Nick Johnson had a real good time against Arizona State.
Photo by Casey Sapio -USA TODAY Sports

Senior Day went about as well as possible for the Arizona Wildcats basketball team. The Cats had a 15-point halftime lead, built it up to as much as 23, emptied the bench and let the departing players enjoy one last ovation in front of the McKale Center crowd.

The Wildcats had an extra hop in their collective step and found a long-lost gear in their transition game. It all added up to Arizona having fun again, which is just what was needed with tournament play about to begin.

The Wildcats had all the energy stats in their favor. The UA out-rebounded the Sun Devils by 12 including a 13-3 edge on the offensive glass. Arizona had twice as many steals as ASU and turned them into 12 fast break points compared to just a single bucket by the team in black.

Those fast break points were a rare treat. In the dozen games prior to Saturday the Wildcats had only hit double figures on the break once and, not surprisingly, it was in the 18-point home win against Washington.

That’s fun. Watching players getting out and running, converting in transition and throwing down dunks is fun.

(By the way, that Nick Johnson photo up above? A bigger version is available here. Right-click + Save image + Right-click + Save as desktop background = Digital poster.)

It hasn’t been the most entertaining brand of basketball over the past month. Low shooting percentages and minimal assist numbers produce unattractive results. Winning outweighs any style points, of course, but there wasn’t a lot of that either in the seven games leading up to this one.

We continue to watch because we’re students, alumni and fans and we care about these guys, even through the losses and uncomfortable wins. It’s like a parent going to a music recital for a typical child. You’re there because you love your kid and you want to support him, not because you’re expecting to hear great music.

You know it’s going well when your seniors end the game smiling on the bench.
Photo by Casey Sapio-USA TODAY Sports

Saturday afternoon we were afraid we might be hearing around rendition of “Chopsticks” but instead the Cats surprised us with a bit of Beethoven’s Fifth.

After the low of getting swept in L.A. it was great to see the players looking like they were enjoying themselves out there. This team is usually described with terms like “gritty” and “grind-it-out.” Those are admirable traits on the construction site or in truck commercials but they’re not very thrilling on a basketball court. Even when the Cats were in the top five you heard, “This team is going to kill me!” almost as often as “Bear Down.”

I’m not saying the Wildcats should start gambling in the passing lanes and leaking out instead of rebounding to run at all costs. Sean Miller still believes in No Easy Buckets and Nastiness Is Required. Whatever motto he comes up with for this postseason run, I can guarantee it’s going to smell more like steel-toed work boots than wing tips.

That’s why I didn’t mind Arizona’s woofing or the technical fouls against ASU. This group needs a fire in its core so it can play with an edge.

But there’s also room for fun. The simple joy of playing basketball against elite competition.

You know what else is fun? Sweeping your in-state rival by a combined 32 points. Seniors Solomon Hill and Kevin Parrom will be finishing their careers with a 6-2 record against Arizona State. That’s not quite Lute Olson’s final two senior classes (and many before that) going undefeated against the Devils but considering last year’s UA seniors finished with a losing record (4-5) against ASU it’s a step in the right direction.

The UA ended a disappointing conference season on a very high note. One win doesn’t exactly qualify as riding a wave of momentum into the postseason but the Cats are at least back up on the board.

Now the goal is to make the fun last as long as possible.

- – - – -

Scott Terrell is geared up for tournament fun. Find the fire in your core on Twitter and Facebook.

Photo by Casey Sapio -USA TODAY Sports

Nick Johnson’s freshman season wasn’t a slam dunk.
Photo by Jason O. Watson-US PRESSWIRE

As soon as your favorite team gets done with this year you start looking toward next year.

For the Arizona Wildcats three key seniors will be replaced by four incoming freshmen. If you look at the recruiting rankings the new players will significantly upgrade the talent on the roster.

After an up-and-down 2012, however, UA fans would be wise to keep next year’s expectations in check.

I fully expect next year’s Wildcat hoops team to be better than this year’s. For one, it’ll look like an honest-to-goodness basketball team. The starting lineup will feature two guards, two forwards and a center. The rotation will be deep enough and diverse enough that no one will stand chest-high to the man he’s guarding.

After the 2011 Elite Eight run I prepared for one year of transition before a return to Arizona dominance. A fat stack of wins, a high NCAA tournament seed and saying goodbye to bubble talk and getting back to “I can’t believe our region is so tough” complaints.

A year to deal with life without Derrick Williams and then four new Derrick Williamses show up to cut down every net in sight.

