Arizona at the Turn: What the Rest of the Season Holds for the Wildcats

We've reached the halfway point of what has been a lackluster year for the Pac-10 season, and there is still too much basketball to be played to make any final determinations of what things will look like come Pac-10 tourney time. 

The surprise team thus far has been the Arizona Wildcats, finally starting to find their groove after a rough start to the season.  It is hard to believe that a program that found itself in such tatters last spring would be in the position they are heading into the stretch run, but that is exactly where Sean Miller's club finds itself.

The senior leadership of Nic Wise and the somewhat surprising play of freshman Derrick Williams, along with the gradual development of what has become a solid supporting cast has Cats fans thinking they may be able to stretch the nation's longest NCAA Tournament streak to 26.

The fact that Miller has gotten it done with one senior and one junior has many discussing him for Pac-10 coach of the year honors, and rightly so.  Still, as I was once told in my coaching days, you are never as good as you think you are when you're winning, or as bad as you think you are when you're losing.  Therefore, Cats fans should tread with a sense of cautious confidence as we hit the back nine in Pac-10 play.

What was obvious to many at the beginning of the year was that this team was going to be playing a lot better in February and March than it was in November and December. 

One of the things Coach Miller is sure to be telling his club these days is not to be content with where they are right now.  It is very easy for a group of teenagers and early 20-somethings to get content with a sense of accomplishment when they have the wind at their backs.  Keeping them focused on continual improvement is paramount at this stage of the season, especially if any hope of extending the streak is to be kept.

Realistically, Arizona could get in with a 7-2 record the rest of the way, even with an early exit from the Pac-10 tourney.  Although they are playing as good as anyone right now, basketball is an "any given night" type of sport, and there will almost certainly be at least one team that shows up and wants it more than the Cats between now and the end of the regular season. 

With an RPI in the 50s, there aren't many who are taking notice of the Cats on the national stage at this moment—and that is a good thing.  Miller knows as well as anyone that staying under the radar will serve this team well coming down the stretch.

But the elements Miller is instilling in this team—solid defense, aggressive rebounding and staying within the system on offense—should only continue to bloom as the season wears on. 

Since the BYU blowout on Dec. 28, Arizona has won it's games by an average of almost thirteen points, and lost by an average of less than four points.  Those are numbers any coach or fan wants to see at this stage of the season, even in a weak conference.  They speak to a team that is competitive in every game, and dominant when it needs to be.

It seems the rigor of a tough non-conference schedule and the continued development of an inexperienced team under one of the best coaches in the country has left this year's Cats right where they want to be—in control of their own destiny. 

It should be an enjoyable ride the rest of the way.  Hopefully, it ends with a good run in the NCAAs, their streak intact, and an increasingly bright future ahead for the program.  After three years of turmoil, the glory days may very well be back for the toast of Tucson.