ARIZONA BASKETBALL

Arizona Wildcats basketball: UA will be looking out for Ohio State’s Craft, Thomas

Mar 25, 2013, 5:16 PM | Updated: 5:23 pm

After Arizona beat down on Harvard 74-51 to advance to the Sweet 16, the Wildcats didn’t know yet whom they’d be facing in Thursday’s regional semifinal in Los Angeles. It would either be 10-seed Iowa State or 2-seed Ohio State.

Still, assistant coach James Whitford couldn’t help talking about OSU point guard Aaron Craft.

“They have a great point guard in Aaron Craft,” Whitford said.

“He’s not a great scorer, but he gets everyone involved. He plays really hard, he’s a great competitor, he hustles, he’s a great passer and he really runs their team.”

Craft gave some credence to Whitford’s early scouting report on Sunday afternoon.

He scored 18 points with six assists, but it was a last-second, game-winning 3-pointer that carried the Buckeyes into a matchup with the Wildcats. It was OSU’s 10th straight win, and will mark its fourth straight appearance in the Sweet 16.

“The moment is definitely bigger than me,” Craft said in a post-game press conference. “As a team, we did a great job down the stretch finding a way to hold on. It just happened to be in my hands at the end of the game.”

On 18 occasions this season, Craft scored less than 10 points.

“I think we know I’m a defensive guy,” Craft said. “So I think I’m in the backyard three, two, one, taking a charge, or something like that.”

That’s the kind of player who can prove to be a thorn in Mark Lyons’ side on Thursday. A frustrated Lyons is one that starts forcing up contested shots and turning the ball over, so the matchup is certainly one to watch.

Against former Wildcat Lamont “Momo” Jones and Iona in Friday’s second round matchup, Craft was a pest. He had six steals, Iona had 19 turnovers and the Buckeyes won 95-70.

“He’s the best defensive player in the Big 10 and one of the best in the country,” Whitford said.

If Lyons can play like he did in Arizona’s first two tournament games — he had a career-high 27 points against Harvard, 23 against Belmont in the second round — Arizona should be OK.

“He’s just on right now,” Kevin Parrom said of Lyons. “He’s taking his shots and they’re going in.”

Here are a few more storylines to follow for Thursday’s game at Staples Center.

Battle of the Coaches

Get ready for the onslaught of Thad Matta and Sean Miller stories. The two are close friends — Miller reportedly texted Matta on Saturday night, “I’ll be waiting for you in LA.” Matta and Miller coached alongside each other as assistants on Herb Sendek’s staff at Miami (Ohio) in 1994-95.

After that, Miller went to Pittsburgh and North Caroline State as an assistant while Matta relocated to Butler as an assistant and head coach for five years. In 2001, Matta was hired as head coach at Xavier and hired Miller as the Musketeer’s first-ever associate head coach. When Matta left Xavier for Ohio State in 2004, Miller replaced him as head honcho, and the rest is history.

Matta had this to say about Miller and Arizona in a postgame interview with CBS Sports: “I know this: I know we’re playing the best team on the west coast in Arizona. Sean and I go way back, I’ve seen them play all year long and they are the best team on the West Coast. Now we gotta go out there and see what we can do.”

Stopping DeShaun

If his performance this season is any indication, you can’t stop OSU’s DeShaun Thomas.

He’s a 6-foot-7 forward and Ohio State’s best shooter, scorer and rebounder. He gets 19.6 points per game, 6.1 rebounds and 2.0 3-pointers per game, and has only scored less than 15 points three times this year — in 35 games.

And it’s not like he even struggles in OSU losses. In the Buckeyes’ seven losses, he scored 20.7 points per game and he’s had seven games with 24 points or more. You get the picture.

At 6-foot-7 Solomon Hill is the best bet to matchup with Thomas on defense, with maybe a little 6-foot-8 Brandon Ashley or the 6-foot-6 Kevin Parrom mixed in.

&#149This story was courtesy of the Arizona Daily Wildcat.

