Other than anything containing the words "bubble" and "lock," the most overused phrase on Selection Sunday might be "body of work."
There's good reason why.
The NCAA selection committee is annually flooded with results, injuries, situations, statistics, trends, power ratings and RPIs before it sorts out which teams deserve the 34 available at-large berths in the 65-team NCAA tournament field.
In Arizona's case, it may be possible to boil all that information down to five key moments inside that body of work:
1. Jamelle Horne's inexplicable foul against UAB
UAB advanced to the NIT Season Tip-Off semifinals on Nov. 18 after Horne fouled Paul Delaney III behind the midcourt line, despite the fact that Delaney had virtually no shot to win the game, which was tied with only a second left.
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But as embarrassing as the loss may have been, Arizona was arguably better off by not winning. Instead of going to New York for the NIT semifinals, where the still-floundering Wildcats might have had their confidence destroyed against stiff competition, Arizona instead went to Athens, Ga., for a pair of untelevised neutral-site consolation victories against weaker teams.
While doing so, the Wildcats spent four nights at an unremarkable Athens hotel, their first significant time out of the spotlight after a turbulent month in which head coach Lute Olson retired, associate head coach Mike Dunlap opted to remain in his role, Russ Pennell jumped from the No. 3 coaching spot and freshman center Jeff Withey decided to transfer.
Losing to UAB "might have been one of the best things that ever happened to us," Pennell said last month. "We went to Georgia, played in front of nobody and it was just us. We had to play for the love of the game and for each other because there wasn't any glamour down there. … I thought even that time together in that hotel, when there was nothing going on, we had to kind of rely on each other."
2. Chase Budinger's missed fallaway jumper at Texas A&M
Arizona jumped out to a 15-2 lead and took a 40-29 advantage into halftime on Dec. 5 at College Station, Texas. But it all fell apart in the second half in a 67-66 loss, capped by Budinger's missed would-be game winner with two seconds left.
The loss spoke to a number of UA trends this season:
• Its inability to close out tight games. Arizona is 0-4 in games decided by two points or fewer.
• The margin of error. Playing a zone defense helped the Wildcats keep their Big Three out of foul trouble, but it couldn't keep Nic Wise from fouling out with 7:33 left in this one. The Wildcats led by nine when Wise left and struggled with Budinger forced to run the point down the stretch.
• The Garland Judkins situation. If there was one wrinkle in that generally happy chemistry the Wildcats developed in Georgia, it was Judkins, who was suspended for the first of three times for the Texas A&M game. A combo guard who had started four earlier games — and might have provided valuable help for Wise at A&M — Judkins was out of the rotation after a second suspension on Jan. 10.
3. Wise heaving the ball overhead as time ran out against Gonzaga
Until Dec. 14, nobody had reason to believe the Wildcats were capable of being an NCAA tournament contender. But then they outscored then fourth-rated Gonzaga 10-0 early in the second half of a quasi-neutral site game in Phoenix, and held the Zags off at the end despite Jordan Hill's foul trouble.
The unexpected victory not only boosted the spirits of UA's Big Three but also proved a coming-out of sorts for freshman guard Kyle Fogg and sophomore wing Zane Johnson.
Fogg, taking firm hold of the starting two-guard spot vacated by Judkins, extended UA's press with aggression and scored six points. Johnson made a key three-pointer, the kind the Wildcats would see more of as the season progressed.
For everyone, at that moment, it was Arizona basketball as it used to be known.
"You come here to Arizona to play these type games," Pennell said after the game. "I think this is a great win, but I think the big thing we've got to understand is that our expectations are to be able to play teams like this. I think this team is good enough to do that."
4. Aubrey Coleman wiping his shoe on Budinger's face
The Houston guard became a YouTube villain after he stepped on Budinger during the second half of a Jan. 24 game at McKale Center. "You can kind of still see his footprint on my jersey," Budinger said in his post-game interview.
But Coleman actually did Budinger and the Wildcats a favor. Pennell said following the game — and many times in the weeks to come — that he noticed a harder-nose edge to his team immediately after it happened. Several of the Wildcats also have said their season pivoted on Coleman's foot.
"It changed the way we played the last 10 minutes of that game and we've been playing every single game just like those last 10 minutes," Wise said after the Wildcats swept their Oregon trip two weeks later. "We're more up and down, more run and gun. That might have been a changing point in our season."
With the newfound energy — and their decision to grow out their facial hair — the scruffy-faced Wildcats began a seven-game winning streak against Houston that included victories over Washington and UCLA.
5. Fendi Onobun's missed free throws at Washington State
The Wildcats ended that winning streak on Feb. 22 at ASU, losing 70-68, but that wasn't the one that sunk their spirit. That happened in the next game.
Onobun missed two foul shots near the end of the first half to allow Washington State to finish on a 10-2 run before halftime. The Cougars then went on an 11-0 run early in the second half, and the Wildcats never recovered.
"The big thing is, you can't lament too long," Pennell said after that game. "We all know what's out there for us if we get this job done. But we need to make sure that doesn't become the be all and end all."
So far, it has been. The Wildcats went on to lose three more games, finishing 1-5 in their final six games, and now stand precariously before the selection committee today.
Wildcats in bracket predictions
The NCAA selection committee will release its picks for the tournament today at 3 p.m. on Channel 13. The NIT selection show begins at 6 p.m. on ESPNU. The station is found on DirecTV Channel 614, Dish Network 148 and Cox 164 only on digital programming tier. The channel is not available on Comcast. Predictions for Arizona as of Saturday afternoon:
• Bracketography.com Out (first four out)
• CBS.Sports/Palm Out
• CollegeRPI.com Out
• CNNSI.com No. 12 (Midwest)
• ESPN.com/Lunardi Out (first four out)
• FoxSports.com Out (first four out)
• Rivals.com No. 11 (region unspecified)