But last year’s recruiting class was rated in the top five nationally with both Josiah Turner and Nick Johnson projected among the 20 best players in the country. Neither looked it his freshman year.

Turner got better on the court as the season progressed but he didn’t even finish the year on the court due to his string of suspensions.

Johnson’s offensive production got worse as the year went on. He shot 46% from the field and 40% on 3-pointers over his first 11 games, then 38% and 37% over the next month, and finally 30% from the floor and 25% from beyond the arc over the last two months of the season.

Angelo Chol went from non-existent to a contributor over the course of the year but he only played 20 minutes in a game once in conference play.

This is not to say all three of these guys won’t eventually reach the level of their high school projections but it didn’t happen in year one. Considering that next year’s UA team will rely even more on first-year players it’s probably best to rein in the fan goals for 2013.

Next season looks like it’ll be a classic “year away” team. Extremely talented but young and raw. Flashes of greatness counterbalanced by moments of inexperience and immaturity.

What you want to see in 2012-’13 is players coming together, learning their roles and moving toward becoming a cohesive unit. Oh, and no off-court issues. A season without suspensions or transfers (or players itching to go pro) would work wonders toward returning Arizona Basketball to the program’s previous heights.

I will be very surprised if this top-ranked incoming freshman class stays intact for more than two years. I was hoping it would be two years of Final Four contention but we may be looking at a single shot at supreme hoops greatness for this group. The key for Sean Miller will be to continue bringing in elite talent (and getting players to stay multiple years) so the transitions will be smoother from year to year.

Another key will be this year’s freshman guards become sophomore stars. I’m not giving up on them but there’s a lot of work to be done. If Kyle Fogg, a career 38% 3-point shooter at the time, took 39,000 shots the summer before his senior year, Johnson needs to take 139,000. Turner should be there with him, if he still has a key to the gym. Work hard now, and when the new freshmen hit campus, work hard together.

Wildcat fans should remain optimistic about the future. Even with Bucknell and the NIT this is still an exciting time. For those of us who weren’t around at the start of the Lute Olson era this is a chance to watch the rise of a program.

Let’s not allow impatience to keep us from enjoying the ride.

- – - – -

Scott Terrell is waiting for patience. Take your time on Twitter and Facebook.

Will the Wildcats' season end like the Colorado game?
Photo by Ron Chenoy-US PRESSWIRE

The Arizona Wildcats lost another close basketball game and are barely hanging on to the top half of the Pac-12 standings.

It’s not unexpected, but that doesn’t mean it’s fun.

At first glance things don’t look terrible. Yes, the Cats are in 6th place but they’re only one game behind the co-(co-co-co)-leaders in the loss column. Turn either the Oregon or Colorado close losses into wins and you’re tied. Win them both and you’re alone at the top.

But you don’t get do-overs and the Oregon State win was this close to being a loss in regulation. Going back to mid-November Arizona has won twice in the same week only two times: New Mexico State and NAU, plus Oakland and Bryant. No Pac-12 weekends there.

Inspecting the remaining schedule the Cats still have the two hardest road trips left (Cal/Stanford and Washington/WSU). It looks a lot more like a 9-9 or 10-8 season than 12-6. The UA’s at-large bid believers are fading fast.

With an Elite Eight and conference championship already in Sean Miller’s pocket you forget he’s still rebuilding but this is definitely a transitional roster. No size, can’t shoot on the road (under 20% on 3s in three of the last four games), and no one who can reliably create his own shot.

So we lower expectations and wait.

I will be watching every game and hoping for wins the rest of the way, because that’s what we fans do. But I won’t be upset if the season ends the way it’s going right now.

What will upset me is if the players who will be around next year don’t get better. The improvement of the guards is crucial for the future. Josiah Turner is clearly making progress. He’s buying in, the game is slowing down for him and we’re starting to see the court vision and passing that made him such a valued recruit.

Turner’s backcourt mate, however, has been struggling as the season wears on. Nick Johnson hasn’t shown much lately besides outside jumpers and those have been sporadically successful the last few weeks. The roles were reversed a little over a month ago so there’s still plenty of time for Johnson to make developmental strides.

Solomon Hill and Kevin Parrom are also big to watch when looking toward next season. Hill has had some very strong stretches recently (minus the random WWE move against Utah) and Parrom just had his best weekend of the season.

These guys just need to keep listening in practice, bring maximum effort in games and get more experience playing together. If it comes to pass, root for getting into the NIT over nothing at all.

