Arizona Wildcats basketball: On long trips, Finland's optimism, Kadeem's defense
- Updated
Seen and heard at McKale Center during Arizona's 86-35 win over College of Idaho.
- Zack Rosenblatt Arizona Daily Star
- Updated
College of Idaho traveled far for Tuesday night’s exhibition game — it’s more than 1,000 miles from Caldwell, Idaho, to Tucson — but among the travelers in the building, they didn’t come the farthest.
That would be Matti Morttinen, a journalist from Finland who traveled more than 5,000 miles to watch Arizona freshman Lauri Markkanen.
Morttinen writes for the Aamulehti newspaper in Tampere, Finland, a town approximately the same distance from Markkanen’s hometown of Vantaa as Tucson is from Phoenix.
Finland is optimistic for its homegrown star. Morttinen told a local TV reporter that Markkanen is the most significant prospect out of Finland ever, and that includes Hanno Mottola, a Finnish legend who had a standout career at Utah and played three seasons in the NBA with the Atlanta Hawks.
- Zack Rosenblatt Arizona Daily Star
- Updated
Before the game, Morttinen tweeted: “Vielä terveiset kotimaahan ennen näytösottelua UA vs. Idaho. Lauri Markkaselta odotetaan ainakin 40 pisteen iltaa.”
According to Google Translate, that last part translates to “Markkanen is expected (to have) at least a 40-point night.”
Markkanen didn’t quite do that, but he quickly acquitted himself well in his college debut. Markkanen scored the UA’s first four points and finished — Finnished? —with eight points and 10 rebounds in 27 minutes.
The Wildcats haven’t had a 40-point scorer at McKale Center since Khalid Reeves did it against Michigan in 1993. The last opponent to score 40 at McKale was BYU’s Jimmer Fredette, who dropped 49 on Arizona in 2009.
In the first half, a Markkanen dunk gave Arizona a 24-3 lead. Or, as Matti Morttinen tweeted in Finnish: “donkit.”
- Zack Rosenblatt Arizona Daily Star
- Updated
5: Players Arizona has lost, to varying degrees, since April when guard Justin Simon announced his transfer to St. John’s. Talbott Denny tore his ACL, Terrance Ferguson chose to play professionally in Australia, Allonzo Trier’s status for the season is still in question, Chance Comanche was suspended indefinitely on Tuesday for academic reasons and Ray Smith appeared to reinjure his leg on Tuesday.
- Zack Rosenblatt Arizona Daily Star
- Updated
Anyone who has experienced monsoon season in Tucson knows this: When it rains, it pours.
It was pouring in McKale Center on Tuesday night.
Trier didn’t suit up for the game and Comanche’s suspension was made public just five minutes before tip-off.
Smith, who missed his freshman season with a right knee injury, checked into the game in the first half, and after 45 seconds landed weirdly on an ankle and left for the locker room.
He quickly returned, and checked back into the game, and then shortly after left again.
Smith went to the floor again with 12:39 left, and this time needed help into the locker room.
He finished the game with four points and two rebounds in 10 minutes of action.
“I don’t have any words to make it better than it is,” UA coach Sean Miller said of Smith’s setback. “It’s really awful.”
- Zack Rosenblatt Arizona Daily Star
- Updated
College of Idaho was paid $25,000 for Tuesday’s game, which is normal for an exhibition game. Coach Scott Garson told the Star last week that the school would take home about half of that after travel and other expenses.
The team flew into Phoenix on Sunday from Boise, Idaho. Their “charter”? A nonstop Southwest Airlines flight.
According to Garson, it’s the only time this year they’ll fly for a road game unless they make it to the NAIA Tournament.
This game — or the planning for it — wasn’t Garson’s first interaction with UA coach Sean Miller. Garson was an assistant coach at UCLA from 2006-13, and he remembers specifically interacting with Miller while on the recruiting trail, watching former Bruins guard Zach LaVine.
“He’s a great guy to talk to,” Garson said. “He really cares about other coaches. … He’s not just totally engulfed in what his team is doing.”
