Arizona Wildcats Basketball Heating Up
Excitement and anticipation is building here on campus at the University of Arizona with only fifteen days remaining until Arizona Basketball is back on the court in their newly renovated McKale Center. On October 18th, the Wildcats will take the floor in their annual red/blue game, which includes player introductions, a dunk contest, and a scrimmage. This will give fans and students a chance to get a first hand look at their 2014-2015 defending regular season Pac-12 champion Arizona Wildcats.
The Arizona Wildcats lost Nick Johnson and Aaron Gordon to the 2014 NBA Draft, although those are two key losses, the Wildcats welcome highly anticipated incoming freshman Stanley Johnson. They will also bring back three returning starters to the line up.
Junior forward, Brandon Ashley, suffered a torn ligament in his right foot last season which ended his season in early February. He is now back and running on the court and looks to be at full strength. Although Arizona Wildcats were one of the best teams in the country last season, they ranked 50th in field goal percentage. The Arizona Wildcats lost Nick Johnson and Aaron Gordon to the 2014 NBA Draft, although those are two key losses, the Wildcats welcome highly anticipated incoming freshman Stanley Johnson. They will also bring back three returning starters to the line up. The Wildcats should be able to raise last years .468 field goal percentage to a solid .500 or higher. Arizona entered last years NCAA tournament as the overall #1 seed but had a tremendous run cut by Wisconsin in the Elite Eight. Preseason rankings have not been released yet, but I envision that the Wildcats could indeed be listed in the top three.
If you can’t make it to McKale Center at the beginning of the season, make sure to tune in to Pac-12 Networks. It should be nothing but fast paced and exciting brand of basketball. Some early key dates to remember for Arizona Basketball are the red/blue game on the Pac-12 Network October 18th, and their home exhibition game on November 9th against Cal Poly Pomona.
I don’t know about you but I’m excited for the season #BearDown!
Stay tuned for more news regarding the Wildcats. Click here to view the schedule of the 2014-2015 campaign.