Harvard's Christian Webster, left puts a shot past Arizona's Michael Hall in the first half during a third-round game in the NCAA men's college basketball tournament in Salt Lake City on Saturday, March 23, 2013. (AP Photo/George Frey)
Harvard's Wesley Saunders, left, has his shot blocked by Arizona's Kaleb Tarczewski during the first half during a third-round game in the NCAA men's college basketball tournament in Salt Lake City Saturday, March 23, 2013. (AP Photo/George Frey)
An Arizona trainer and coach Sean Miller, right, look over injured player Grant Jarrett during the first half against Harvard in a third-round game in the NCAA men's college basketball tournament in Salt Lake City on Saturday, March 23, 2013. (AP Photo/George Frey)
Harvard's Siyani Chambers, left, passes the ball around Arizona's Jordin Mayes, center, and Brandon Ashley in the first half during a third-round game in the NCAA men's college basketball tournament in Salt Lake City on Saturday, March 23, 2013. (AP Photo/George Frey)
Harvard's Christian Webster, left puts a shot up past Arizona defenders, including Kaleb Tarczewski, right, in the first half during a third-round game in the NCAA men's college basketball tournament in Salt Lake City on Saturday, March 23, 2013. (AP Photo/George Frey)
Harvard's Siyani Chambers, left, passes to his teammate Jonah Travis, right, as Arizona's Jordin Mayes, second from left, Brandon Ashley (21) and Kaleb Tarczewski (35) defend during the first half in a third-round game in the NCAA men's college basketball tournament in Salt Lake City on Saturday, March 23, 2013. (AP Photo/George Frey)
Harvard's Siyani Chambers, left, reaches for a loose ball in front of Arizona's Mark Lyons (2) during the first half in a third-round game in the NCAA men's college basketball tournament in Salt Lake City, Saturday, March 23, 2013. (AP Photo/Rick Bowmer)
Arizona's Mark Lyons, lower left, reaches for a loose ball with Harvard's Laurent Rivard (0) and Siyani Chambers (1) in the first half during a third-round game in the NCAA men's college basketball tournament in Salt Lake City on Saturday, March 23, 2013. (AP Photo/Rick Bowmer)
Arizona's Kaleb Tarczewski shoots over Harvard's Kenyatta Smith (25) in the first half during a third-round game in the NCAA men's college basketball tournament in Salt Lake City Saturday, March 23, 2013. (AP Photo/Rick Bowmer)
Harvard's Kenyatta Smith, left, has his shot blacked by Arizona's Kaleb Tarczewski in the first half during a third-round game in the NCAA men's college basketball tournament in Salt Lake City on Saturday, March 23, 2013. (AP Photo/George Frey)
Harvard's Christian Webster, right, drives into Arizona's Kevin Parrom in the first half during a third-round game in the NCAA men's college basketball tournament in Salt Lake City on Saturday, March 23, 2013. (AP Photo/George Frey)
Harvard's Christian Webster shoots in front of an Arizona defender during the first half of a third-round game in the NCAA men's college basketball tournament in Salt Lake City on Saturday, March 23, 2013. (AP Photo/George Frey)
Arizona coach Sean Miller shouts to his team in the first half during a third-round game against Harvard in the NCAA men's college basketball tournament in Salt Lake City Saturday, March 23, 2013. (AP Photo/Rick Bowmer)
Arizona coach Sean Miller talks to his players during a timeout in the first half against Harvard during a third-round game in the NCAA men's college basketball tournament in Salt Lake City, Saturday, March 23, 2013. (AP Photo/George Frey)
Arizona's Solomon Hill (44) dunks in front of Harvard's Laurent Rivard (0) in the first half during a third-round game in the NCAA men's college basketball tournament in Salt Lake City Saturday, March 23, 2013. (AP Photo/Rick Bowmer)
Arizona's Nick Johnson (13) lays the ball up next to Harvard's Christian Webster in the first half during a third-round game in the NCAA men's college basketball tournament in Salt Lake City, Saturday, March 23, 2013. (AP Photo/Rick Bowmer)
Harvard coach Tommy Amaker shouts to his team in the first half during a third-round game against Arizona in the NCAA men's college basketball tournament in Salt Lake City on Saturday, March 23, 2013. (AP Photo/Rick Bowmer)
Arizona's Mark Lyons goes to the basket in the first half during a third-round game against Harvard in the NCAA men's college basketball tournament in Salt Lake City, Saturday, March 23, 2013. (AP Photo/Rick Bowmer)
Harvard's Siyani Chambers walks off the court at the end of a third-round game against Arizona in the NCAA men's college basketball tournament in Salt Lake City Saturday, March 23, 2013. Arizona defeated Harvard 74-51. (AP Photo/Rick Bowmer)
Harvard's Christian Webster buries his face in a towel at the end of Harvard's third-round game against Arizona in the NCAA men's college basketball tournament in Salt Lake City on Saturday, March 23, 2013. Arizona won 74-51. (AP Photo/Rick Bowmer)
Arizona's Mark Lyons shoots between Harvard's Kenyatta Smith, right, and Laurent Rivard, left, in the second half during a third-round game in the NCAA men's college basketball tournament in Salt Lake City on Saturday, March 23, 2013. Arizona defeated Harvard 74-51. (AP Photo/George Frey)
Arizona's Mark Lyons shoots over Harvard's Jonah Travis in the second half during a third-round game in the NCAA men's college basketball tournament in Salt Lake City Saturday, March 23, 2013. Arizona defeated Harvard 74-51. (AP Photo/George Frey)
Arizona's Mark Lyons shoots in front of Harvard's Wesley Saunders during the second half of a third-round game in the NCAA men's college basketball tournament in Salt Lake City on Saturday, March 23, 2013. Arizona Beat Harvard 74-51. (AP Photo/George Frey)
Arizona's Mark Lyons, center puts a shot over Harvard's Wesley Saunders, back, as Laurent Rivard, left, and Christian Webster look on in the second half during a third-round game in the men's NCAA college basketball tournament in Salt Lake City on Saturday, March 23, 2013. Arizona beat Harvard 74-51. (AP Photo/George Frey)
Arizona coach Sean Miller urges his players on in the second half during a third-round game in the NCAA men's college basketball tournament in Salt Lake City on Saturday, March 23, 2013. Arizona beat Harvard 74-51. (AP Photo/George Frey)
Arizona's Brandon Ashley, center, goes over the back of Harvard's Laurent Rivard during the second half during a third-round game in the NCAA men's college basketball tournament in Salt Lake City on Saturday, March 23, 2013. Arizona defeated Harvard 74-51. (AP Photo/George Frey)
Arizona's Mark Lyons shoots between Harvard's Kenyatta Smith, right, and Laurent Rivard, left, in the second half during a third-round game in the NCAA men's college basketball tournament in Salt Lake City on Saturday, March 23, 2013. Arizona defeated Harvard 74-51. (AP Photo/George Frey)

