Arizona is in the midst of a busy week and on New Year's Eve the Wildcats played their second game of a three-game stretch. Things couldn't have gone better for UA as it opened up its road trip to Washington with a wire-to-wire victory over the Huskies, 80-53.
Thursday's game in Seattle was never in doubt as the Wildcats (8-1, 2-1 Pac-12) jumped out to a double-digit lead midway through the first half and only built on that lead as the game moved on.
The Huskies (1-7, 0-3) struggled to find any kind of rhythm on offense outside of point guard Quade Green and it allowed Arizona to continue to build its lead throughout the night. Ultimately, nine different players scored for the Wildcats with four of them finishing in double figures.
UA's front court had a particularly impressive night as that group was able to help lead the team to a dominant performance on the glass with a 58-30 rebounding edge to go with 36 points in the paint.
"The rebound differential was a big factor in how the game felt," UA head coach Sean Miller said. "We were the bigger, stronger team on the backboard and coming into the game that's always an emphasis against Washington's zone. You try to get those second shots, and we were able to do it especially early in the game. A number of possessions that I thought really set the tone, and we were able to do it throughout.
"One key to our team right now is we have quality depth in the front court. We start Jordan Brown and Azuolas Tubelis. I think both Jordan and Azuolas are both coming into their own and playing well and playing better. Coming off the bench with Ira Lee and Christian Koloko those are four guys we really believe in. Each of them is different from another one, but I think our depth inside now that we're nine, 10 games in you're starting to sense that's one of our team's strengths."
That group of four players accounted for 36 points and 23 rebounds in Thursday's win over the Huskies led by Brown who had 12 points to go with seven rebounds and Tubelis who had 10 points and seven rebounds.
UW was clearly overmatched in the game making it relatively easy for the UA front court to put together a productive night.
"We just came out and played hard," Brown said. "We took all the punches thrown at us and just competed every possession."
The Wildcats allowed UW to continue taking jump shots throughout the game as the offensive struggles piled up for Mike Hopkins' group. The Huskies ultimately shot just 31% from the floor and missed 25 3-pointers.
Green was the only player for UW that was able to have any kind of success offensively as he finished the night with 23 points but it took 23 shots to reach that number. UA also was successful at keeping the Huskies out of the paint and off the free-throw line. UW shot just 11 free throws in Thursday's game.
"Our guys have bought in," Miller said about the UA defense at this point in the season. "We're getting better, I will tell you that. Some of our younger guys they're in better position, they understand the effort level, how hard they have to play. The little things, like scouting. Not until you get through a number of games do they really embrace and understand how that's now a part of defense.
"... I hope that we're on the right track."
UA will now make the trek to Pullman to face undefeated Washington State this Saturday as the Wildcats look to wrap up an undefeated week against Pac-12 competition after defeating Colorado in convincing fashion on Monday.
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