Sports
No. 19 Wildcats shut down Aztecs
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| AP Photo | Wily Low Arizona's Nic Wise (13) drives to the basket around San Diego State's D.J. Gay (23) in the second half of the Wildcats’ 74-58 win over the Aztecs at McKale Center in Tucson yesterday. |
By Nick Prevenas, Green Valley News
The San Diego State Aztecs came into yesterday afternoon’s Fiesta Bowl Classic riding the momentum of the best start in school history.
The Arizona Wildcats (9-2) put a stop to that.
Jordan Hill and Jerryd Bayless scored 15 points apiece to lead a balanced scoring attack in Arizona’s 74-58 win over the Aztecs (9-3) at the McKale Center.
"I really like how we played, especially on defense," said head coach Kevin O’Neill. "We’re getting in the habit of contesting every shot.’
The Wildcats held the Aztecs to 32 percent shooting on the afternoon.
Outside of Kyle Spain, who led all scorers with 20 points, the rest of the Aztecs managed only 12 made field-goal attempts.
The Wildcats fell into a 7-2 hole to start the contest, but as they have done all season, they came roaring back with an 8-0 run in 1:40 to take the lead for good.
Nic Wise entered the game at the 13:25 mark and proceeded to put his stamp on the game, finding Hill and Jamelle Horne for easy slams in another 8-0 Wildcat run in the first half.
As a reward for his play, O’Neill inserted Wise into the starting lineup for the second half, where he finally had a chance to show off his shooting stroke.
Wise finished with 12 points and four assists.
"I’m a smaller guy, so I don’t get as many chances to shoot," Wise said. "When I do have an open shot, I better make it."
Hill, Wise’s roommate, enjoyed yet another stellar outing, posting his third double-double in the past four games, where he is averaging 17.3 points and 15.3 rebounds.
"Jordan’s conditioning is getting much better and he is growing into a consistent, accountable player," O’Neill said.
Senior Jawann McClellan was named the Most Valuable Player of the Fiesta Bowl Classic, submitting one of his best all-around efforts of the season.
McClellan scored seven points, pulled down nine rebounds and dished out seven assists while shutting down Lorenzo Wade—San Diego State’s leading scorer.
"I’m so happy Jawann won the MVP," O’Neill said. "He does so much for our team that goes unnoticed. He’s the glue that holds this team together."
Wade came into the contest averaging more than 14 points per game, but the Wildcats held him to four points on 3-10 shooting.
"Lorenzo is a physical specimen, so I knew I’d have my work cut out for me," McClellan said.
Chasee Budinger added 13 points and six rebounds in one of his grittiest efforts since arriving to Tucson.
Budinger, a native of San Diego, battled back spasms throughout yesterday morning’s shoot around, but still found a way to play 35 strong minutes.
"You can’t ask for anything more from a kid then to dig deep and battle for you," O’Neill said. "Chase is really developing into a much tougher player."
O’Neill said the next step for Budinger and Bayless is to find ways to remain productive against defenses designed to stop them.
Arizona heads into its week-long holiday break on a six-game winning streak—including three consecutive contests where the opponent has failed to score more than 58 points.
O’Neill rewarded the steady improvement and consistent effort with a three-day break before resuming practice on Wednesday at 3 p.m.
"If we didn’t play well this week, I would’ve had no problem keeping our players in Tucson over the break and making them work," O’Neill said. "I know it might sound a little humbug, but it doesn’t take long for a team to lose its edge or conditioning."
O’Neill guaranteed that Wednesday’s practice would be strenuous, as this squad has one of its biggest tests coming up on Saturday at No. 2 Memphis.
The Tigers beat No. 5 Georgetown 85-71 yesterday and currently stand at 10-0 this season.
"We know Memphis is good, but they can be beat," Hill said.
Tipoff on Saturday is scheduled for 8 p.m.
nprevenas@gvnews.com | 547-9747
Game stats
SAN DIEGO ST. (9-3)
Spain 7-16 5-6 20, Wade 3-10 0-0 7, White 3-10 1-2 7, Amoroso 3-9 4-6 11, Williams 1-4 0-1 2, Johnson 0-0 0-0 0, Pastorek 0-1 0-0 0, Thomas 2-3 0-0 4, Gay 0-2 1-2 1, Davis 0-4 6-6 6. Totals 19-59 17-23 58.
ARIZONA (9-2)
Budinger 5-13 2-4 13, Hill 6-7 3-7 15, Brielmaier 2-3 0-0 4, Bayless 7-14 0-0 15, McClellan 3-7 0-0 7, Dillon 0-2 0-0 0, Wise 5-7 0-0 12, Onobun 1-2 0-0 2, Horne 3-4 0-0 6. Totals 32-59 5-11 74.
Halftime—Arizona 32-26. 3-Point Goals—San Diego St. 3-12 (Amoroso 1-1, Wade 1-1, Spain 1-4, Gay 0-1, Williams 0-2, Davis 0-3), Arizona 5-15 (Wise 2-3, Bayless 1-3, McClellan 1-3, Budinger 1-4, Dillon 0-1, Horne 0-1). Fouled Out—None. Rebounds—San Diego St. 36 (Amoroso, Spain 8), Arizona 35 (Hill 10). Assists—San Diego St. 11 (Williams 5), Arizona 21 (McClellan 7). Total Fouls—San Diego St. 14, Arizona 18. A—14,608.