We got through one year without the tournament and, if needed, we’ll get through another. Dream big for next year. Dream even bigger about 2014.

What makes this awkward is Arizona Basketball hasn’t been a “wait till next year” program for almost thirty years. Fans feel almost dirty coming to grips with 5th or 6th place.

Hang in there, Wildcat fans. The hoops team’s current address is not a permanent residence.

- – - – -

Scott Terrell is looking forward to the next game. Stay involved on Twitter and Facebook.

Jared Cunningham and the Beavers have enjoyed playing Sean Miller’s teams.
Photo by Cheryl Evans/The Arizona Republic

After two weeks of Pac-12 basketball it wasn’t a shock that only one team still had a perfect conference record. It was a surprise that the one team was Colorado.

But then you realize the Buffaloes are the only Pac-12 school that played the first two weekends at home.

That changes this week as Colorado hits the road while the other four teams in the top half of the league return home. Will there be a new conference leader when the final buzzer sounds Sunday night?

TWIT-Pac is ready to watch more hoops with you. Here’s the TV schedule (and, as always, all times are Arizona/Mountain):

CBS = Columbia Broadcasting System (I did not know that)
CSN BA = Comcast SportsNet Bay Area
CSN CA = Comcast SportsNet California
FCSC = Fox College Sports Central
FSAZ = Fox Sports Arizona
FSN = Fox Sports Net
PT = Prime Ticket
ROOT NW = Root Sports Northwest

Thu. Jan. 12

OSU (11-5 / 1-3) at ARIZONA (11-5 / 2-1)
This is the Cats’ only game against Oregon State this year. Considering the Beavers have won three of the last four in the series, that might not be a bad thing.

Utah (4-11 / 1-2) at Stanford (13-3 / 3-1)
Stanford is coming off the longest game in school history, a quadruple-overtime victory at OSU last Saturday. I’m guessing they have a little bit easier time in this one.

Oregon (11-5 / 2-2) at ASU (5-10 / 1-2)
If you’re looking for new material to use against your ASU friends and coworkers, might I recommend: “The Sun Devils are so bad they once lost twice in the same NCAA tournament!” (1973, when they used to play regional third-place games.)

Colorado (11-4 / 3-0) at Cal (13-4 / 3-1)
The Buffaloes must’ve been thinking this Pac-12 stuff is pretty easy as they won their first three league games by a combined 69 points. Caution: Rough road ahead.

Sat. Jan. 14

Oregon at ARIZONA
Contrasting the OSU series, the UA has won the last six against the Ducks, with none closer than last year’s eight-point win at McKale.

Colorado at Stanford
A quick look at Colorado’s profile: 68 in the RPI and they don’t have a single non-conference win against the RPI top-100. Don’t expect CU’s current six-game winning streak to last long.

OSU at ASU
I will give the Devils credit for beating USC last week. When you kick your leading scoring off the team and only suit up six scholarship players it’s not easy to beat anybody.

Utah at Cal
The Pac-12 favorites stumbled in their road opener in Corvallis last week, making the other contenders in the conference feel better about their chances.

Sun. Jan. 15

WSU (9-7 / 1-3) at Washington (10-6 / 3-1)
The Huskies beat Seattle U. Tuesday night. The Redhawks had three wins against current Pac-12 teams the last two years so I’m going to give UW credit for a solid win.

UCLA (9-7 / 2-2) at USC (5-12 / 0-4)
The team most upset to see Utah win last week was USC. The Trojans now have the indistinction of carrying the Worst Team in the Conference banner.

* * *

Defending your home court is even more important than usual this year. It’s going to be extremely difficult to make up for home losses with road wins so if you want to contend for the Pac-12 title (or position yourself for an NCAA tournament at-large bid) you have to win at home.

The Wildcats (and the car dealership) hope the familiar atmosphere of McKale Center will help the ball go through the hoop. After making 8-of-20 (40%) from beyond the arc against ASU, the UA shot a combined 5-for-32 (16%) on 3s in L.A.

Nick Johnson in particular has had a rough go of it lately. The freshman started by hitting 46% (13-for-28) of his 3-point shots in the first eight games of his college career, but has cooled to 19% (5-for-26) over his last eight games. Maybe for the time being Johnson should focus on posterizing the opposing team’s center.

Oregon State leads the Pac-12 in scoring and shooting. Arizona leads in 3-point defense and is second in field goal percentage defense. In this strength-versus-strength matchup you hope the strength of the home court is the difference.

