Andy Lopez’s team is coming off a series win at Arizona State. Photo by Bruce Thorson-USA TODAY SPORTS

The Arizona Wildcats baseball team might need to win all three games this weekend. Almost certainly, two. For sure, the one on Friday.

“We plan on sweeping USC,” said first baseman Joseph Maggi, “but you can only do that when you take it one game at a time.”

Ah, yes, that familiar sports line applies more than ever as Arizona is perched somewhere on the wrong side of the NCAA postseason bubble heading into the regular-season-ending three-game set vs. the Trojans.

Arizona, the defending national champion, is 31-21 overall and 12-15, seventh in the Pac-12. They have work to do. Win one, then two, then three.

The Cats are close enough to be in the discussion for an at-large berth to the postseason. And their task is to give the selection committee something to chew on before the field is announced Monday morning.

Looking at the numbers, a series sweep is what they need.

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Sean Miller says the non-conference schedule can prepare his team for March. Photo by Steve Dykes-USA TODAY Sports

The Arizona Wildcats announced on Thursday its non-conference basketball schedule for next season, featuring two challenging road games and potential marquee matchups in Madison Square Garden.

Duke, anyone?

After opening the season at home against Cal Poly and Long Beach State, the Wildcats play at always-tough San Diego State, which loses its top two scorers but has ample talent back from a 23-11 NCAA Tournament team. The Aztecs were 14-1 at home last season.

The rest of November is spent participating in the NIT Season Tip-Off, leading to the semifinals in New York City. The four headliners for the NIT event are Arizona, Duke, Alabama and Rutgers.

The Dec. 7 game against UNLV stands as the most intriguing home game of the non-conference schedule, with Arizona heading to Michigan a week later.

The Wolverines, coming off an appearance in the national title game and No. 10 in ESPN.com’s latest pre-preseason Top 25, will feature a pair of super sophomores — wing Glenn Robinson III and center Mitch McGary. (McGary vs. Kaleb Tarczewski … yes, please.)

Arizona is fourth in that ESPN.com ranking and likely will be in everyone’s preseason Top 10.
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Arizona gave the media a tour of the Lowell-Stevens Football Facility about five weeks ago, and the athletic department has provided another update, with coach Rich Rodriguez and athletic director Greg Byrne providing a video tour of the first floor.

So, look for further updates of the upper floors — coaches offices, meeting rooms, players’ lounge, cafeteria and the Sands Level on the fifth floor, providing access to the new club boxes.

The Wildcats are targeting a July 1 move-in date to their new digs.

Grant Jerrett dunks for two points vs. Ohio State in the NCAA Tournament. Photo by Jayne Kamin-Oncea-USA TODAY Sports

The NBA draft lottery was held Tuesday night, spawning a fresh round of mock drafts.

Arizona wing Solomon Hill and power forward Grant Jerrett just got done participating in last week’s NBA Draft combine, so scouts and media were able to get a good look at each and further evaluate their skills.

Hill, all along, has been considered second-round material, and the new mock drafts reflect a holding pattern.

Jeff Goodman of CBSSports.com moved Hill up four spots to No. 52, going to Minnesota. Wrote Goodman: “Big-time athlete who could become a defensive stopper. Has really improved his perimeter shot.”

DraftExpress.com pegs Hill at No. 56 to Detroit.

It’s with Jerrett that things are more up in the air. His curious decision to leave after his freshman season had some wondering if he would be drafted at all.

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Brandon Ashley might be wearing a different uniform this summer. Photo by Casey Sapio-USA TODAY Sports

The Arizona Wildcats will be well-represented at the USA Basketball Men’s U19 World Championship team training camp next month.

The roster for the camp was announced Tuesday morning, with sophomore forward Brandon Ashley and a pair of incoming freshmen — forwards Aaron Gordon and Rondae Hollis-Jefferson – among the 24 players invited to tryout June 14-19 in Colorado Springs, Colo.

The 12-man roster, which will be coached by Florida’s Billy Donovan, will be announced June 18.

The team will go on to represent the United States at the U19 World Championship in Prague, Czech Republic, from June 27-July 7.

Gordon and Hollis-Jefferson have U.S. team experience. Gordon played on the 2011 U16 FIBA Americas gold-medal-winning team. Earlier this spring, he and Hollis-Jefferson were part of the Junior National Select Team that participated in the Nike Hoop Summit. Hollis-Jefferson also was a member of the 2012 U17 World Championship team, but did not play because of injury.

Ashley averaged 7.5 points and 5.3 rebounds per game last season, when he started 21 of 35 games for Arizona.

Here are the 24 players invited to the U19 camp:

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Daniel Jenkins looks for running room against Arizona State in November. Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images

Running back Daniel Jenkins was asked to summarize his time at Washington State.

“Short,” he said.

Jenkins, who announced his transfer from Arizona after graduating last December, spent about a month in Pullman this spring, but was never part of the team. He didn’t sign scholarship papers. He didn’t participate in spring practice. He wasn’t enrolled in school.

“Just trained and worked out,” he said.

He said it was about the beginning of this month that he reached out to Wildcats coach Rich Rodriguez about a possible return to the team. The coach announced Jenkins’ return last week, and the senior met with the media Monday.

“It was just a combination of events,” said Jenkins, who didn’t get very specific.

