[Papa John]

Haven't seen a thread on this yet, which is kind of surprising to me. Stanford (NET 90) takes on Arizona (NET 2) at Maples tonight. Folks might not remember that Stanford has a 2-game win streak vs UA, but 2022 is quite different than 2021 for the Wildcats. On the other hand, the restrictions on attendance might favor Stanford, since UA fans travel well and in recent times have been quite loud in Maples.

Arizona leads the conference in most team offense and defense statistics. Their only negative statistic is turnover percentage, for which they are second-worst in the Pac-12. Unfortunately, that still places them ahead of Stanford, which is the most turnover-prone team in the Pac. Arizona is the only team that remains undefeated in conference play (4-0) while Stanford, as usual, is in the muddled middle, tied for sixth (3-2).

While Arizona is in contention for a 1 seed in the NCAA tournament, Stanford--coming off an unseemly but understandable Quad 3 loss to Washington--is on the bubble...for the NIT. But everything can shift tonight with an upset of the Wildcats.

[Papa John]

Haven't seen a thread on this yet, which is kind of surprising to me. Stanford (NET 90) takes on Arizona (NET 2) at Maples tonight. Folks might not remember that Stanford has a 2-game win streak vs UA, but 2022 is quite different than 2021 for the Wildcats. On the other hand, the restrictions on attendance might favor Stanford, since UA fans travel well and in recent times have been quite loud in Maples.

Arizona leads the conference in most team offense and defense statistics. Their only negative statistic is turnover percentage, for which they are second-worst in the Pac-12. Unfortunately, that still places them ahead of Stanford, which is the most turnover-prone team in the Pac. Arizona is the only team that remains undefeated in conference play (4-0) while Stanford, as usual, is in the muddled middle, tied for sixth (3-2).

While Arizona is in contention for a 1 seed in the NCAA tournament, Stanford--coming off an unseemly but understandable Quad 3 loss to Washington--is on the bubble...for the NIT. But everything can shift tonight with an upset of the Wildcats.

[BobK]

We awaiting your excellent posts, Papa John although no pizza from them for me.

Arizona has 7 foreign players several transfers, some of the 7 and numberous newcombers.

[BobK]

We awaiting your excellent posts, Papa John although no pizza from them for me.

Arizona has 7 foreign players several transfers, some of the 7 and numberous newcombers.

[Papa John]

Arizona's leading scorer, G Bennedict Mathurin, is a sophomore of Haitian descent who was born and raised in Montreal and completed high school at the NBA Academy Latin America in Mexico City, Mexico. Mathurin was named to the Pac-12 All-Freshman team last year.

The second leading scorer is sophomore F Azuolas Tubelis, who was born and raised in Vilnius, Lithuania. Like Mathurin, Tubelis was named to the Pac-12 All-Freshman team in 2021.

The leading rebounder is C Christian Koloko, a junior who hails from Douala, Cameroon. He graduated from Sierra Canyon High School in Chatsworth (near LA).

G Kerr Kriisa, sophomore, leads the team in assists. Kriisa is from Tartu, Estonia. He was given his first name by his father, who was a fan of Arizona legend and NBA champion Steve Kerr.

The team leader in steals per game is sophomore G Dalen Terry out of Hillcrest Prep in Phoenix.

One other thing that is notable is that Tommy Lloyd, UA's coach since spring 2021, is a first-time head coach. He was a loooong-time assistant under Mark Few at Gonzaga. That's a route that a school like Stanford might take, as we did with Johnny Dawkins, but I wouldn't expect it from a blue-blood like Arizona. I don't really follow UA basketball but maybe the threat of impending sanctions scared off a few suitors? In any case, it seems like it has worked out extremely well (so far).

[Papa John]

Arizona's leading scorer, G Bennedict Mathurin, is a sophomore of Haitian descent who was born and raised in Montreal and completed high school at the NBA Academy Latin America in Mexico City, Mexico. Mathurin was named to the Pac-12 All-Freshman team last year.

