionsβ at the end of the 2020 season.
Said Green: βIt was a whole rollercoaster of emotions. We go from beating Washington and playing an amazing game and we feel like we have great momentum and everyone is really positive, to the next day weβre told the season is done. There were a lot of high hopes, and then weβre told COVID was going to ruin it, so I didnβt know what to think of it.β
Personal reflections: That day felt like the twilight zone. The band β311β did a show in Las Vegas, and I quickly discovered how popular they were β at least in Sin City. Every piece of garb outside T-Mobile Arena was either a Pac-12 team (most of them Cardinal red and navy blue, because Wildcats fans invade Las Vegas in large waves every spring) or 311-inspired sports jerseys.
Every television in Las Vegas had βSportsCenterβ on, because then-Utah Jazz star Rudy Gobert β the most prominent patient zero in the U.S. β tested positive for the novel coronavirus. When the NBA set the precedent to shut down the season indefinitely, we all knew the inevitable was coming: The Pac-12 and others were done for.
βLetβs pack our bags and get back home to Tucson safely, and hopefully this will all be over within two weeks,β was what I told myself moments after recording a podcast in a Las Vegas hotel room. Boy, was I wrong about two weeks.
Cover 5: Relive the entire list of Justin Spears most memorable games on the Arizona beat
This summer, each member of the Starβs sports team will count down the five most memorable Arizona games theyβve covered since joining the beat. Here's Nos. 1-5 from Justin Spears.Β
This summer, each member of the Star sports team will count down the five most memorable Arizona games theyβve covered since joining the beat. Here's Justin Spears' No. 1. βΒ Arizona State drubs Arizona 70-7 for Territorial Cup, ends Kevin Sumlinβs tenure as head coach
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This summer, each member of the Star sports team will assemble a list of the five most memorable Arizona games theyβve covered since joining the beat. This week, Justin Spears is reflecting on five football and menβs basketball games. Here's No. 2 βΒ Northern Arizona upsets Arizona in Jedd Fischβs inaugural season as head coach
This summer, each member of the Arizona Daily Star sports team will assemble a list of the five most memorable Arizona Wildcats games they've covered since joining the beat. This week, Justin Spears will reflect on five football and men's basketball games. Here's No. 3 βΒ Buffalo upsets Deandre Ayton-led Arizona in first round of NCAA Tournament
This summer, each member of the Arizona Daily Star sports team will assemble a list of the five most memorable Arizona Wildcats games they've covered since joining the beat. This week, Justin Spears will reflect on five football and men's basketball games. Here's No. 4 βΒ Arizona ends six-year Territorial Cup drought, beats Arizona State
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This summer, each member of the Star sports team will assemble a list of the five most memorable Arizona games they've covered since joining the beat. This week, Justin Spears will reflect on five football and men's basketball games. Here's No. 5 βΒ Arizona outlasts Washington in Pac-12 Tournament before pandemic shuts down season
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A behind the scenes look at media facilities at the Xfinity Center in College Park, Maryland, host of the first and second round of the women's NCAA Tournament. Video by PJ Brown/Arizona Daily Star