“My family. I had some things going on with them, and I had an opportunity to come back and finish my career at Arizona. I decided to come back.”

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Harvey Mason and his wife, Jeannine Sharp, at a pre-Grammy event in Beverly Hills in February. Photo by Jason Merritt/Getty Images

Trey Mason, the son of former University of Arizona guard and Grammy Award-winning songwriter/music producer Harvey Mason Jr., will join the Wildcats next season as a recruited walk-on.

Trey Mason announced his decision via Twitter on Monday morning, adding he received a leadership academic scholarship.

Mason, 6-2, averaged 15.5 points and 1.3 assists for Los Angeles Loyola High, playing in the same backcourt as point guard Parker Jackson-Cartwright, who has committed to Arizona in the Class of 2014.

(Jacob Hazzard, a walk-on freshman guard, also played at Loyola.)

Trey Mason is noted for his 3-point shooting skills, hitting 79 of 186 attempts (42.5 percent) last season, according to MaxPreps.com.

Harvey Mason played at Arizona from 1986 to 1990, writing the “Wild About the Cats” song that was popular in Tucson during the team’s 1988 Final Four run. Mason’s music skills greatly advanced from there.

This might make you feel old: Trey Mason is one of three sons of players from the 1988 Final Four who will play college basketball. Nick Kerr (son of Steve) is at the University of San Diego). Kameron Rooks (son of Sean) signed to play at Cal.

Related from the Los Angeles Times: Trey Mason’s father figures mightily in his success at Loyola

Proud to announce my commitment to Arizona BKB as a recruited walk on and receipt of leadership scholarship for academics. #beardown

— Trey Mason (@TreyBall3) May 20, 2013

Proud to announce my son, all CIF SG has committed to Arizona as a recruited walk on and received a leadership scholarship for academics.

— Harvey Mason, Jr. (@HarveyMasonjr) May 20, 2013

Here is game story on Arizona’s 7-6 win over Arizona State on Sunday, from the Arizona Republic, our Gannett partner. Related: Sport-by-sport breakdown of the Territorial Cup Series.

Arizona first baseman Joseph Maggi reacts after the game-ending double play. Photo by David Kadlubowski/azcentral sports

By Jeff Metcalfe
azcentral sports

Mighty Casey or Nathaniel Causey. Eventually, baseball humbles everyone.

A week after his two-out, ninth-inning grand slam to win a game, Arizona State’s Causey hit into a game-ending double play Sunday as rival Arizona escaped with a 7-6 win at Packard Stadium.

Defending national champion UA (31-21, 12-15 Pac-12) kept its NCAA Tournament hopes alive by winning the series and, depending on who’s scoring, clinched the school’s fourth overall Territorial Cup Series title. The Wildcats won three of five baseball games over the Sun Devils this season.

Arizona leads 9.5 points to 8.5 in the series by rules put in place for the first three years, when State Farm was the Territorial Cup title sponsor. ASU now counts men’s indoor track and says the series is tied at 9.5 apiece. The first tiebreaker is Directors’ Cup standings, with UA currently holding a 125-point edge over ASU.

What hurts more for No. 15 ASU (34-17-1, 15-12) is that its chances of hosting a NCAA regional are slipping away, if not already gone. The Sun Devils have four games remaining: at home Tuesday against BYU (30-19) and an away series against Washington (22-31, 13-14).

“It’s frustrating and disappointing,” ASU coach Tim Esmay said of not scoring in the eighth or ninth with the bases loaded. “It’s unfortunate. Obviously, this doesn’t help us (for hosting). We’ll see how that plays out. Obviously, we’ve got to play good this week.”

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This trophy will be staying in Tucson. Photo courtesy of Arizona Athletics.

The Territorial Cup Series, competed over eight months and 18 sports, came down to one pitch on Sunday afternoon.

Arizona Wildcats left-hander Augey Bill, with one out and the bases loaded, protecting a 7-6 lead in the bottom of the ninth, fired an 0-1 pitch to Arizona State’s Nate Causey.

Causey hit a grounder back to Bill, who threw home for a force out, and then catcher Riley Moore tossed to first baseman Joseph Maggi for the third out.

With that, the Cats won the three-game series in Tempe and took the season series from the Devils, 3-2, including two non-conference games in Tucson.

And, just as importantly, if not more so, for the entire athletic department, Arizona won the deciding point in the Territorial Cup Series, taking the season-long all-sport competition 9.5 to 8.5.

Arizona has won the Territorial Cup Series in each of the four seasons of its existence.

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Sean Miller is fine going with a smaller roster. Photo by Steve Dykes-USA TODAY Sports

Arizona Wildcats basketball coach Sean Miller has two available scholarships to give. He could very well just keep those in his pocket.

Arizona officially added Kansas transfer big man Zach Peters to the roster Friday, bringing the team’s scholarship total to 11, although it’s still unclear if he’ll be eligible in the 2013-14 season. Either way, Miller seems content with the roster.

“Just because you have that number 13 sitting there, I don’t know if it’s as important as it once was,” Miller said of the scholarship limit.

“In fact, to me, it’s more intelligent that anyone you add to your program, they have to be a contributor and there has to be a reason you do it. You don’t want to fill in the scholarship void just to add depth because that person you’re talking about will end up leaving.

“For us, there’s a chance we won’t add anyone.”

Of course, you never know.

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