Breakdown: Wildcats breeze past Colorado

The Lowdown: Behind double-doubles from the
frontcourt duo of Solomon Hill and Jesse Perry, the
Arizona Wildcats blew the Colorado Buffaloes out of
Tucson, 71-57. Down the stretch, the Wildcats could not be
stopped on the boards, on either end of the floor.

With only seven players in the rotation, the ‘Cats leaned
on their defense, limiting the Buffaloes to only 28 points
in the first half and 29 in the second half.

The team did a great job with perimeter defense forcing
lots of bad, contested threes resulting in the defense
allowing 37.3% shooting. The Arizona defense has ratcheted
up as of late and Colorado was just another casualty. A
12-5 run to close the first half was enough to put the
Wildcats up for good and they coasted till the final
buzzer.

What went right for Arizona? Offensive rebounds a
plenty. The team – errr, Hill and Perry combined for more
offensive rebounds than the entire Colorado team. Their
eight offensive rebounds (four apiece) ended up being the
difference in the game.

When it was over? Solomon Hill was in the right
place at the right time grabbing his fourth and final
offensive rebound with 2:27 to go on a put-back dunk. That
put the Wildcats up 64-54 and got the crowd on their feet.

Who stepped up for Arizona? Hill was an ironman
playing 37 minutes and posting the previously mentioned
double-double, but also led the team in assists and
steals. His leadership has been noticeable as of late
demanding the ball in crucial spots and adding tough
rebounding.

Who needed to step up? Coach Miller needed to step
up as a coach with this roster. This Colorado team is
better than initially advertised and with only seven
players getting action Thursday, it was on Miller to put
them in a position to succeed.

Stat of the Game: The Wildcats starters averaged an
astounding 32.8 minutes per player. Every starter played
30 minutes including Hill playing a game high 37 minutes.
With a depleted bench the minutes fall heavy on the
starters and they are answering the bell during this three
game win streak.

They said it: “The team started to find the key to
rebounds tonight, we took chances and we all played
aggressively. As long as our guys come out and play the
way that they did tonight, we should be okay for the rest
of the season.” – forward Solomon Hill

What it means: Arizona knocked off another team
between them and the top of the conference standings. Last
week California and Stanford were ahead of them, and they
beat both of them on the road. At home on Thursday night
the Wildcats leapfrogged Colorado and into third in the
Pac-12 with an 8-4 record, 17-8 overall.

What’s Next: After hosting the Utah Utes on
Saturday in Tucson, the bags will be packed for a trip to
the Pacific Northwest to take on Washington State next
Thursday and the Washington Huskies on Saturday.

Follow @Vincemarotta