- Zack Rosenblatt Arizona Daily Star
- Updated
“I’ve not seen a better defensive player than him.” — Sean Miller, raving about UA guard Kadeem Allen, who collected two blocks and seven steals.
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- Zack Rosenblatt Arizona Daily Star
College of Idaho traveled far for Tuesday night’s exhibition game — it’s more than 1,000 miles from Caldwell, Idaho, to Tucson — but among the travelers in the building, they didn’t come the farthest.
That would be Matti Morttinen, a journalist from Finland who traveled more than 5,000 miles to watch Arizona freshman Lauri Markkanen.
Morttinen writes for the Aamulehti newspaper in Tampere, Finland, a town approximately the same distance from Markkanen’s hometown of Vantaa as Tucson is from Phoenix.
Finland is optimistic for its homegrown star. Morttinen told a local TV reporter that Markkanen is the most significant prospect out of Finland ever, and that includes Hanno Mottola, a Finnish legend who had a standout career at Utah and played three seasons in the NBA with the Atlanta Hawks.
- Zack Rosenblatt Arizona Daily Star
Before the game, Morttinen tweeted: “Vielä terveiset kotimaahan ennen näytösottelua UA vs. Idaho. Lauri Markkaselta odotetaan ainakin 40 pisteen iltaa.”
According to Google Translate, that last part translates to “Markkanen is expected (to have) at least a 40-point night.”
Markkanen didn’t quite do that, but he quickly acquitted himself well in his college debut. Markkanen scored the UA’s first four points and finished — Finnished? —with eight points and 10 rebounds in 27 minutes.
The Wildcats haven’t had a 40-point scorer at McKale Center since Khalid Reeves did it against Michigan in 1993. The last opponent to score 40 at McKale was BYU’s Jimmer Fredette, who dropped 49 on Arizona in 2009.
In the first half, a Markkanen dunk gave Arizona a 24-3 lead. Or, as Matti Morttinen tweeted in Finnish: “donkit.”
- Zack Rosenblatt Arizona Daily Star
5: Players Arizona has lost, to varying degrees, since April when guard Justin Simon announced his transfer to St. John’s. Talbott Denny tore his ACL, Terrance Ferguson chose to play professionally in Australia, Allonzo Trier’s status for the season is still in question, Chance Comanche was suspended indefinitely on Tuesday for academic reasons and Ray Smith appeared to reinjure his leg on Tuesday.
- Zack Rosenblatt Arizona Daily Star
Anyone who has experienced monsoon season in Tucson knows this: When it rains, it pours.
It was pouring in McKale Center on Tuesday night.
Trier didn’t suit up for the game and Comanche’s suspension was made public just five minutes before tip-off.
Smith, who missed his freshman season with a right knee injury, checked into the game in the first half, and after 45 seconds landed weirdly on an ankle and left for the locker room.
He quickly returned, and checked back into the game, and then shortly after left again.
Smith went to the floor again with 12:39 left, and this time needed help into the locker room.
He finished the game with four points and two rebounds in 10 minutes of action.
“I don’t have any words to make it better than it is,” UA coach Sean Miller said of Smith’s setback. “It’s really awful.”
- Zack Rosenblatt Arizona Daily Star
College of Idaho was paid $25,000 for Tuesday’s game, which is normal for an exhibition game. Coach Scott Garson told the Star last week that the school would take home about half of that after travel and other expenses.
The team flew into Phoenix on Sunday from Boise, Idaho. Their “charter”? A nonstop Southwest Airlines flight.
According to Garson, it’s the only time this year they’ll fly for a road game unless they make it to the NAIA Tournament.
This game — or the planning for it — wasn’t Garson’s first interaction with UA coach Sean Miller. Garson was an assistant coach at UCLA from 2006-13, and he remembers specifically interacting with Miller while on the recruiting trail, watching former Bruins guard Zach LaVine.
“He’s a great guy to talk to,” Garson said. “He really cares about other coaches. … He’s not just totally engulfed in what his team is doing.”
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