Tommy Lloyd made a change to the Arizona Wildcats starting lineup on Friday night against Auburn, but it didn’t change the level of contribution from his second unit – which continues to be limited three games into the season.
76 of the 80 points Arizona put up in the win against the Tigers were scored by the starting five of Mo Krivas, Ivan Kharchenkov, Caleb Holt, Derek Dixon, and now JJ Mandaquit, who replaced Bryce James after the sophomore started the first three games.
James did not play at all against Auburn, with Lloyd electing to play just three subs: Forward Maxsim Brnovic, freshman guard Cameron Holmes, and center Evan Otten.
No Bryce after three starts
Coach Lloyd was asked about the decision to not call on James in this one, after he started all three of Arizona’s regular season, and exhibition, games dating back to mid October.
“Bryce and I had a great conversation,” Lloyd said. “I wish I would have got him in the game. It just got tight there and we got the lead, it’s just one of those things when you get the lead playing a certain way, sometimes it’s hard to thrust a guy into that moment when he hasn’t been on the court much.”
James is averaging 2.7 points, 1.7 assists, and 1.3 steals in 12 minutes per game for the Wildcats, shooting 3-11 from the field and 2-7 from three.
Now he’s been relegated not only to a non-starting role, but what looks like not quite an everyday role, with a tight 8-man rotation getting Arizona to a win over Auburn – despite virtually no help offensively from the second unit.
Starters shouldering the load
Arizona has had a big four all season long, which once again was on full display Friday night. Caleb Holt (24 points) Ivan Kharchenkov (19) Mo Krivas (16), and Derek Dixon (11) combined for 70 of Arizona’s 80 points, with Mandaquit scoring six – all at the free throw line – to bring the starters to 76/80, or 95%, of Arizona’s scoring.
Brnovic and Otten each made a bucket, while Holmes played 14 minutes but didn’t even attempt a shot – instead recording two steals, one assist, and two turnovers.
“Our bench is going to have to develop over the course of this season,” Lloyd said after the game. “Today wasn’t the day to go deep and give them a long run.”
Including tonight’s result, just under 85% of Arizona’s points have come from starters this season. Per KenPom, Arizona’s bench minutes rate of 24.1% is No. 331 out of 365 Division 1 teams. The fact that it got them a road win over a team that almost never loses at home is impressive, but it will continue to be a challenge for the Wildcats – and serves as a reminder why the continued absence of RJ Godfrey is painful for UA.
It doesn’t get any easier, with Arizona hosting the No. 4 UConn Huskies on Wednesday, Nov. 18 at 7:00 PM MST. The game will be broadcast on FS1.
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