Live by the Three, Die by the Three: Xavier Upsets Arizona Basketball 73-71

Arizona Basketball and Xavier faced off in the Sweet 16 Thursday night with the Musketeers looking to pull off another upset.

The 2016-17 season has come to an end. Xavier is moving on to face Gonzaga in the Elite Eight while Arizona Basketball moves on to post-season plans.

It was a battle all night between the two programs. In the end, Xavier ended Arizona’s ‘revenge tour’ by getting revenge of their own with a final score of 73-71.

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Arizona was the heavy favorite coming into the game. They had the size advantage, better overall talent and a heavy fan base being on the West Coast. Unfortunately, the Wildcats couldn’t capitalize on their advantages.

The Wildcats jumped out to a quick 7-0 lead and continued to push the early lead 10-2. Arizona pounded the ball inside to Dusan Ristic. Early on, it seemed the Wildcats would have a dominant night in San Jose.

However, Xavier had an answer, and his name is Trevon Bluiett.

Bluiett single-handedly kept the Musketeers in the game. As Arizona looked to spread the ball around, attack from different angles, Xavier only needed Bluiett to keep the game close. He came in averaging 25 points in the tournament and scoring 21 in the second half against Florida State.

In the first half alone, Bluiett was damn near perfect. At one point he was 7-7 from the field, 2-2 from three. At the half, he tallied 18 points, the main reason Xavier was only down 35-37.

The second half wasn’t as kind to Bluiett as the first. He would finish the night with 25 points. After he had received a technical foul, along with Kadeem Allen, Mack sat Bluiett for several minutes. Some teams would cave, but Xavier was actually able to grab a lead by the time Bluiett came back in.

Arizona was able to use a 10-0 run late to put the Wildcats up by eight. Allonzo Trier (19 points and nine rebounds) used a late flurry, scoring 15 straight points, to finally make it feel like the Wildcats were marching into a rematch with Gonzaga.

However, Xavier wasn’t ready to stay down. J.P. Macura, who was everywhere it seemed, said the following after the game:

“We’re all tough guys. We stuck together. We’re not really backing down from anyone.”

Around the 2:50 mark, Kadeem drove to the basket and made a lay-up to give Arizona a 71-64 lead. Little did everyone know, this would be the last time Arizona scored in the game and the last points of the season.

The Wildcats would go scoreless and have six straight possessions of failed offensive sets. Xavier kept pushing the ball and hitting big three’s, like one from Malcolm Bernard who finished with 15 points, all in the second half.

Arizona did have a chance to win the game. Allonzo Trier had the ball in his hands to set up the final possession. Unfortunately, the offense continued to look out of sync.

Trier took a deep three with around seven seconds left. It wasn’t a great look, and he nearly made it. But Xavier was able to control the rebound, not allowing Arizona to get a second look, and dribbled out the clock.

It was all over. Xavier had redemption, and Chris Mack got a win over his former colleague Sean Miller, who had this to say about him and the program:

“I cannot say enough good things about Xavier. It’s not because I used to be there. I think their Coach (Chris Mack) is awesome. He had his way with us tonight. He got his players some great shots. I knew going into the game it was going to be a challenge.”

Xavier was the better team Thursday night. They were persistent in their attack on both ends of the floor and rolled with the punches. Arizona played with fire, chose to live and die by the three, and wound up getting burned.

The three-point shot was summed up Arizona’s night. In the first half, the Wildcats put up 16 three pointers, only connecting on three. Xavier head coach Chris Mack mentioned in his halftime interview how the Xavier defense forced Arizona to put more three-point shots than they typically do.

Xavier rolled out multiple zones looks to try to confuse Arizona. The zone has been the Achilles heal for Arizona, contrary to what some ‘experts’ think.

The problem wasn’t the zone itself but Arizona’s infatuation with the three-point shot. Yes, the Xavier defense was solid and forced Arizona into bad spots at times. But the Wildcats were able to get inside only to throw it back out.

At one point, in the second half, the Wildcats were 4-21 from three. Jacking up three’s is not, and never has been Arizona’s game. They can shoot the three, and did at a rate of 40 percent. Still, the strength of this team has always been getting to the paint.

Against shot three-pointers pointers against Xavier (26 total) than they did in the first two rounds combined. Instead of pressing the zone defense, driving to the space given and looking for a dish inside, the Wildcats relied time and time again on the outside shot.

“We weren’t able to get good looks down the stretch, and that’s on me.” Coach Miller took ownership and the blame for the outcome in his post game interview.

It was a disappointing ending to a season full of adversity; The Allonzo Trier suspension, Ray Smith injury, Parker Jackson-Cartwright injury, Kadeem Allen injury, AND a fractured finger for Rawle Alkins.

However, the Wildcats overcame each hiccup as the season progressed. The team finished with 32-5, Pac-12 regular season co-champs and tournament champions, and a trip to the Sweet 16.

There is a lot to celebrate this year. Unfortunately, how you finish a season will be on the minds of fans and analysts.

Lauri Markkanen, who finished with only nine points and pulled in eight rebounds, didn’t shoot the ball in the last 11 minutes of the game. Arizona went away from attacking the zone and settled on isolation basketball.

The defense slowed down as the game progressed. Xavier threw screen after screen Arizona’s way and players stepped up when needed.

It wasn’t Arizona’s night. The path to the Final Four swung in favor of Arizona. Yet, here we are, still thinking about what went wrong. But as fans begin to think about what could have been, players, coaches and future commits began looking on the bright side.

Focus shifts now to the off-season and the 2017-18 season. First questions on everyone’s mind are who is leaving and who is coming back.

Although Lauri and his family came to Arizona with a two-year college plan, it seems unlikely the 7-footer from Finland is going to stick around two years.

All NBA mock drafts have Lauri being drafted in the top ten. You can come to college with a two-year plan, but when given millions of dollars, its hard to say no. The only way Lauri sticks around is if Miller can convince him he can go in the top five, or if Lauri feels as if he has more to prove.

Kobi Simmons is the only other Arizona player listed in NBA mock drafts. Most draft boards currently have Kobi going in the mid-second round range.

Kobi is a very good basketball player. He is a big part of the success this season. However, it is still surprising to see “sources” saying he’s leaving. Depending on who else leaves, Simmons will see starter minutes next season.

The team would allow him to improve and be a play-maker. Unfortunately, it appears we could have another Grant Jerrett scenario playing out.

One big name not found on any current draft boards is Allonzo Trier. Allonzo was considered a one-and-done player last year, but he surprised a lot of people and came back for a second year under Miller.

As we all know, Trier missed 19 games this season due to a suspension. But once he got back into full-time shape, he continued to show why he is considered an NBA prospect.

Perhaps his suspension is scaring teams off. Who knows. But with everything thrown his way, it feels like he’s moving on.

Arizona will likely be a pre-season top five team and national championship contender next season. The team will have veteran leadership mixed with a top three recruiting class

Dusan, Keanu Pinder, PJC, Chance Comanche, Rawle and Dylan Smith (transfer) will return with experience, talent and a hunger for more. Incoming is Deandre Ayton, Ira Lee, Brandon Randolph and Alex Barcello. This gives the Wildcats a great mix of old and new, one that could finally give Miller his Final Four.

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Thank you to the team for a very successful season. This team has a lot of heart and sacrificed blood, sweat and tears. It wasn’t supposed to end this way, as Trier said, but these young men need to hold their heads up high. After all, next year will be the year.

BEAR DOWN!