Wildcats show depth, transition game will be problem for opponents this season

When Arizona’s Oumar Ballo stole a pass from Morgan State’s Demajion Topps just inside the Bears’ 3-point arc Monday, he took a couple of steps past Topps, then kept racing downcourt for an emphatic dunk.

All 7 feet and 260 pounds of him, that is.

“Sometimes when you see a big guy out there in transition like that, you take a breath,” Arizona coach Tommy Lloyd said. “They’re putting their body in a position it doesn’t get into very often.”

But why wouldn’t Ballo do something like that? Not only has the Wildcats’ senior all-conference center been working on his mobility in the offseason, but that sort of transition is just what all of his teammates were also doing Monday in a 122-59 romp over Morgan State in their season opener.

They stole. They ran. They dunked, or rolled in a layup. Sometimes on back-to-back possessions.

Overall on Monday, the Wildcats not only scored more points and won by more points than ever under Lloyd, but they also swiped 16 steals and turned Morgan State’s 25 turnovers into 41 points.

Freshman guard KJ Lewis ripped off five steals in just 17 minutes off the bench, while Ballo and power forward Keshad Johnson each had three steals, and five other Wildcats had one each.

In what might have been a preview of a team with a more aggressive backcourt than it had last season with Kerr Kriisa and Courtney Ramey, the Wildcat guards also made a concerted effort to drive inside often. Of the UA’s 42 field goals, 27 were dunks or layups.

Sophomore point guard Kylan Boswell, who played both guard spots off the bench last season, said vaguely that the backcourts this season and last season are “different situations,” but UA coach Tommy Lloyd spelled out why.

“Having guards that can make layups is a huge advantage,” Lloyd said. “I’m not saying that lightly or making a joke, because it’s really hard to do in high-level basketball. To have guards that can finish two-point shots at the rim is really kind of rare.

“We’ve still got to get better. It’s something we work on, on the daily, and I think it’s going to be a real added weapon.”

The ‘10-deep’

Maybe the Wildcats also can afford to be more aggressive because of their depth.

On Monday, Lloyd used 10 players in the first half, including Caleb Love, KJ Lewis, Boswell, Jaden Bradley, Pelle Larsson and Filip Borovicanin on the perimeter. Lloyd also played freshman guard Conrad Martinez for the final 11:44 of Monday’s game.

Lloyd said he wouldn’t consider the rotation he used Monday as permanent but that it would depend on what would best help win the game at hand. His starting lineup Monday included Larsson, who returned from an ankle injury after missing two exhibition games, along with Boswell, Love, Johnson and Ballo – with Bradley playing most often off the bench.

“We have six starters, and you could probably give me four combinations, and I’d be like,’Yeah, I’m good with that,’“ Lloyd said. “We kind of settled in on one tonight, and we’ll see what we do moving forward.

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“Some of those other guys off the bench who are earning their opportunities and learning the way in our program are really good players. I don’t want to sell them short.”

The Wildcats are somewhat shorthanded only at power forward because Henri Veesaar is out with an unspecified elbow injury, and Dylan Anderson has opted to redshirt. But when Johnson was off the floor Monday, Lloyd moved Larsson and even Lewis to a power-forward role of sorts.

“With Henri’s injury, it kind of tilted things in that direction,” Lloyd said. “But it’s a style that we’ve been really comfortable playing. We’ve probably done it a lot more than people realize.”

Long-term planning

Lloyd confirmed that Anderson would take a redshirt season, barring injuries elsewhere or other issues that necessitate his availability. Lloyd said he asked Anderson to think about it and, after meetings with him and special assistant TJ Benson, Anderson opted to sit out.

While Anderson might have carved out a role at power forward, especially if Veesaar does not return quickly, the Wildcats appear settled on Ballo and freshman Motiejus Krivas at center.

By redshirting this season, Anderson will be able to play the 2024-25, 2025-26 and 2026-27 seasons at Arizona if he wishes.

“Adding this year to the end of his career is going to allow him to become a great player at Arizona,” Lloyd said. “He’s someone that has all-conference type potential down the road. I’m really proud of him for trusting us and I’m honored that he’s trusted us enough to be patient.”

Lloyd said he also discussed redshirting with Martinez, who is part of a loaded backcourt but made the call to keep the Spanish freshman available.

“I just thought, ‘You know what, I don’t want to leave this team one player short, one spark short,’” Lloyd said. “He and I talked about it and he’s an unbelievable team person. He had no problem saying, ‘Coach, whatever you want me to do, I’ll do. I’ll do whatever I need to do for the program.’”

Lloyd said Martinez has already helped the Wildcats considerably in practice and that he had “100% belief” that Martinez could be of help if UA needed a spark during a rough stretch of a game.

Lloyd also said discussions involving redshirting with international players can be “just a little bit different” — possibly since international players always have the option of leaving for a non-import professional contract in their home countries.

Quick warmup

Larsson hardly appeared rusty after missing both of the Wildcats’ exhibition games with an ankle injury, scoring 13 points in the first half to help the Wildcats take a 63-26 halftime lead Monday.

“Pelle is a great player,” Lloyd said. “His experience in our system is so valuable, and he plays so hard and so smart. I just think the more we have him out there with the other guys, in this crucial early part of the season, you get real reps. And when you get real reps, you can kind of dig in and really learn from them.”

“I love having him out there because it makes our team whole.”