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Wildcats crush Jayhawks 84-67

Nine days after defeating then fourth-ranked Gonzaga in Phoenix, the Arizona Wildcats felled some more tall timber on Tuesday when they beat defending national champion Kansas 84-67 in the Fiesta Bowl Classic at McKale Center in Tucson.

While the unranked Jayhawks feature a different cast of players this season -- having lost five stars from their title-winning 2007-08 roster to the NBA Draft -- they’re still talented, and they’re still Kansas. The Wildcats’ victory was impressive, as they reversed a 44-35 deficit by closing out the final 18:57 of the game with a 49-23 scoring blitz.

“Everything about this year is a little unconventional; the fact that I’m even sitting here is unconventional,” said Arizona interim head coach Russ Pennell, who has been leading the team since Oct. 24 following the sudden retirement of UA coaching icon Lute Olson. “There will be ups and downs within a season. I believe we’re growing as a team and showing some fight.”

The Wildcats (8-3) won despite getting just five points from junior wing Chase Budinger, their leading scorer on the season who entered the contest with a per-game average of 19.1. While Budinger was held in check offensively by Kansas, his Arizona teammates Jordan Hill, Jamelle Horne, Nic Wise and Kyle Fogg made up the difference.

Hill, the Wildcats’ 6-10 junior post player, had a prodigious game with 23 points and 11 rebounds. Wise, a junior point guard, came through with 16 points and eight assists, while freshman guard Fogg contributed 14 points and five rebounds.

Horne, a sophomore forward who usually starts for the Wildcats, was brought in off the bench on Tuesday and enjoyed his best game since arriving in Tucson, establishing career highs with 19 points and 13 rebounds.

“I just wanted to do something to shake up the team,” Pennell said about his decision to start Zane Johnson instead of Horne. “There really isn’t anything hidden in that. I just felt we needed a change. When he did enter the game I thought he provided us with a lot of energy and was a spark off the bench.”

Horne made an immediate impact, converting a jumper, a three-pointer and a putback to lead a 9-0 run that turned an early 12-4 deficit into a 13-12 advantage for the Wildcats.

The Jayhawks (8-3) led at halftime 38-35, getting 10 points in the opening stanza from freshman Marcus Morris and seven from his twin brother, Markieff Morris.

Kansas opened the second half with a dunk by Cole Aldrich, a three-pointer by Sherron Collins and a free throw by Tyshawn Taylor to increase their lead to 44-35.

The Wildcats responded with 18 minutes and 57 seconds of basketball intensity, stringing together a montage of highlight-reel plays that allowed them to erase their deficit and then take control.

Fogg began the UA’s comeback with a layup with 18:42 remaining. A fastbreak slam by Hill brought the Wildcats to within 44-41, and Horne followed with a tip-in.

Fogg tied the score at 47-47 with a drive to the basket off a pass from Wise. Hill then put the Wildcats ahead to stay at 49-47 with a right-handed, turnaround skyhook from a post-up position on the edge of the lane.

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Fogg’s steal, layup and free throw for a three-point play made it 55-47 with 12:32 left.

Budinger scored his first three points of the game with 11:05 remaining when he received an alley-oop pass from Wise and threw down a right-handed tomahawk slam. Budinger made the ensuing free throw to give Arizona a 60-50 advantage.

Horne surpassed his previous career high in scoring when he nailed a three-pointer from the right wing to give the Wildcats an 81-64 lead with 4:09 left. He increased his total for the night to 19 points -- and stamped an exclamation point on the Arizona victory -- when he hammered a two-handed putback dunk through the basket with 8.7 seconds remaining.

“I won’t say I pulled the team back into the game,” Horne said about providing the spark off the bench. “We were playing well from the jump.”

Asked about not starting the game, Horne said, “Coach Pennell told me I wasn’t playing hard enough, which is understandable, and I came out and responded, obviously. It was just a great game.”

Arizona made 23 of 29 free throws in the game and earned a 40-29 rebounding edge.

The Wildcats held the Morris twins to a combined two points after halftime, as Marcus Morris made one second-half basket to finish the contest with 12 points and Markieff Morris went scoreless after the intermission and ended with seven points. Collins led the Jayhawks with 16 points, while Cole Aldrich had 10 points and four rebounds from his center position.

The clash against Kansas concluded a rugged 19-day stretch for Arizona that also included matchups against Texas A&M, San Diego State, Gonzaga and UNLV. The Wildcats went 3-2 in those games, falling to Texas A&M 67-66 on Dec. 5, defeating San Diego State 69-56 on Dec. 10, edging Gonzaga 69-64 on Dec. 14 and losing at UNLV 79-64 on Dec. 20 before knocking off the Jayhawks on Tuesday.

“I’m happy we came through this stretch pretty well,” Pennell said. “I’m just as happy as I can be. It should give our team some momentum as we approach conference play.”

By Tom Kessler
DFN Sports Staff Writer