Seattle – The No. 4 seed University of Arizona (24-12, 14-6 in Big 12) delivered an intense win over the No. 5 seed University of Oregon (25-10, 12-8 in Big 10) on Sunday, March 23 in Climate Pledge Arena. This advances the Wildcats to the Sweet 16 where they will face Duke University (33-3, 19-1 in ACC), a No. 1 seed team who Arizona suffered a loss to earlier in the season in McKale Center.
Fast transitions
Off of defensive rebounds, Arizona’s transition down the court was crucial to breaking through Oregon’s defense and steering clear of their height beneath the hoop.
“Getting back in, getting stops. We went down big in the first half, you know. Coach said, ‘stick with it, stick with it,” and the guys we believe in each other and I feel like the big key was getting stops and running good offense,” Jaden Bradley said.
Transitions are also a crucial part of creating unnamed plays and work towards some of the biggest moments of the game, including impressive dunks from players beneath the hoop. These quick plays can often result in scoring runs for Arizona as well, ultimately working towards a victory over high-level competitors like the Ducks.
Transitions will be an asset for the Wildcats against Duke too, as their defense is intense and physically tough to break through.
Increase clean physicality
Arizona struggled in foul trouble for a majority of their game against Oregon. This is something that will drastically hurt them against Duke. Additionally, the Ducks kept their foul count low over the Wildcats which worked for them until the final minutes of the game where Anthony Dell’Orso was able to secure game-changing points from the line.
“I think that just overall for the whole team, we gotta be more disciplined, and we just have to keep playing physical with our chest and, you know, use our arms,” Henri Veesaar said.
“Oh, they were everything. I mean, I knew that, you know, if I had missed, they could have come down and had a chance to win it. That was kind of what was going through my head, so, you know. Just trust my work, trusting my reps, and getting that off in practice, those reps, and to go down and give the team the best chance possible to win,” Dell’Orso said in response to his free throws.
Oregon showed a tough physical competition for the Wildcats, and Arizona can expect nothing less from Duke in their upcoming game.
Utilizing our guards
The Wildcats found early success from beyond the arc from their guards. With Oregon’s Nate Bittle standing at 7 feet, it was difficult to find open looks outstretching his reach. With movements and screens circulating inside and outside of the paint, Arizona got off several three-point flushes from players like Love, Lewis and Dell’Orso.
“We just trust each other and trust what we can bring in and how we can play with our strengths, get each other in those spots. I know that that’s something unique to our team. People don’t realize that. You know, some moments we have, we should have done this, should’ve done that, but we always come back to each other, because we all work out together. We’re always together every day, so we trust what we can do,” Dell’Orso said.
Rebounding
Rebounds continue to be a dominating, potentially game-deciding, factor in March Madness matchups. Arizona’s Tobe Awaka secured 14 rebounds against the Ducks, a game-high. His physicality beneath the hoop earned numerous possessions for the Wildcats.
“I think it’s just about doing your work early, knowing how to position yourself and then mentally just understanding your role in what you’re supposed to do out there. I’m not, you know, somebody who’s gonna chuck threes and, you know, score a lot of points, but I know my duty is to play defense, rebound and score when I can, when it’s opportune. So, I think mindset and just doing my work early [are crucial],” Awaka said.
As a whole, Arizona had 44 rebounds compared to Oregon’s 37. Outboarding Duke could set them up for success and indefinitely earn them more possessions offensively.
Remember who you’re playing for
“I mean, I got my family that have been here for a while. My cousin is still here in the crowd. My family just left, went back home. But, you know, I got friends from my old school. I got the guys in this locker room. I got my workout coaches here, Tommy, [and my] family back home. I got so many people that I could name, so I mean, it’s a whole list of people that, you know, have helped my progression throughout basketball and coming to this point. I’m super grateful for them and what they’ve instilled in me to be able to go and do that,” Dell’Orso said.
“Honestly, just Jesus Christ. He’s been my lord and savior for so long and my parents did a great job of instilling me, instilling me with that. You know, he’s been with me throughout the highs and lows. It’s not the most popular answer nowadays, but I firmly believe it to be the truth,” Tobe Awaka said.
“It’s just my family, you know, they support me all the time, just the amount of hours that you know they help me when I was younger; driving me to practices, all these AU tournaments. If I ever get in a spot like where it’s tough, you know, I just think of them and you know, keep playing,” Bradley said.
“Arizona, the team, everybody. Our supporters, my family, everybody. My girlfriend, everybody,” Veesaar said.
“I mean there was a little kid that just always used to sit in front of the screen, and watching a ton of players, and I think that’s what I’m doing it for: a little kid that was wondering and praying and seeing if he could ever play basketball at this level one day, so I think that the little guy I’m doing it for,” Carter Bryant said.
