in NCAA F Articles

Cats have claws

There’s plenty of room upon the hill for the Arizona Wildcats after all.

For years, Arizona was the college basketball equivalent of Pink Floyd’s multi-platinum 1973 album The Dark Side of the Moon. The Associated Press had the ‘Cats ranked in the Top 25 in 312 consecutive regular-season polls until last month, when Arizona was bumped from the rankings after a 5-3 start that included losses to UConn and Michigan State at the Maui Invitational.

Looks like it’s time to start a new streak. The ‘Cats have clawed their way up to No. 23 in the rankings, running their record to 10-3 and upsetting the then-No. 7 Washington Huskies 96-95 Saturday in double overtime. Arizona was a 4 ½-point road underdog in that affair.

Observant bettors had a good feeling the ‘Cats would come back. ‘Zona coach Lute Olson started the season by experimenting with a “four-out” motion offense with just one man left in the post instead of the usual two. Arizona’s shooting accuracy plummeted as a result, leaving the team at 2-5 against the spread and sending the under to a 6-1 record. Olson went back to the “three-out” against the Utah Utes and destroyed them 73-43. That started a 4-1 streak ATS, with the over also cashing in at a 4-1 pace.

There may be even more improvement on the horizon. Sophomore guard Jawann McClellan, a blue-chipper who was ruled academically ineligible for the fall semester, is expected to finally make his return to action sometime next week when the Wildcats head to Oregon for a pair of road games against the Beavers and the Ducks. McClellan was projected to start for the ‘Cats after playing 15.5 minutes per game in his freshman campaign. He’s a former McDonald's All-American out of Charles H. Milby High School, who McClellan led to a perfect 39-0 mark and a Texas state championship in his senior year.

Olson is very much looking forward to getting the promising Houston native into his rotation. The ‘Cats have leaned heavily on the backcourt duo of Mustafa Shakur and Hassan Adams, who combined for 55 points against the Huskies. Adams has played a career-high 33.8 minutes per game this year; when McClellan arrives, Olson will be able to rest Adams more often, while also shifting him to his natural forward position.

The ‘Cats are at home this week for a pair of games against UCLA and USC. The Bruins are coming off an upset loss at home to Cal on New Year’s Eve, dropping from 11th to 17th in the rankings. Thursday’s tip-off against the Bruins is at 10:30 p.m. ET.

Comments or Questions? EmailFaceOff@BetUS.com.