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No Aari McDonald? No problem for Arizona Women’s Basketball

By Eric Townsend

LAS VEGAS, NV - MARCH 09: A basketball is shown in a ball rack before a semifinal game of the Pac-12 basketball tournament between the UCLA Bruins and the Arizona Wildcats at T-Mobile Arena on March 9, 2018 in Las Vegas, Nevada. The Wildcats won 78-67 in overtime. (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images)
LAS VEGAS, NV - MARCH 09: A basketball is shown in a ball rack before a semifinal game of the Pac-12 basketball tournament between the UCLA Bruins and the Arizona Wildcats at T-Mobile Arena on March 9, 2018 in Las Vegas, Nevada. The Wildcats won 78-67 in overtime. (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images) /
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SALT LAKE CITY, UT – Even without star player Aari McDonald on the road, it was no problem for the No. 11 Arizona Women’s Basketball team!

It was a complete, team performance from start to finish as the No. 11 Arizona Women’s Basketball team dismantled Utah on the road by an 85-69 final!

Winning on the road is never easy, and even without star Aari McDonald, who is day-to-day with a lower leg injury, the Cats dominated, finishing their day 26-52 from the field, and shooting 10-19 from beyond the arc.

Arizona Wildcats
Arizona Wildcats /

Arizona Wildcats

However, perhaps the biggest story of the day was not the absence of McDonald, but more so the stellar play of junior forward, Sam Thomas in her absence.

A former four-star player and standout at Centennial High School in Las Vegas, Sam has really come in to her own of late, really helping to power the Cats in big wins over Washington State last weekend, and now Utah!

The junior would finish the game with a career high 31 points, perhaps channeling her inner Aari, as she would go 8-13 from the field, including a perfect 13-13 from the charity stripe!

Arizona would come out strong against Utah, outscoring the Utes 26-13 in the first quarter, before heading into halftime with a 43-30 lead.

Despite Utah trying to climb back into this one, even cutting Arizona’s lead down to 62-52, Arizona would completely shut the door on the Utes in the fourth quarter, outscoring Utah 23-17, and pacing themselves to the 85-69 win!

In addition to Thomas’ 31 points, the Wildcats would get great contributions from Lucia Alonso (14), Dominique McBryde (12), and Cate Reese (11).

With the win, Arizona now improves to 22-4 (11-4) on the year, with just a few games left on the season, with their eyes still set on the Pac-12 Tournament and beyond. But first will be Colorado, as Arizona returns to action on Sunday, hopefully with a healthy McDonald as well.

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The team continues their dominate play and hopefully that carries into their game against the Buffaloes as well! As always, Bear Down, Arizona!

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