Arizona Vs NAU 🏀 Game Preview/Discussion Thread 11/11 7pm ESPN+

[WILD]

Arizona Vs NAU 🏀 Game Preview/Discussion Thread 11/11 7pm ESPN+

The No. 13 Arizona Wildcats (2-0) enter McKale Center on November 11 with sky-high expectations, set to host Northern Arizona in an in-state rivalry that tips off at 7 p.m. MST on ESPN+. Arizona opened eyes nationwide with a stunning 93-87 upset over defending national champion and No. 3 Florida on November 4 in Las Vegas, fueled by five-star freshman Koa Peat's historic 30-point, 7-rebound, 5-assist, 3-steal debut—the first such stat line in a college game since at least 2002-03—before cruising to a 93-67 home win over Utah Tech on November 7, where Peat added 18 points on efficient 6-of-7 shooting alongside Brayden Burries' matching 18. Fifth-year head coach Tommy Lloyd's dynamic lineup, averaging a blistering 93.0 points per game while forcing 15 turnovers per contest, features returnees like center Motiejus Krivas (12.0 PPG, 7.0 RPG) and guard Jaden Bradley (13.5 PPG, 3.5 APG), plus Harvard transfer Evan Nelson's perimeter pop (5-of-8 from three). The Wildcats, who ranked fourth nationally in scoring last season at 87.3 PPG, own a dominant 102-27 all-time series lead over NAU, highlighted by a 29-point demolition in Lloyd's 2021 debut. "Koa's a special player who held his own against All-Americans right out of the gate," Lloyd said post-Florida. "But NAU brings that state pride—we've got to stay locked in."

Northern Arizona (0-0) launches its season under sixth-year coach Shane Burcar with a sharpshooting backcourt and lessons from last year's 18-16 CBI quarterfinal run. Guards Trent McCarthy (14.2 PPG, 3.8 APG) and Isaiah Lewis (12.1 PPG, 4.2 RPG) drive an offense that topped the Big Sky in three-point accuracy (35.0%) a season ago, supported by forward Carson Towne's double-double threat (9.8 PPG, 7.1 RPG). The Lumberjacks prepped with a 30-point exhibition rout of a local JUCO and boast five NABC Team Academic Excellence Awards in six years under Burcar. "Arizona's loaded with talent, but we're built to compete and knock down shots from deep—this is our shot to steal some headlines," Burcar said at media days. Models predict a Wildcats blowout (Massey: 82-64), but NAU's 8.2 made threes per game from 2024-25 could force Arizona to grind if the freshmen encounter early resistance.

Let's talk about the Wildcats Vs Lumberjacks.

BEARDOWN!!!

Live stream links
https://www.youtube.com/live/ddzKhsjxTdA?si=DZ3jpYEC9kBGsr0s

Predict the score & win $100 ➡️ Click Here

Get A FREE Premium BDU membership Register Here

[WILD]

https://x.com/Zona_Briggs/status/1988354137931870690?t=mRUMfohxQzjRJuba4hda9Q&s=19

[arxpert]

Concerning how we underperform.

Makes me wonder why Tommy keeps ducking Grand Canyon now.

[KansasCityCats]

Nice analysis. For actual UA fans' discussion:

Arizona doubled NAU's assist total, out rebounded by 13, limited the Jacks to 32% FG, hit our FT's and shot well from deep.

If the primary contributors weren't pulled early, Arizona would have easily won by 50.

Good performance by the Cats.

[arxpert]

Nice analysis. For actual UA fans' discussion:

Arizona doubled NAU's assist total, out rebounded by 13, limited the Jacks to 32% FG, hit our FT's and shot well from deep.

If the primary contributors weren't pulled early, Arizona would have easily won by 50.

Good performance by the Cats.

If that were true, then NAU wouldn't have been playing as well as they did with the primary contributors in.

Cupcake mentality took over. Tommy didn't coach for the early kill.

Very concerning and again makes one wonder why Tommy refuses to schedule Grand Canyon at this point.

This team doesn't need easy games when it already has major problems defensively so it is a good thing that we are starting with UCLA and not UConn because UCLA will force us to play their game as they always do.

Was it not just last year that Tommy got lulled to sleep down the stretch and blew the game?

Hoping for more "give a damn" this time around.

[KansasCityCats]

The "early kill" was limited our opponents to 17 points in the first half, which is pretty impressive from a team that apparently "doesn't like to play defense" (according to you).

[arxpert]

The "early kill" was limited our opponents to 17 points in the first half, which is pretty impressive from a team that apparently "doesn't like to play defense" (according to you).

The measuring stick is not adequate in your example. UCLA is not good at all despite what their ranking is. If they can't handle UCLA then there is no point to defending their lack of Defense.

[KansasCityCats]

Why?  I referenced the game where we apparently considered NAU a cupcake.  Holding any opponent to 17 points is an accomplishment, and a perfect measuring stick that we went for the kill, immediately following the tip-off.

One matchup like UCLA doesn't define our season and/or mentality as a team.  Even when we play well (Florida), you're searching for flaws.  This team will lose plenty of games this year because we're young and playing a brutal schedule.  As long as the players continue to hustle and show enthusiasm, we'll have a chance to finally make a Final Four.

[arxpert]

Why?  I referenced the game where we apparently considered NAU a cupcake.  Holding any opponent to 17 points is an accomplishment, and a perfect measuring stick that we went for the kill, immediately following the tip-off.

One matchup like UCLA doesn't define our season and/or mentality as a team.  Even when we play well (Florida), you're searching for flaws.  This team will lose plenty of games this year because we're young and playing a brutal schedule.  As long as the players continue to hustle and show enthusiasm, we'll have a chance to finally make a Final Four.

NAU is a cupcake and the players treated it like one. It was not handled well. Sloppy. I won't be shocked if we suffer from turnovers tonight vs UCLA.

UCLA is not good. We will likely make them look good unless Tommy can reel in this team and get them locked in defensively.

Florida is not that good either. We match up well against them. We had Bradley, they had Boogie. If it were Clayton instead, it may have been down to the last bucket in a different way.

Uconn is looming. That is a slightly better test because they boast an Ogre off their bench that is better than Krivas so the Good Hurley has a chance to expose us, but I think we will have a puncher's chance of staying in the game vs them. It really depends on how the traveling goes from Cali to Storrs. How healthy we can stay and if Morale is high.