The second leading scorer is sophomore F Azuolas Tubelis, who was born and raised in Vilnius, Lithuania. Like Mathurin, Tubelis was named to the Pac-12 All-Freshman team in 2021.

The leading rebounder is C Christian Koloko, a junior who hails from Douala, Cameroon. He graduated from Sierra Canyon High School in Chatsworth (near LA).

G Kerr Kriisa, sophomore, leads the team in assists. Kriisa is from Tartu, Estonia. He was given his first name by his father, who was a fan of Arizona legend and NBA champion Steve Kerr.

The team leader in steals per game is sophomore G Dalen Terry out of Hillcrest Prep in Phoenix.

One other thing that is notable is that Tommy Lloyd, UA's coach since spring 2021, is a first-time head coach. He was a loooong-time assistant under Mark Few at Gonzaga. That's a route that a school like Stanford might take, as we did with Johnny Dawkins, but I wouldn't expect it from a blue-blood like Arizona. I don't really follow UA basketball but maybe the threat of impending sanctions scared off a few suitors? In any case, it seems like it has worked out extremely well (so far).

[SamuelMcF]

Arizona's leading scorer, G Bennedict Mathurin, is a sophomore of Haitian descent who was born and raised in Montreal and completed high school at the NBA Academy Latin America in Mexico City, Mexico. Mathurin was named to the Pac-12 All-Freshman team last year.

The second leading scorer is sophomore F Azuolas Tubelis, who was born and raised in Vilnius, Lithuania. Like Mathurin, Tubelis was named to the Pac-12 All-Freshman team in 2021.

The leading rebounder is C Christian Koloko, a junior who hails from Douala, Cameroon. He graduated from Sierra Canyon High School in Chatsworth (near LA).

G Kerr Kriisa, sophomore, leads the team in assists. Kriisa is from Tartu, Estonia. He was given his first name by his father, who was a fan of Arizona legend and NBA champion Steve Kerr.

The team leader in steals per game is sophomore G Dalen Terry out of Hillcrest Prep in Phoenix.

One other thing that is notable is that Tommy Lloyd, UA's coach since spring 2021, is a first-time head coach. He was a loooong-time assistant under Mark Few at Gonzaga. That's a route that a school like Stanford might take, as we did with Johnny Dawkins, but I wouldn't expect it from a blue-blood like Arizona. I don't really follow UA basketball but maybe the threat of impending sanctions scared off a few suitors? In any case, it seems like it has worked out extremely well (so far).

All 4 of the sophomores you mentioned were consensus 4* recruits.  All 4 of our sophomores were consensus 3* recruits.

Stars matter. IMO the correlation in MBB is way stronger than in football.

For what it's worth, Tommy Lloyd is inheriting what could essentially be considered a loaded transfer roster thanks to all these 4* guys playing a lot/being developed as frosh by the previous coach. We'll see what he does with his own guys - though apparently he won't have to do much for another year or two if these guys stick around.

[SamuelMcF]

Arizona's leading scorer, G Bennedict Mathurin, is a sophomore of Haitian descent who was born and raised in Montreal and completed high school at the NBA Academy Latin America in Mexico City, Mexico. Mathurin was named to the Pac-12 All-Freshman team last year.

The second leading scorer is sophomore F Azuolas Tubelis, who was born and raised in Vilnius, Lithuania. Like Mathurin, Tubelis was named to the Pac-12 All-Freshman team in 2021.

The leading rebounder is C Christian Koloko, a junior who hails from Douala, Cameroon. He graduated from Sierra Canyon High School in Chatsworth (near LA).

G Kerr Kriisa, sophomore, leads the team in assists. Kriisa is from Tartu, Estonia. He was given his first name by his father, who was a fan of Arizona legend and NBA champion Steve Kerr.

The team leader in steals per game is sophomore G Dalen Terry out of Hillcrest Prep in Phoenix.