- – - – -

Scott Terrell is happy at home. Come on in on Twitter and Facebook.

Nick Johnson brings a dunk and a smile.
Photo by Chris Morrison-US PRESSWIRE

We talked about the Arizona Wildcats’ freshmen who have had some issues. It’s only fair (and a lot more fun) to also talk about the one who is having zero problems at all.

Nick Johnson is the reason you do want to keep recruiting elite players.

It’s worth going after players with a lot of hype because when they work out they end up being really good, and really good is what you need to build toward greatness.

Two positions on what we hope will be a championship-level team next year are set. The small forward minutes will be handled quite well by Solomon Hill and Kevin Parrom. The shooting guard will be Mr. Nick Johnson.

Johnson has played in all 10 games this year and started the last four. He’s 4th on the team in scoring, 3rd in 3-point shooting, 2nd in assists and 1st in “Ooooooooohhhh!” moments.

And it looks like he’s always having fun out there. Imagine that.

It’s refreshing to see a player willing to play whatever position his team needs. There’s a temptation for undersized guys to insist on playing point guard. When 6-foot-3 Jerryd Bayless came to Arizona in 2007 he wanted to run the point in preparation for the NBA. As a result junior Nic Wise came off the bench half the year.

(By the way, what if Bayless had been willing to dominate as a college 2-guard for two years? Imagine him, Wise, Jordan Hill and Chase Budinger bolstered by the casual magic of Russ Pennell in 2009. Rick Pitino would want no part of that.)

Nick Johnson is choosing the path that got Gilbert Arenas to the NBA. Arenas played off the ball in college, scored a lot of points, won a lot of games and let the pros worry about where he was going to play.

(You hope that’s where the comparison ends. Arenas may have played the point in the NBA but he maintained his shooting guard tendencies.)

Arizona is known as Point Guard U but the other guy in the backcourt has been crucial on the Cats’ Final Four teams. Small forward Sean Elliott was all-everything in 1988 but Khalid Reeves was the leading scorer on the ’94 team, Arenas was the leading scorer on the 2001 team and, of course, there’s Simon Says Championship in 1997.

Can Nick Johnson be that kind of scorer at Arizona? Where he ends up remains to be seen but it’s safe to say Johnson will be smiling when he gets there.

* * *

Josiah Turner’s second (unofficial) suspension ended after just one game. It was good to see him playing with energy and no signs of pouting against Clemson, and it was great to hear he still has his coach’s support.

Getting suspended is never a good idea in and of itself but it’s doubly negative because Turner needs the court time to improve his game. Cut down on the turnovers, get more consistent with his shot, improve on defense and (perhaps most importantly) perfect the timing on sick alley-oop lobs to Johnson. Highlight reel and mixtape makers everywhere are depending on it.

* * *

The Cats are in the middle of a six-day break between games but this Saturday’s contest with Gonzaga in Seattle features the worst possible matchup for the UA: a quality big man.

Mississippi State’s 6-11 Arnett Moultre had 19 points and 10 rebounds to beat Arizona. Florida won behind 6-9 Patric Young’s 25 and 10. So it’s not a good sign that Gonzaga is led by 7-footer Robert Sacre. The senior from Canada has scored at least 15 points in every game this year while averaging seven rebounds and shooting 79% from the foul line.

It’s certainly a tall task but it’s the type of game the Wildcats need in order to figure out how best to use their small lineup against size, and when to sprinkle in Angelo Chol and Kyryl Natyazhko.

Nick Johnson and friends will have their dunking work cut out for them.

- – - – -

Scott Terrell isn’t short; he’s undersized. Stand tall on Twitter and Facebook.

Nick Johnson is here to help you shift sports gears.
Photo by Chris Morrison-US PRESSWIRE

LSU-Alabama? Forget the SEC West Division Championship Game. It’s basketball season!

Even Arizona’s football coach is going to basketball games. If you’re feeling a little behind on what’s going on with the Wildcats and the rest of the Pac-12, fear not. As in the past, we’re here to help.

UA hoops has a 6-2 record with wins against Valparaiso (6-2), Duquesne (5-3), Ball State (4-2), St. John’s (4-4), New Mexico State (5-3) and NAU (2-6). The losses came to Mississippi State (8-1) and San Diego State (8-2). So, yes, the Cats lost to the two best teams they’ve played so far.

