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College Basketball Preseason Top 25: #9 Arizona
- Updated: September 25, 2013
Nick Johnson will be expected to shoulder a bigger load for the Wildcats, especially early on next season. (USA TODAY Sports)
9. Arizona Wildcats
They’re young, yes. But Arizona has everything else it needs to compete for a Final Four berth in 2014. There are four McDonald’s All-Americans on this roster, including freshman Rondae Hollis-Jefferson (6-7, 205 lbs) who is considered one of the nation’s top recruits. 6-8 forward Aaron Gordon could be even better, and has gotten a lot of national attention as a top incoming freshman. Sophomore Brandon Ashley could be poised for a breakout year this year after starting 21 games and averaging 8 points and 5 boards per. Junior Nick Johnson (11.5 ppg, 3.6 rpg) is the team’s leading returning scorer, and could be its go-to-guy especially early on. 7-foot center Kaleb Tarczewski is also athletic and skilled enough to make a big impact on the interior.
The Wildcats lost a lot of talent from last season’s Sweet 16 squad, which was a heartbreaking 3-pointer by Ohio State’s LaQuinton Ross away from making it to the Elite Eight. Gone are scoring guard Mark Lyons (15 ppg), skilled forward Solomon Hill (13.4 ppg, 5.3 rpg) 6-6 forward Kevin Parrom (8.3 ppg, 4.9 rpg) and 6-10 center Grant Jarrett (5.2 ppg). Leadership could be a major issue, with just three juniors and one senior on this squad. For Arizona to succeed, its upperclassmen have to step up and play big roles.
BOTTOM LINE: ‘Zona brought in as much freshmen talent as anyone in the country not named Kansas or Kentucky. Landing Aaron Gordon was a coup d’etat, and the big man could pay big dividends come conference play. Gordon is one of the main reasons why Arizona is so highly rated coming into 2014. Still, even if he doesn’t live up to expectations, head coach Sean Miller has amassed enough talent in Tucson to produce a Pac-12 championship-caliber squad. There’s only one thing left for Miller to do to endear himself with the Arizona faithful: get to a Final Four. If everything bounces right, this could be the year he does it.
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