Notes and observations from the Wildcats’ 83-67 win against Louisiana Tech:
When it was over: Nic Wise’s 3-pointer to put Arizona up 68-53 with 5:19 remaining. Students began heading for the library (or the bars) in honor of Dead Day Eve.
Player of the game: Jamelle Horne finished with an all-around night: 20 points, 8 rebounds and a team-best 8-for-12 from the floor.
Needs improvement: Momo Jones still struggles to control his tempo and hold onto the ball. While the team as a whole looked sloppy in the first half with nine turnovers, Jones (held scoreless) continues adjusting to learning both the point and shooting guard positions.
Spark plug: Derrick Williams ignited the crowd with put-back jams, behind-the-head jams and drives to the hoop in the second half. You could fill a pregame introduction video with his highlights. He finished with 11 points.
“”I believe just one good play sparks everybody else like a dunk,”” Williams said. “”Just one big play just sparks everyone else.””
Horne added: “”It’s called jam time. It got the crowd pumped.””
Odd moment: Seeing both Alex Jacobson and DJ Shumpert of the floor at the same time in the first half — a four-point game, nonetheless.
No-show: UA athletic director Jim Livengood was not seen sitting in his normal spot. He’s a top-3 finalist for the UNLV athletic director opening.
No-show II: General fan attendance, looking extremely spotting from the south baseline on upward. Announced attendance was a very modest 13,270 considering the empty seats.
Key stat: Five Wildcats finished scoring in double figures.
“”With everyone scoring in double digits like we did tonight, that’s how we win,”” Williams said.
Sophomore un-slumped: Kyle Fogg returned to the starting lineup with fury. He scored 11 points and grabbed 6 boards after playing an integral part to the Wildcats 2008-09 Sweet 16 run.
“”It felt a lot better to crack the starting lineup and get out there with my last year starting lineup,”” Fogg said.
Psych: Nic Wise left the game (so fans thought) to a standing ovation, only to be re-entered less than a minute later with 1:52 remaining.
Injury report: Brendon Lavender did not dress for Wednesday’s game with a deep thigh bruise in his right leg.
“”I hope he can play in the future, one day,”” Miller said.
Quote of the night: “”We’re a mess sometimes out there. I remind myself, my staff, a lot of it is just patience. … We are a very average team trying to get better. We have a long way to go, in some cases maybe we won’t get there in a month or two.”” — Sean Miller said.
You know it’s the Holiday season when: The UA pom squad brings out the Santa hats for its halftime performance.
Free tacos: The Wildcats surpassed 80 points for the second time at home this season, meaning free Jack-in-the-Box tacos to everyone in attendance.
Up next: Saturday, Arizona at San Diego State. 8 p.m. MST.
— compiled by Bryan Roy