Who is the next Derrick Williams?
Do you think dunking/shooting/shot-blocking/team-carrying machines grow on trees? No, this year’s team is having to share the scoring load. Two players average between 7.1 and 7.4 points per game, three players average between 10.5 and 11.0 points per game, and Solomon Hill is leading the way with a 12.4 average. The scoring factory is gone so the 2011-’12 Cats are more of a co-op.

Who is the best freshman?
Nick Johnson. He’s only 6-foot-2 but he jumps out of the gym and he’s the best 3-point shooter (46%) among the heavy-minute guys.

Who is the worst freshman?
The Other Johnson. Normally I wouldn’t call out a kid just a month into his college career but when you get suspended before you make your first college basket it’s safe to say it’s not going very well. Sidiki Johnson has announced he will be transferring and he’s still waiting for that first college basket.

Why haven’t I been able to find the games on TV?
The games have been televised but not in one place like in the past. So far the Cats have played on ESPN2, ESPNU, Fox Sports Arizona and Fox Sports Arizona Plus. Here’s the UA schedule for the rest of the non-conference season to help you plan ahead:

Yes, five games on five different channels. The new Pac-12 TV deal can’t start soon enough.

What are this team’s biggest weaknesses?
1) A lack of size. The starting lineup right now consists of Hill (6-6) at power forward and 6-7 Jesse Perry as the center. The Arizona big men are medium-sized at best.

2) Lack of interior scoring. Issue two is directly related to issue one. Because the Cats don’t have anyone who can post up and reliably score in the paint, they rely on the 3-point shot. A lot. In the first two games 30% of Arizona’s shots were from behind the arc. Since then it’s up to 44% including 58% (26 3-point attempts out of 45 total shots) against NAU.

Life is good when they go in (shooting 48% on 3s in the win against St. John’s) but when they don’t (19% in the loss to San Diego State) the Cats will struggle.

So is this team going to make the NCAA tournament?
We may find out this week. The UA takes on No. 10 Florida, Clemson and No. 19 Gonzaga over an 11-day span. That’s one more ranked team than in the entire Pac-12. Bubble-type teams need to pick up quality wins when they can.

Can this team defend its Pac-12 championship?
That might almost be easier than making The Field of 64 (Plus Four). Let’s take a trip around the Pac-12 and its underwhelming performance to date:

Best win
Oregon State vs. Texas, 100-95 in OT. That’s not saying much since the Longhorns aren’t ranked. The Pac-12 could really use Arizona picking up a big win or two in the next couple weeks.

Worst loss
Arizona State vs. Fairfield, 55-44. The Stags were so fired up after beating ASU they proceeded to lose to Dayton and Indiana State in their next two games.

Best team
Cal, by default. The Bears are the only ranked team in the conference but one of their two losses was to Missouri in a game in which Cal was outscored by 19 in the first half and 20 in the second half. The Pac-12 will not be the SEC Football of basketball this year.

Worst team
Utah. It’s not even close. The Utes began their first season as a member of the Pac-12 by beating an NAIA school at home…by three. Utah hasn’t won since and hasn’t gotten closer than a 14-point loss to Massachusetts. No red-carpet rookie season schedule will be able to save this team.

Best Pac-12 team not in the Pac-12
San Diego State. The Aztecs have beaten USC, Arizona and Cal.

Biggest surprise (good)
Oregon State. The Beavers were picked to finish 8th in the Pac-12 but they are 6-1 with that win over Texas and a two-point loss to top-20 Vanderbilt. I believe this is the point where I’m supposed to mention OSU coach Craig Robinson is Barack Obama’s brother-in-law.

Runner-up
Stanford. The Cardinal was slotted as the 6th-best team in the league but they are a conference-best 8-1 with a win over Oklahoma State and a six-point loss to top-5 Syracuse. Stanford gets bonus points for playing Central Arkansas, UC-Davis, Pacific and Seattle…and not losing to any of them.

Biggest surprise (bad)
UCLA. This one isn’t close either. After starting the season ranked the preseason favorites in the Pac-12 are barely 2-5 with an 11-point loss to Loyola Marymount, a 20-point loss (!) to Middle Tennessee (!!), a 16-point defeat to Kansas, a 16-point laugher against Michigan and a 10-point loss to Texas. There are slow starts and then there’s…that.

Enjoy the Cats’ big games this week but remember to keep the expectations for this season in check. The full-size big men who will complete the roster are on the way.

- – - – -

Scott Terrell is largely average. Go big on Twitter and Facebook.