nickelback:
why do you have it in your head that arizona plays in anonymity. this is the year 2005 bro. every single power conference team either has a package with foxsports or espn/abc that puts about 90% of their games on the air for the nation to see. not to mention arizona gets the majority of the west coast national tv games anyways, so theyre often playing in the only game on tv once a week and often twice. the whole 'how many times have you seen arizona play' theory really wont fly. you pac-10 people really have to get off this 'we get no respect because we play out west' train. im a self-professed basketball junkie. i watch far more basketball than i probably need to. suffice to say, i certainly have watched enough zona to offer my opinion.
i dont ever remember saying arizona is a second-tier team. i simply said im not overly impressed with them. washington is the one team out west that i think is most dangerous.
i dont think arizona is the most cohesive team, and theres many times when lute is trying to 'manage his talent' as opposed to trying to coach basketball. zona has a lot of me-first players, and that starts with stoudamire. washington is willing to make the extra pass and it should come as no surprise that the huskies average 3 more assists per game than arizona. when stoudamire is hot, he's borderline unstoppable. but when he is cold, or when he isnt getting the ball, he visibly pouts on the floor. he's a great player, but i just like washingtons composure and cohesion more than arizona. purely a subjective opinion and observation (from someone who doesnt watch zona basketball
). i think the huskies do a great job of swinging the ball around the perimeter and then driving into the gaps to draw and kick. both teams shoot a lot of jump shots, but i think washington has more balance on the perimeter (or from the guys who shoot it from the perimeter). ostensibly, arizona is a lights-out 3-point shooting team (at 50%). but those numbers are skewed by stoudamire. he is such a great outside shooter that his 51% shooting really hides the fact that only 2 other guys shoot better than 36% (and mclellan does it in limited minutes). five guys in washingtons rotation can nail the 3.
im not trying to get into a statistical debate, because when the ball is tossed up, stats often go out the window. what im getting at is that i like washington's cohesion and balance, as opposed to what i almost think is arizona's collection of talent that can be erratic at times.
and i think the two meetings for each team against washington state tell a lot about both teams, and the outcomes have nothing to do with it.
no secret that washington state's style can frustrate even the best of teams. the final scores mean nothing. couldnt care less that washington went 2-0 against them and arizona split 1-1.
what stands out to me is that when times get tough for arizona, do they play together or do they branch off and try to make it a one-on-one game and do their own thing?
vs. washington state:
arizona had just 8 assists in the first meeting.
arizona had just 9 assists in the second meeting.
vs. washington state:
washington had 11 assists in the first meeting.
washington had 20 assists in the 2nd meeting.
huskies had almost double the amount of assists.
incidentally, stoudamire was 4-14 and 1-7 from the floor in both games. he contributed 2 rebounds and 2 assists in the first meeting. 2 rebounds and 4 assists in the 2nd meeting.
as you know, i certainly think stoudamire is one of the premier shooters in the country. hes a terrific player. but when the going gets tough, do he step up like he did against ucla and arizona state to knock down the big shot? or does he go into a shell and pout the way he did vs. washington state both times, or the way he wasnt composed on the road in washington.
i dont think theres any doubt that arizona has every bit as much athleticism as a team like north carolina. but i dont like the fact that stoudamire is their leader, but also their biggest liability at times with his attitude. when he's good, arizona is a top 5 team. zona will bury you if they jump out to an early lead. but i think washington is better at staying composed, playing together, and battling through tough times.
