ASU Basketball: 2018 Pac-12 Tournament Preview
By Trevor Booth
No. 1 Arizona vs. No. 8 Colorado/No. 9 Arizona State
This should be a familiar sight for Arizona fans.
After a turbulent last few weeks, the Wildcats fulfilled one of their early-season expectations: winning a share of the Pac-12 title for the fourth time in five seasons.
The Wildcats took home a large haul of the All-Conference awards Monday night, with Deandre Ayton picking up Pac-12 Player and Freshman of the Year honors, Allonzo Trier named to All-Pac-12 First Team, Dusan Ristic named to All-Pac-12 Second Team and Rawle Alkins named All-Pac-12 Honorable Mention.
Now, with Sean Miller back on the bench for the foreseeable future, the Wildcats will hope to use motivation from their recent fight against college basketball’s FBI probe to spark a deep run in the Pac-12 Tournament and beyond.
Arizona State Sun Devils Basketball
Arizona’s first matchup in the conference tournament will come Thursday at 1 p.m. MT, where they’ll take on either Colorado or Arizona State in the quarterfinals.
The Wildcats finished 1-1 against Colorado in the regular season, falling 80-77 to the Buffaloes in Boulder Jan. 6 before avenging their loss with an 80-71 victory at the McKale Center in Tucson on Jan. 25.
Against their rivals in Arizona State, the Wildcats would walk away with two close yet decisive victories in the season series.
In Colorado, the Wildcats would face a team that’s been capable of playing in spurts of slow and fast paced styles. McKinley Wright IV was able to dictate the pace of both matchups in the regular season, averaging 15.5 points and 8.5 assists while challenging the Wildcats’ inconsistent defense.
On the offensive end, Arizona often struggled to find a consistent plan of attack. They shot just 34 percent from the 3-point line in the two games, resorting to late possessions in the shot clock if they couldn’t get Ayton a touch.
In their two games against Arizona State, the Wildcats looked to command the paint with their size advantage. Ayton finished with an average of 24.0 points and 17.5 rebounds in the two games, efforts that would keep Sun Devil forwards Mickey Mitchell, Romello White and De’Quon Lake in constant foul trouble.
In those games, the Wildcats also played some of their best perimeter defense. They would hold ASU to just 33 percent shooting from beyond the arc, an advantage that kept the Sun Devils from being able to dictate the game on the perimeter.
However, the Wildcats had no answer for Tra Holder. He averaged 25.5 points in the two games, posing as a matchup nightmare for Arizona on the offensive end.
No matter who the Wildcats draw in the first round, the challenge should be difficult. Their largest margin of victory against either team was nine points, and they had to use late runs in each game in order to close the deal.