ARIZONA BASKETBALL

SI.com: Arizona basketball’s Kaleb Tarczewski is a top-20 big

Oct 8, 2015, 6:28 PM

Arizona center Kaleb Tarczewski, left, battles for the ball with Ohio State forward Marc Loving dur...

Arizona center Kaleb Tarczewski, left, battles for the ball with Ohio State forward Marc Loving during an NCAA college basketball tournament round of 32 game in Portland, Ore., Saturday, March 21, 2015. (AP Photo/Craig Mitchelldyer)

(AP Photo/Craig Mitchelldyer)

Arizona center Kaleb Tarczewski’s stock as a pro prospect may have fallen off as his college career has grown old, but the college basketball community doesn’t view his experience as anything but a positive.

Need proof?

The Wildcats’ senior center, who this season can become the program’s winningest player, was named in Sports Illustrated’s list of the top 20 big men in college hoops.

Writes the list’s author, Jeremy Woo:

It feels like this former five-star recruit has been in college forever, partially because of all the stars that have come and gone around him at Arizona in the past three years. Now one of the team’s leaders, Tarzcewski is in line for an expanded offensive role and has the pedigree to handle it. Though he’s never averaged double-digit points, he’s a career 56.8% shooter with the physical tools and approach to pull it all together as a senior. It looks like his time has finally arrived, and the Wildcats will certainly hope so as they establish a new offensive pecking order among a group of talented yet mostly untested young players.

Tarczewski’s ranking as a high school recruit set expectations quite high, and he’s been on a number of teams that went deep in the postseason behind several high NBA Draft picks, including Stanley Johnson and Aaron Gordon.

Maybe Tarczewski hasn’t earned the credit for buoying Arizona’s consistently elite defensive teams.

Arizona head coach Sean Miller certainly would think that’s the case. At Arizona’s media day, Miller voiced his frustration over how many questions he’s taken about Tarczewski’s career going into its fourth and final season.

In 2015-16, the spotlight is fully on Tarczewski to lead a young team that will also lean on a number of freshmen and transfers.

But no matter his future, the senior center has already accomplished much. Tarczewski is getting some love this preseason.

Also appearing on SI.com’s list are highly-regarded freshmen Ben Simmons of LSU, Diamond Stone of Maryland and Skal Labissiere of Kentucky.

This season, Tarczewski and the Wildcats will face at least four other players on the list. Cal freshman Ivan Rabb — who chose to join the Golden Bears over the Wildcats — Utah sophomore Jakob Poeltl, and the Gonzaga duo of center Przemek Karnowski and Domantas Sabonis will all square off against Arizona.

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SI.com: Arizona basketball’s Kaleb Tarczewski is a top-20 big