One other thing that is notable is that Tommy Lloyd, UA's coach since spring 2021, is a first-time head coach. He was a loooong-time assistant under Mark Few at Gonzaga. That's a route that a school like Stanford might take, as we did with Johnny Dawkins, but I wouldn't expect it from a blue-blood like Arizona. I don't really follow UA basketball but maybe the threat of impending sanctions scared off a few suitors? In any case, it seems like it has worked out extremely well (so far).

All 4 of the sophomores you mentioned were consensus 4* recruits.  All 4 of our sophomores were consensus 3* recruits.

Stars matter. IMO the correlation in MBB is way stronger than in football.

For what it's worth, Tommy Lloyd is inheriting what could essentially be considered a loaded transfer roster thanks to all these 4* guys playing a lot/being developed as frosh by the previous coach. We'll see what he does with his own guys - though apparently he won't have to do much for another year or two if these guys stick around.

[JJJ]

We awaiting your excellent posts, Papa John although no pizza from them for me.

Arizona has 7 foreign players several transfers, some of the 7 and numberous newcombers.

Exactly! Thank you Papa John (the Cardboard poster extraordinaire, not the Pizza chain)!

[JJJ]

We awaiting your excellent posts, Papa John although no pizza from them for me.

Arizona has 7 foreign players several transfers, some of the 7 and numberous newcombers.

Exactly! Thank you Papa John (the Cardboard poster extraordinaire, not the Pizza chain)!

[Papa John]

Sure, from a pure recruiting perspective, UA has better players than Stanford. But I also think it's notable that UA lost the following from last year's team:
Their coach, Sean Miller, and most (all?) of his staff
Jordan Brown, #20 HS recruit in 2018, transferred in from Nevada, transferred out to Louisiana
Ira Lee, #60 HS recruit in 2017, transferred to George Washington (but not a major contributor)
Jemarl Baker, Jr., #72 recruit in 2017, transferred in from Kentucky, transferred out to Fresno State
James Akinjo, #89 recruit in 2018 and transferred in from Georgetown, transferred out to Baylor

On this year's team, they have the following returnees from 2020-21:
Dalen Terry, #48 HS recruit in 2020
Bennedict Mathurin, #91 recruit in 2020
Kerr Kriisa, #96 recruit in 2020

They have the following notable new faces:
Coach Tommy Lloyd, no head coaching experience
Shane Nowell, #78 recruit in 2021, currently averaging 0.6 Pts, 1.3 Reb, 0.4 Ast per game
Oumar Ballo, #95 in 2019, currently averaging 5.8 Pts, 4.4 Reb, 0.6 Ast per game

So when you look at what they lost from a team that went 17-9 (11-9, 5th in Pac-12), it's pretty remarkable to me that they have already accomplished so much more in 2021-22 with a first-time head coach and, on paper, less talent.

Stanford, for its part, has two top 100 players on this year's roster: Harrison Ingram (#16 in 2021) and Isael Silva (#59 in 2021).

[Papa John]

Sure, from a pure recruiting perspective, UA has better players than Stanford. But I also think it's notable that UA lost the following from last year's team:
Their coach, Sean Miller, and most (all?) of his staff
Jordan Brown, #20 HS recruit in 2018, transferred in from Nevada, transferred out to Louisiana
Ira Lee, #60 HS recruit in 2017, transferred to George Washington (but not a major contributor)
Jemarl Baker, Jr., #72 recruit in 2017, transferred in from Kentucky, transferred out to Fresno State
James Akinjo, #89 recruit in 2018 and transferred in from Georgetown, transferred out to Baylor

On this year's team, they have the following returnees from 2020-21:
Dalen Terry, #48 HS recruit in 2020
Bennedict Mathurin, #91 recruit in 2020
Kerr Kriisa, #96 recruit in 2020

They have the following notable new faces:
Coach Tommy Lloyd, no head coaching experience
Shane Nowell, #78 recruit in 2021, currently averaging 0.6 Pts, 1.3 Reb, 0.4 Ast per game
Oumar Ballo, #95 in 2019, currently averaging 5.8 Pts, 4.4 Reb, 0.6 Ast per game

So when you look at what they lost from a team that went 17-9 (11-9, 5th in Pac-12), it's pretty remarkable to me that they have already accomplished so much more in 2021-22 with a first-time head coach and, on paper, less talent.

