Arizona offense finds rhythm, rolls over Georgia Southern
After wading through the Maui Invitational with a stagnant offense last week, the Arizona Wildcats made it a family affair in a 100-70 win over Georgia Southern on Thursday.
The Wildcats had five players score in double figures, including careerhighs for Chase Jeter (18), Alex Barcello (16) and Devonaire Doutrive (eight), while the team recorded a season-high 22 assists. Brandon Randolph and Brandon Williams each had 14 points while Dylan Smith had 10 points and made 2 of 7 3-pointers.
Jeter set his career high of 18 points by making 10 of 12 free throws and hitting all four shots he took; he also recorded his third double-double of the season by also grabbing 10 rebounds.
The win moved Arizona to 5-2 heading into a Sunday game against UConn at Hartford. Georgia Southern dropped to 5-2.
Leading by 13 points at halftime, Arizona went up by 20 less than five minutes into the second half while Georgia Southern made just 2 of 8 shots to begin the second half. Barcello then had six points in less than two minutes, including a layup on the break, to give UA a 72-46 lead with 11:39 left.
At that point, Barcello already had tied his career-high of 11 points while Jeter had done the same with 16 points.
The Wildcats mowed down the Eagles in the second half, holding Georgia Southern to just 36.6-percent shooting after halftime while UA shot 57.1 percent.
Arizona had just 22 assists for its 65 field goals over three games at the Maui Invitational last week, after which UA coach Sean Miller expressed disappointment in the Wildcats' ball movement. UA entered the game with the 23rd lowest percentage of assists per made basket at just 40.3 percent.
The issue was most acute during UA’s 91-74 loss to Gonzaga on Nov. 20, when the Wildcats managed just three assists for their 21 field goals. They shot 41.2 percent from the field but took 13 fewer shots than the Bulldogs and saved themselves from a blowout loss by hitting 25 of 30 free throws.
The win moved Arizona to 5-2 heading into a Sunday game against UConn at Hartford. Georgia Southern dropped to 5-2.
Leading by 13 points at halftime, Arizona went up by 20 less than five minutes into the second half while Georgia Southern made just 2 of 8 shots to begin the second half. Barcello then had six points in less than two minutes, including a layup on the break, to give UA a 72-46 lead with 11:39 left.
At that point, Barcello already had tied his career-high of 11 points while Jeter had done the same with 16 points.
The Wildcats mowed down the Eagles in the second half, holding Georgia Southern to 36.6-percent shooting after halftime while UA shot 57.1 percent.
Arizona had just 22 assists for its 65 field goals over three games at the Maui Invitational last week, after which UA coach Sean Miller expressed disappointment in the Wildcats' ball movement. UA entered the game with the 23rd lowest percentage of assists per made basket at just 40.3 percent.
The issue was most acute during UA’s 91-74 loss to Gonzaga on Nov. 20, when the Wildcats managed just three assists for their 21 field goals.
They shot 41.2 percent from the field but took 13 fewer shots than the Bulldogs and saved themselves from a blowout loss by hitting 25 of 30 free throws.
Before halftime, Williams led Arizona with 10 points and Randolph had eight while Jeter added seven points and four rebounds. Smith hit 2 of 3 3pointers after missing all seven 3s he tried in the Maui Invitational last week.
Miller changed his starting lineup for the first time this season, inserting Emmanuel Akot for Ryan Luther at power forward.