The Arizona Wildcats may get their point guard back just in time for Pac-12 Conference play.
UA coach Sean Miller said Tuesday that Parker Jackson-Cartwright returned to practice on Monday for the first time since suffering a high ankle sprain on Nov. 30 against Texas Southern. The typical recovery timeframe for the injury is four to eight weeks, and Wednesday is exactly the four-week mark.
“We’re taking it slow,” Miller said. “He had some pain but the pain continues to improve. We allowed him to do a few competitive segments and it’s important for us not to put him in harm’s way or jeopardize his recovery.
“We initially thought it would be more like eight weeks. That’s far from the (case with Jackson-Cartwright) but whether it will be this weekend remains to be seen.”
Jackson-Cartwright will make the Wildcats’ trip to the Bay Area on Thursday and Miller said it’s possible his status might even change between UA’s games at Cal on Friday and its game with Stanford on Sunday.
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Miller also said all the Wildcats returned from their holiday break and reported on time to practice. Arizona had a four-day break and was scheduled for a Sunday night workout to kick off preparations for the Pac-12 season.
Without Jackson-Cartwright, the Wildcats have had only seven scholarship players available, no true point guards and only three perimeter players for their three perimeter spots. They have also been without guard Allonzo Trier all season because of an NCAA suspension.
Senior Kadeem Allen has played the bulk of the minutes at point guard but has worn down late in some games, while freshman Kobi Simmons has played both guard spots. Arizona has also been forced to put 7-foot freshman Lauri Markkanen at small forward on some occasions because it has no backup perimeter players.
But Miller said again Tuesday he hopes the Wildcats will be better off in the long run because of the extra experience they gained from the adversity so far this season.
“What you really hope happens is the development of team chemistry,” Miller said. “It’s been difficult to get a clear understanding of what that is because we’ve shuffled so many people around. We’re not in a groove. We’re not maybe where we want to be. But the flipside is if we get whole team back, they’ll be further along and more confident than maybe otherwise they would have.”
Then again, the UA isn’t the only team in the Pac-12 adjusting on the fly to absences. California, its opponent Friday to open league play, has been dealing with injuries to standout forward Ivan Rabb (foot), wing Jabari Bird (back) and center Kameron Rooks (knee).
While Bird and Rabb have returned, Cal coach Cuonzo Martin said he’s not sure when Rooks will return, even though he has been working out.
Meanwhile, Oregon was without last season’s leading scorer, Dillon Brooks, for the preseason and first three games of the season because of a foot injury, while current leading scorer Chris Boucher is dealing with an ankle injury.
Brooks was under a minutes limitation early, and coach Dana Altman said it hasn’t been easy to adjust roles in a lineup that now includes freshman point guard Payton Pritchard and grad transfer Dylan Ennis.
Brooks has played in Oregon’s past 10 games, averaging 12.7 points and 20.2 minutes.
“Conditioning took a while, timing took a while, but we know what he can do,” Altman said. “Working him in with his teammates has not happened as quickly as we’d hoped. We’ve had a little trouble mixing them together. I think it will come — I’m not sure when — but I think it’ll get better as the season progresses.”
Oregon can only hope things progress quickly. The No. 21 Ducks will start conference play by hosting second-ranked UCLA on Wednesday and undefeated USC on Friday.
“It is a big challenge,” Altman said of UCLA. “Heck, I’m a fan of the way the Bruins have played, watching them dominate the nonconference portion of the schedule. … We’ve got two undefeated teams coming in here this week. Hopefully Chris Boucher will be ready to go.”
While UCLA coach Steve Alford says the Bruins will have center Thomas Welsh available after he missed three games earlier this month with a knee injury, the schedule isn’t doing his guys any favors. UCLA will have to begin conference play with potentially the league’s toughest road game this season, just three days after Christmas.
“I think you’ve gotta play the schedule the way it is. It is the conference season,” Alford said. “It does get a little unusual this close to Christmas break. We had to juggle it to get the guys some time off.”