Stanford, for its part, has two top 100 players on this year's roster: Harrison Ingram (#16 in 2021) and Isael Silva (#59 in 2021).

[DC 86]

One other thing that is notable is that Tommy Lloyd, UA's coach since spring 2021, is a first-time head coach. He was a loooong-time assistant under Mark Few at Gonzaga. That's a route that a school like Stanford might take, as we did with Johnny Dawkins, but I wouldn't expect it from a blue-blood like Arizona. I don't really follow UA basketball but maybe the threat of impending sanctions scared off a few suitors? In any case, it seems like it has worked out extremely well (so far).

Not that unusual although first time head coaches at big programs are usually internal hires or alums, such as the recent hires at the bluest of blue bloods: Hubert Davis and Jon Scheyer. But it seemed like Tommy Lloyd was Arizona's first choice from the beginning and they moved pretty fast to hire him, it didn't appear that he was a fallback after being turned down by more obvious candidates.

[DC 86]

One other thing that is notable is that Tommy Lloyd, UA's coach since spring 2021, is a first-time head coach. He was a loooong-time assistant under Mark Few at Gonzaga. That's a route that a school like Stanford might take, as we did with Johnny Dawkins, but I wouldn't expect it from a blue-blood like Arizona. I don't really follow UA basketball but maybe the threat of impending sanctions scared off a few suitors? In any case, it seems like it has worked out extremely well (so far).

Not that unusual although first time head coaches at big programs are usually internal hires or alums, such as the recent hires at the bluest of blue bloods: Hubert Davis and Jon Scheyer. But it seemed like Tommy Lloyd was Arizona's first choice from the beginning and they moved pretty fast to hire him, it didn't appear that he was a fallback after being turned down by more obvious candidates.

[Papa John]

One other thing that is notable is that Tommy Lloyd, UA's coach since spring 2021, is a first-time head coach. He was a loooong-time assistant under Mark Few at Gonzaga. That's a route that a school like Stanford might take, as we did with Johnny Dawkins, but I wouldn't expect it from a blue-blood like Arizona. I don't really follow UA basketball but maybe the threat of impending sanctions scared off a few suitors? In any case, it seems like it has worked out extremely well (so far).

Not that unusual although first time head coaches at big programs are usually internal hires or alums, such as the recent hires at the bluest of blue bloods: Hubert Davis and Jon Scheyer. But it seemed like Tommy Lloyd was Arizona's first choice from the beginning and they moved pretty fast to hire him, it didn't appear that he was a fallback after being turned down by more obvious candidates.

Good point about recent head coaching decisions by UNC and Duke. But Tommy Lloyd, as far as I know, had no prior connection to Arizona, which is why I asked the question about his hiring with hopes that someone in-the-know might offer more insight.

---

We awaiting your excellent posts, Papa John although no pizza from them for me.

BobK, you can take comfort in knowing that the origins of my CardBoard moniker have nothing to do with Papa John's Pizza ;-)

[Papa John]

One other thing that is notable is that Tommy Lloyd, UA's coach since spring 2021, is a first-time head coach. He was a loooong-time assistant under Mark Few at Gonzaga. That's a route that a school like Stanford might take, as we did with Johnny Dawkins, but I wouldn't expect it from a blue-blood like Arizona. I don't really follow UA basketball but maybe the threat of impending sanctions scared off a few suitors? In any case, it seems like it has worked out extremely well (so far).

Not that unusual although first time head coaches at big programs are usually internal hires or alums, such as the recent hires at the bluest of blue bloods: Hubert Davis and Jon Scheyer. But it seemed like Tommy Lloyd was Arizona's first choice from the beginning and they moved pretty fast to hire him, it didn't appear that he was a fallback after being turned down by more obvious candidates.

