By Daniel Berk, Assistant Director of Communication Services
When Arizona Wildcats coach Sean Miller met with reporters this preseason, he gushed about his team's depth. From player one to player nine, there wasn't a whole lot of separation. The hope for Miller was that it would create competitive practices and a team that felt comfortable having different contributors each night
So far, so good…
In Thursday's 88-76 win over Boise State at McKale Center, the Wildcats showed off that depth in a big way. Miller's bench outscored Boise State's substitutes 38-3 in the victory. Sophomore Parker Jackson-Cartwright led the bench crew with 14 points in 18 minutes. Allonzo Trier added 13 in 24 minutes and Dusan Ristic and Elliott Pitts combined for 11 points and six rebounds.
The four bench players, spelling starters Ryan Anderson, Mark Tollefsen, Kaleb Tarczewski, Gabe York and Kadeem Allen, combined to shoot 13 of 20 from the floor and four of seven from 3-point range.
“Everyone that played did something to help us win,” Miller said after the victory. “That's something we can build off of in the future…We, as coaches, have to put each player in a spot to be successful. The strength of our team is the depth and versatility. There's not a big drop off between our second and third best player and our ninth.”
On Thursday, the Wildcats got their usual performances from their main players with York scoring 23 points and Anderson grabbing a game-high 15 rebounds to go with eight points. But facing a talented Boise State team that went 25-9 last season and made an NCAA Tournament appearance, the Wildcats needed others to step up and wear the Broncos down.
Enter the quartet of Jackson-Cartwright, Trier, Ristic and Pitts.
“In practice is where coach decides who is going to get minutes,” York said of the deep Wildcats team. “I think we have 10 guys who could play anywhere. That's a great thing about this team. If one guy gets in foul trouble, it's next guy up and there's no drop off.”
Jackson-Cartwright, who has been sharing minutes at the point guard spot with Allen, was 5 of 6 from the field and hit both of his 3-pointers. His 14 points surpassed his previous career high of 11 points set last year versus USC. Thursday's game also marked the first time he made multiple 3-pointers in a game without missing one.
Trier followed up a 23-point performance against Bradley on Monday with another sharp performance against the Broncos. He made four of his five free throws and was four of seven from the field. The freshman has at least eight points in each of his first three collegiate games.
Ristic made the most of his nine minutes, scoring eight points and grabbing five rebounds in a performance that pleased Miller after the game. It continued a strong stretch of play from him. The sophomore had 11 rebounds in the team's first game and 10 points against Bradley before Thursday's game.
Pitts, the elder statesman of the group, hit a key 3-pointer in the second half to extend Arizona's lead from four to seven. The Broncos never got closer than four the rest of the way after Pitts' make.
“We have a lot of guys, a lot of versatile guys who can do a lot of things, and a lot of talented guys who come to compete every day,” Jackson-Cartwright said. “Practices are treated more like games than anything. Everybody has an equal opportunity, and it shows in practice.”
It also showed Thursday in front of 14,644 fans, which pleased the veteran York.
“You're working hard every day in practice, and you have to give everyone an opportunity,” York said. “Right now, (the depth) gives everyone a nice rest to come back in refreshed and play as hard as you can.”
The Wildcats will look to show off their depth again Sunday when they host Northwestern State at 6 p.m.
