TEMPE, AZ – Despite Arizona Basketball (13-6, 3-3) jumping out to a 22-point lead, mistakes and poor play doom Cats in the one-point loss.
Listed under things you should never see, is blowing a 22-point lead. Well, that is unless you are an Arizona Basketball fan, then all bets are off.
This weekend unfortunately brought more disappointment for Arizona fans, as we are all seemingly used to it by now.
Arizona Wildcats
After a poor performance against Oregon State that seemed to inspire a pissed-off Arizona team against Utah and Colorado last week, many were hoping the Cats could finally find some road success. Especially against a team they throttled by 28 just weeks prior.
Coming out focused, things looked good for Arizona from the start. Nico Mannion was dealing, even going four-for-four from three. That is until he got into foul trouble, and this team lost all momentum.
Despite jumping out to a 37-15 lead with 5:35 to play in the first half, the Cats would then go ice cold, allowing the Sun Devils to go on a 15-6 run to end the half, cutting Arizona’s lead to 43-30.
The second half started with even worse play for the Cats. Leading to start the half, the Wildcats’ lead dwindle from 13 all the way down to three, with ASU opening the half on a 10-0 run.
Luckily the Cats would respond, pushing their lead back up to seven after back-to-back buckets, however, that was about their best offensive stretch in that entire second half.
No matter what Arizona did, ASU had a response, and the Sun Devils would finally gain the lead at 60-59 after a Remy Martin made lay-up with 4:31 to go in the game.
Disorganization, no confidence, all of it, this Sean Miller coached team failed down the stretch like they have done so many times before. And no matter what, we couldn’t come up with any offensive plays to stop the hemorrhaging.
Predictably, ASU would regain the lead again at 66-65 with nine seconds to play, and once again with opportunities to do something in crunch time, this team failed to make a play, looking for a bail out as if they didn’t just blow a 22-point lead.
Despite contact at the end, it didn’t matter as the Cats fell by a 66-65 final. Absent in the Wildcats’ loss to the Sun Devils was not only confident play, but Max Hazzard, who was inexcusably benched for taking a bad shot, as if we didn’t see this team make strings of mistakes in the entire second half!
Final. #BearDown pic.twitter.com/9tzXpPcNKt
— Arizona Basketball (@ArizonaMBB) January 26, 2020
With the loss, Arizona now falls to an abysmal 13-6 (3-3) and still can’t seem to win on the road, or play to the level that has three first round draft picks.
Arizona will return to play next week, where they travel on the road again, this time playing the Washington schools.
Can Arizona finally put it together? We’ll see…
At Zona Zealots, we’re hoping for better play after yet another embarrassing loss by this team, and the diminished play of late has many of us concerned. Regardless, Bear Down always, Arizona!