Good point about recent head coaching decisions by UNC and Duke. But Tommy Lloyd, as far as I know, had no prior connection to Arizona, which is why I asked the question about his hiring with hopes that someone in-the-know might offer more insight.

---

We awaiting your excellent posts, Papa John although no pizza from them for me.

BobK, you can take comfort in knowing that the origins of my CardBoard moniker have nothing to do with Papa John's Pizza ;-)

[DC 86]

Good point about recent head coaching decisions by UNC and Duke. But Tommy Lloyd, as far as I know, had no prior connection to Arizona, which is why I asked the question about his hiring with hopes that someone in-the-know might offer more insight.

No connection at all I'm pretty sure, they just felt strongly that he was the right guy under the circumstances. Interestingly all of the other rumored candidates were UofA alums.

It's definitely unusual for a first time HC to come from outside the program. Others that I can think of (Gard, Ewing) were assistant coaches or former players.

[DC 86]

Good point about recent head coaching decisions by UNC and Duke. But Tommy Lloyd, as far as I know, had no prior connection to Arizona, which is why I asked the question about his hiring with hopes that someone in-the-know might offer more insight.

No connection at all I'm pretty sure, they just felt strongly that he was the right guy under the circumstances. Interestingly all of the other rumored candidates were UofA alums.

It's definitely unusual for a first time HC to come from outside the program. Others that I can think of (Gard, Ewing) were assistant coaches or former players.

[Goose]

The University President also thinks he is the AD. It was his choice, as I understand it. So far, so good I would say.

[Goose]

The University President also thinks he is the AD. It was his choice, as I understand it. So far, so good I would say.

[old spanish trail]

Hadn't Tommy Lloyd spurned other offers waiting for the right one?

[old spanish trail]

Hadn't Tommy Lloyd spurned other offers waiting for the right one?

[DC 86]

Hadn't Tommy Lloyd spurned other offers waiting for the right one?

As far as I know, this was the first time that he accepted an offer to interview anywhere, following approaches from many other schools. Very respected in the industry.

[DC 86]

Hadn't Tommy Lloyd spurned other offers waiting for the right one?

As far as I know, this was the first time that he accepted an offer to interview anywhere, following approaches from many other schools. Very respected in the industry.

[JJJ]

Starting on ESPNEWS

[JJJ]

Starting on ESPNEWS

[burger]

We have 5 turnovers and 1 basket so far.  Sigh.

[burger]

We have 5 turnovers and 1 basket so far.  Sigh.

[JJJ]

On ESPNU now. Tenacious D by U of A denying everyone but Keefe.

[JJJ]

On ESPNU now. Tenacious D by U of A denying everyone but Keefe.

[burger]

At the under 12, we're on a pace for 35 turnovers.  These have mostly been unforced: bad passes and offensive fouls.

[burger]

At the under 12, we're on a pace for 35 turnovers.  These have mostly been unforced: bad passes and offensive fouls.

[Card10Fan]

This team is a turnover machine. One (of my many) knocks on Coach Haase is our teams never seem to be fundamentally sound. We always turn the ball over way too much and usually struggle or show inconsistency at the free throw line.

[Card10Fan]

This team is a turnover machine. One (of my many) knocks on Coach Haase is our teams never seem to be fundamentally sound. We always turn the ball over way too much and usually struggle or show inconsistency at the free throw line.

[JJJ]

Looks like Jones has to be the man today

[JJJ]

Looks like Jones has to be the man today

[martyup]

We're just getting smoked.

---

This is depressing.  I think I'm just going to go back to watching Moonshiners.

[martyup]

We're just getting smoked.

---

This is depressing.  I think I'm just going to go back to watching Moonshiners.

[JJJ]

At least they didn’t try to make it a 30pt loss. Ballo hanging from the rim was unnecessary though.

[JJJ]

At least they didn’t try to make it a 30pt loss. Ballo hanging from the rim was unnecessary though.