ARIZONA BASKETBALL

Cat Tracks: Arizona keeps rolling in Hawaii

Dec 24, 2012, 6:17 AM | Updated: 6:50 am

Sure, you could read the box score and know who won, but we all know that won’t tell you everything that happened in a football game. So, we give you ‘Cat Tracks’, providing you with the analysis, quotes and notes from Arizona’s December 23 win over Miami. Final score: Arizona 69, Miami 50.

The Good:

The Wildcats came out firing in this one, taking a commanding lead late in the first half that they would never relinquish.

Guard Mark Lyons had another strong game for the Wildcats, as the senior transfer from Xavier scored a team-leading 19 points to go along with 4 assists.

The Wildcats also got strong contributions from Kevin Parrom, who scored 11 points off the bench, while Solomon Hill had eight and and Nick Johnson chipped in 12 points.

Arizona also hammered Miami on the boards, outrebounding their opponents by a tally of 46 to 20.

The Bad:

There wasn’t much to complain about on this night, though Arizona’s 16 turnovers will make head coach Sean Miller frown and the Wildcats struggled a bit from the free throw line, making just 11 of 17 attempts.

Noted:

• The Wildcats are off to their best start since Lute Olsen led the program to a 35-3 season and a Final Four appearance in 1987-88.

• The victory was the 200th in Sean Miller’s career as a head coach, which spans his time at Xavier, too.

• Freshman center Kaleb Tarczewski led Arizona with 13 rebounds — Miami grabbed just 20 as a team.

Coming Up Next:

Arizona will face San Diego State in the final of the Diamond Head Classic in Hawaii Tuesday at 7:30 p.m. Arizona time.

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Cat Tracks: Arizona keeps rolling in Hawaii