Indiana’s 2022-23 non-conference schedule will be finalized on July 1, with Inside the Hall looking at all 11 opponents team by team. Today: Arizona.
Indiana won’t be resting after facing North Carolina at the end of November, as they are scheduled to play Arizona on December 10 in Las Vegas. A two-tiered program.
Arizona is #16 on ESPN’s preseason top 25 rankings as of July 26, and for good reason.
The Wildcats are having one of the most successful seasons in program history, finishing the 2021-22 season 18-2 in Pac-12 play and 33-4 overall. Led by first-year head coach Tommy Lloyd, they won the Pac-12 Tournament, earned the No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament, and ultimately lost to Houston in the Sweet Sixteen.
Lloyd was named 2022 National Coach of the Year by AP, NABC and USBWA and was also named Pac-12 Coach of the Year. All of these awards were awarded as Lloyd and his team set new program records for blocks his shots (210) and total assists (726) and led the nation in assists per game and assists per game (19.6). It was a matter of course. The Wildcats also finished the season in the top 10 in the nation for multiple stats, including field goal percentage, rebounding his margin, and total blocks, to name a few.
Under Lloyd, Arizona developed a faster pace of play and strategy compared to Gonzaga. This should come as no surprise, as Lloyd spent 22 years as an assistant coach for the Bulldogs before heading to Arizona in 2021.
Like Gonzaga, Arizona has also become a landing site for top international players, with many of its rosters made up of international players. Despite losing three top performers in the 2022 NBA Draft – Benedict Maturin, Darren Terry and Christian Koroko – the Wildcats have maintained a solid core and players that will only strengthen it. is obtained.
One of the biggest news for the Wildcats came in June when 5-star point guard Kiran Boswell (originally in the 2023 class) was reclassified and announced his intention to join the Wildcats for the 2022-23 season. . Boswell, who averaged 13.8 points and 3.5 rebounds per game last season, is expected to be a very strong Arizona backcourt.
Four-year Texas guard Courtney Ramey will also appear in Arizona’s backcourt to fill the void left by retired players, especially Terry, who made key defensive contributions. Ramey will be joined by Cedric Henderson Jr., a Campbell move who averaged 14 points and 5.6 rebounds last season. Both players cited Arizona’s fast tempo as an influencing factor in their decision to move to Tucson.
Two freshmen join the Wildcats from abroad, Serbia’s Filip Borovikanin and Estonia’s Henri Wiesar. The 6-foot-8 Borovikanin recently played for Belgrade and averaged 20 points and nine rebounds per game. He is also expected to average double digits while playing in the program.
Beezer isn’t the only 7-footer on the team, and Arizona’s height will prove challenging for any opponent, including Indiana. Umarvaro and Arizona incoming freshman Dylan Anderson, his Gatorade Player of the Year, is also a 7-footer. Many other wildcats he is over 6ft 6 tall.
Arizona has been able to maintain a solid, tall core, so they have multiple players to watch as they could continue their strong performance last season or be poised to break out this season. .
Last season’s Wildcats’ main point guard, Kerr Cryisa (9.7 points average), will be riding him back into his position. Also returning is 6-foot-11-inch forward Azuolaz Tuberis, who averaged 13.9 points per game, his second-highest on the team. However, both had somewhat streaks last season, with Tuberis sidelined in the summer with a wrist injury.
Two returning players who did not stand out last season but could make a comeback this season are Pele Larsson and Adama Bal. Larsson was named his sixth player for the 2021-22 Pac-12 after working on his development all season, and over the summer he gained even more experience in the FIBA World Cup European Qualifiers. Bal, who had limited appearances in his freshman year leading up to the Pac-12 and his NCAA Tournament, was impressive at the FIBA U20 European Championships abroad and was ready to come off the bench if needed. rice field.
Given the size of the Wildcats, there could be a big divergence between them and the Hoosiers on the floor. At 6’10, Logan Duncombe would be the tallest player in Cream and Crimson at 6’9, along with Trace Jackson-Davies and Malik Renaud. Jackson-Davis struggled against players taller than him last season, but he needs a change to face the Wildcats and the other Hoosiers need to step up.
Indiana may try to play on the perimeter and avoid Arizona’s large and experienced backcourt. But to do that, he needs to shoot better across the arc and reduce turnovers. Those two things Indiana struggled with last season.
But one thing is for sure, Indiana wanted a tight schedule outside of conferences. The team makes it happen.
Submit to: Arizona Wildcats
