Arizona Basketball will have dog fight with Washington
Coming away with a big win over Colorado earlier this week, Arizona Basketball returns to action against Washington after learning they will have no postseason this year.
It was a successful start of the week for the Arizona Basketball team, as the Wildcats had a complete team effort in their 88-74 win over Colorado earlier this week.
Unfortunately for the Wildcats, less than 24 hours after arguably playing their best game of the season so far, they learned that their efforts this season will now all be for naught, as the school has self-imposed a postseason ban for 2020-21.
Arizona Wildcats
A bit demotivating for the players, however, there is still a lot to play for. Right now, everything should be geared towards playing for the future, and with no postseason even guaranteed with the ongoing concern of the spread of Corona Virus, Arizona has a real opportunity at building towards next year.
The Wildcats have a group with no true star(s), a lot of chemistry, and a lot of key players that can take over on any given night. Even better, they can still play spoiler to a lot of teams in the Pac-12. Their next focus? Washington!
The Huskies limp into this game struggling with a 1-6 record, and a current last-place ranking in the Pac-12. Arizona should be able to win this game, however, there are a few keys for them in order to do so.
With that said, these are the Keys to the Game:
Focus: It is hard to predict and guess what exactly is going on in the mind of a 19-to-22-year old kid, especially after news of the self-imposed ban. Remember, these kids came to Arizona to compete at a high-level, develop, win, and ultimately get exposure to play at the next level (NBA or Overseas).
I imagine the news of the ban is a bit demotivating as a player, but again, there is still plenty to play for, and if Arizona can find that motivation, they are still going to be a tough group.
Treat this game how you would treat any other and come out focused and ready to compete! Getting ready and prepared for 2021-22 starts now!
Play like the better team: Washington is struggling and they are limping into this game. At 7-1, Arizona is clearly the better team right now, so play like it!
Granted this does fall a bit under focus as well, but Arizona cannot afford to play down to their competition. They are the better team, play like it, take care of business, and come away with the win.
Find the hot hand: This season has been an interesting one for Arizona, to say the least. Yes, the Pandemic has certainly impacted a lot of things, but this roster is so dynamic and fun to watch. There are is no true star(s), and on any given night, Arizona could be led by a few different players.
We’ve already seen Jordan Brown excel, Jemarl Baker go absolutely bonkers from beyond the arc, as well as James Akinjo bring confidence and competitiveness that is refreshing to see.
For this game, Arizona needs to find the hot hand early on and just ride it out. If they do and continue to play unselfish basketball, good things happen.
Game Information:
Date: Thursday, December 31st, 2020
Time: 6:00 PM MST (Arizona Time), 5:00 PM PST
Location: Seattle, WA- Alaska Airlines Arena at Hec Edmundson Pavilion (10,000… 0)
Line: -8.5 Arizona
Television: Pac-12 Network
Radio: Arizona IMG Sports Network Arizona Wildcats (Try TuneIn Radio)
Team Records:
- Arizona Wildcats (7-1, 7-1): Arizona got the win big win over Colorado and will return to action with a road trip to Washington.
- Washington Huskies (1-6, 0-2): Washington has been struggling this season, to say the least, but they return home looking for the upset over Arizona to help jumpstart them.
All-Time Record: 54-31. Since 1949-50, Arizona Basketball has had the upper hand in the series, owning a sizeable lead. Last season, Arizona went 2-1 against Washington, with their most recent game being a 77-70 win over the Huskies in the first round of the Pac-12 Tournament.
light. More. On Arizona Basketball
Hopefully even with the bad news this week, Arizona still comes out ready to play and ready to take care of business. As always, Bear Down, Arizona!