The Arizona Wildcats (9-2) put a stop to that.
Jordan Hill and Jerryd Bayless scored 15 points apiece to lead a balanced scoring attack in Arizona’s 74-58 win over the Aztecs (9-3) at the McKale Center.
"I really like how we played, especially on defense," said head coach Kevin O’Neill. "We’re getting in the habit of contesting every shot.’
The Wildcats held the Aztecs to 32 percent shooting on the afternoon.
Outside of Kyle Spain, who led all scorers with 20 points, the rest of the Aztecs managed only 12 made field-goal attempts.
The Wildcats fell into a 7-2 hole to start the contest, but as they have done all season, they came roaring back with an 8-0 run in 1:40 to take the lead for good.
Nic Wise entered the game at the 13:25 mark and proceeded to put his stamp on the game, finding Hill and Jamelle Horne for easy slams in another 8-0 Wildcat run in the first half.
As a reward for his play, O’Neill inserted Wise into the starting lineup for the second half, where he finally had a chance to show off his shooting stroke.
Wise finished with 12 points and four assists.
"I’m a smaller guy, so I don’t get as many chances to shoot," Wise said. "When I do have an open shot, I better make it."
Hill, Wise’s roommate, enjoyed yet another stellar outing, posting his third double-double in the past four games, where he is averaging 17.3 points and 15.3 rebounds.
"Jordan’s conditioning is getting much better and he is growing into a consistent, accountable player," O’Neill said.
Senior Jawann McClellan was named the Most Valuable Player of the Fiesta Bowl Classic, submitting one of his best all-around efforts of the season.
McClellan scored seven points, pulled down nine rebounds and dished out seven assists while shutting down Lorenzo Wade—San Diego State’s leading scorer.
"I’m so happy Jawann won the MVP," O’Neill said. "He does so much for our team that goes unnoticed. He’s the glue that holds this team together."
Wade came into the contest averaging more than 14 points per game, but the Wildcats held him to four points on 3-10 shooting.
"Lorenzo is a physical specimen, so I knew I’d have my work cut out for me," McClellan said.
Chasee Budinger added 13 points and six rebounds in one of his grittiest efforts since arriving to Tucson.
Budinger, a native of San Diego, battled back spasms throughout yesterday morning’s shoot around, but still found a way to play 35 strong minutes.
"You can’t ask for anything more from a kid then to dig deep and battle for you," O’Neill said. "Chase is really developing into a much tougher player."
O’Neill said the next step for Budinger and Bayless is to find ways to remain productive against defenses designed to stop them.
Arizona heads into its week-long holiday break on a six-game winning streak—including three consecutive contests where the opponent has failed to score more than 58 points.
O’Neill rewarded the steady improvement and consistent effort with a three-day break before resuming practice on Wednesday at 3 p.m.
"If we didn’t play well this week, I would’ve had no problem keeping our players in Tucson over the break and making them work," O’Neill said. "I know it might sound a little humbug, but it doesn’t take long for a team to lose its edge or conditioning."
O’Neill guaranteed that Wednesday’s practice would be strenuous, as this squad has one of its biggest tests coming up on Saturday at No. 2 Memphis.
The Tigers beat No. 5 Georgetown 85-71 yesterday and currently stand at 10-0 this season.
"We know Memphis is good, but they can be beat," Hill said.
Tipoff on Saturday is scheduled for 8 p.m.
nprevenas@gvnews.com | 547-9747
Game stats
SAN DIEGO ST. (9-3)
Spain 7-16 5-6 20, Wade 3-10 0-0 7, White 3-10 1-2 7, Amoroso 3-9 4-6 11, Williams 1-4 0-1 2, Johnson 0-0 0-0 0, Pastorek 0-1 0-0 0, Thomas 2-3 0-0 4, Gay 0-2 1-2 1, Davis 0-4 6-6 6. Totals 19-59 17-23 58.
ARIZONA (9-2)
Budinger 5-13 2-4 13, Hill 6-7 3-7 15, Brielmaier 2-3 0-0 4, Bayless 7-14 0-0 15, McClellan 3-7 0-0 7, Dillon 0-2 0-0 0, Wise 5-7 0-0 12, Onobun 1-2 0-0 2, Horne 3-4 0-0 6. Totals 32-59 5-11 74.
Halftime—Arizona 32-26. 3-Point Goals—San Diego St. 3-12 (Amoroso 1-1, Wade 1-1, Spain 1-4, Gay 0-1, Williams 0-2, Davis 0-3), Arizona 5-15 (Wise 2-3, Bayless 1-3, McClellan 1-3, Budinger 1-4, Dillon 0-1, Horne 0-1). Fouled Out—None. Rebounds—San Diego St. 36 (Amoroso, Spain 8), Arizona 35 (Hill 10). Assists—San Diego St. 11 (Williams 5), Arizona 21 (McClellan 7). Total Fouls—San Diego St. 14, Arizona 18. A—14,608.
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