Comments

Comment guidelines: No name-calling, personal attacks, profanity, or insults. Please keep the conversation civil and help us moderate comments by reporting abuse.
comments powered by Disqus

Arizona Basketball

Azuolas Tubelis #10 and Kylan Boswell #4 of the Arizona Wildcats and Luther Muhammad #1 of the Ariz...

Stephen Gugliociello

Pac-12 plots points for Arizona, ASU men’s basketball schedule

The schedule for the 2023-24 Pac-12 men's basketball conference season was announced on Thursday, but no firm dates are set yet. 

11 days ago

ACC commissioner Jim Phillips...

Associated Press

ACC moves forward to add Stanford, Cal and SMU

The Atlantic Coast Conference has cleared the way for Stanford, California and SMU to join the league next year, per the AP.

24 days ago

ACC logo...

Associated Press

UNC pushes back on ACC possibly adding Pac-12’s Stanford, Cal

ACC presidents and chancellors are scheduled to meet Friday morning to again consider adding Stanford, Cal and SMU.

25 days ago

United States center Jaren Jackson Jr. and Jordan's Rondae Hollis-Jefferson...

Associated Press

FIBA World Cup: USA Basketball powers past Jordan team led by former Wildcat Hollis-Jefferson

Another game, another blowout for the U.S. at the Basketball World Cup. And now the competition figures to get considerably tougher.

26 days ago

Big 12...

Associated Press

Big 12 numbers: Evolving conference has more schools, students and miles to travel

The Big 12 Conference is bigger than ever before with 14 schools spread across eight states, and those numbers will increase next year.

1 month ago

West Virginia fan Terry Keenan...

Kevin Zimmerman

Big 12 and Pac-12 realignment leads to longer travel but new visits for fans

Fans of Big 12, and those of Pac-12 teams joining it after this season, see travel challenges but are excited to visit new venues and cities.

1 month ago

Arizona Wildcats basketball: UA will be looking out for Ohio State’s Craft, Thomas