6th-ranked Arizona knocks off Arizona State in Tempe, 85-67

 Arizona Wildcats Basketball

Kylan Boswell scored 17 points, hitting 7 of 9 shots from the field, and Oumar Ballo added his eighth straight double-double with 13 rebounds and 14 points to lead the 6th-ranked Wildcats to an 85-67 Pac-12 win in Tempe tonight over the Arizona State Sun Devils.

Arizona (22-6, 13-4) kept its hold on first place in the Pac-12 Conference as all five starters scored in double figures. Caleb Love just missed a double-double with 16 points and nine rebounds, Pelle Larsson added 12 points, and Keshad Johnson chipped in 10.

The Wildcats led 30-12 early, 41-27 at halftime, and kept the Sun Devils at bay the rest of the way.

Arizona takes on Oregon at McKale on Saturday and closes the regular season at USC and UCLA next week. If they win all three, the Wildcats will be Pac-12 Champs.

Go, Wildcats! 

Arizona knocks off Huskies, 91-75

 Arizona Wildcats Basketball

Arizona shook off a sluggish second half and disposed of the Washington Huskies 91-75 at McKale today to improve to 12-4 in Pac-12 play and 21-6 overall. The 4th-ranked Wildcats jumped out to a 52-35 halftime lead but were not hitting on all cylinders the final 20 minutes.

Caleb Love led Arizona with 28 points, and Oumar Ballo picked up his seventh consecutive double-double with 14 points and 14 rebounds. Pelle Larsson chipped in 17 points and a team-high seven assists, while Keshad Johnson finished with 16.

Arizona shot 47.1 percent from the field (33 of 70) and limited the Huskies to 37.7 percent (29 of 77). The Wildcats outrebounded Washington 56-39.

Next up: The Wildcats head for Tempe on Wednesday for an 8 p.m. showdown with ASU and return home on Saturday, March 2,  for their final regular-season home game and 12 p.m. tip-off with Oregon.

Washington State beats Arizona at McKale, 77-74

 Arizona Wildcats Basketball

Washington State, the surprise team in the Pac-12 this season, needed to play a perfect game at McKale Center tonight to beat the 4th-ranked Arizona Wildcats.

And that's precisely what they did.

The Cougars are currently ranked No. 21 in the country but played more like a No. 1 seed for 40 minutes as they knocked off the Wildcats 77-74, handing Arizona its first loss at McKale this season, and with the win take over sole possession of first place in the Pac-12 Conference.

Arizona falls to 20-6 overall and 11-4 in the Pac-12, while Washington State leaves McKale tonight on the top of the world, so to speak, with a 21-6 overall record and a 12-4 slate in the conference.

Caleb Love led Arizona with 27 points, but WSU had the equalizer with Jaylan Wells, who also scored 27 points, including the dagger -- a 4-point play with less than one minute to go in the game.

Oumar Ballo finished the night with another double-double. The 7-0 Wildcats center scored 16 points and grabbed 11 rebounds. Keshad Johnson finished in double figures with 12 points.

Wildcats open 2024 season

 Arizona Baseball

The Arizona baseball team opened its 2024 season with a four-game homestand at Hi Corbett Field, winning three of four, including a 2-1 series win over #23 Northeastern last weekend and a single win Tuesday 24-4 over Utah Tech.

Leadoff hitter Brendan Summerhill is off to a fast start this season with 11 hits in 19 official trips to the plate for a hefty .579 batting average. Summerhill scored seven times and knocked in 11 runs to lead the Wildcats.

Arizona beat Northeastern 6-1 in the opener, lost 8-7 on a 9th-inning solo home run in Game 2 off closer Trevor Long, and won the three-game series on Sunday, 9-3.

The Wildcats hit the road for a three-game series with San Diego, Feb. 23-25.

  

5th-ranked Arizona rolls in 105-60 win over Sun Devils

Arizona Wildcats Basketball

The 5th-ranked Arizona Wildcats (20-5, 11-3) cleared the bench at McKale tonight en route to a 105-60 thumping of the Arizona State Sun Devils.

Jaden Bradley scored a career-high 21 points to go along with five rebounds and five assists to lead Arizona. Six players scored in double figures, with Oumar Ballo continuing his double-double action with 15 points and 11 rebounds. Caleb Love spent his share of time on the bench in this one but chipped in 15 points, while Keshad Johnson added 14 and Kylan Boswell finished with 11.

Paulius Murauskas, the 6-8 power forward from Lithuania, was a factor down the stretch with 12 points and three rebounds, while the 7-2 Moe Krivas grabbed six rebounds and scored eight points.

Arizona shot 57.1 percent from the field (36 of 63) and made eight of 20 3-pointers.

Way to go, Wildcats!

8th-ranked Arizona hands Colorado first loss at home, 99-79

 Arizona Wildcats Basketball

The 8th-ranked Arizona Wildcats did everything right in Boulder tonight as they handed Colorado its first loss at home with a 99-79 Pac-12 win over the Buffaloes.

Five players scored in double figures, with Caleb Love leading the way with 19 points. Pelle Larsson finished the night with 18 points, while Oumar Ballo added a double-double with 16 points and 13 rebounds. Kylan Boswell chipped in 15, and Jaden Bradley added 14.

Arizona shot 52.9 percent from the field (36 of 68) and canned 10 of 22 from beyond the arc. The Wildcats made 17 of 21 from the charity stripe and out-rebounded the Buffaloes 35-33. They had 14 assists, stole the ball 10 times, and committed just eight turnovers.

The Wildcats improve to 19-5 overall and hold a one-game lead over Washington State in the Pac-12 Conference with a 10-3 record.

Visitors from heaven

 

From the desk of the TOTS' historian...


My current sleep pattern seems to be in two-hour intervals, and when I do fade away, my imagination rambles...and that seems to be a safe place for me to go. It means I'm still alive.

Suddenly, a city transit bus appears amongst the cypress trees and comes to a stop just a few feet beyond the centerfield fence. The familiar sound of the hydraulics echoes toward the TOTS' infield as the door of the bus slowly opens. Big John Mathews exits. He smiles, takes up his position at the bottom of the steps, and offers his hand as his precious cargo emerges -- one by one.

First to return to earth, the TOTS' smiling scorekeeper, Jim Pagels, and behind him, today's pitcher, Chico Bigham, with the game ball in one hand and a rake in the other -- just in case the infield needs a slight sprucing up. Brad Tolson, Jerry Smarik, Ed Rife, Carl Brutovksy, Clarence Fieber, Conrad Royksund, Richard McAnnaly, Bunny Bechtold, Floyd Lance, and Don Wood all emerge and quickly gather their gear and head for the third-base dugout.

Pagels sets the batting lineup. Bigham toes the rubber, and McAnnaly takes his spot behind home plate.

"Play ball."

"Clarence, you are up!"

The fielders are set. Smarik at third, Rife at short, Royksund at second and Lance at first. Brutovksy hustles to left field, with Bechtold in center and Wood in right.

The sky is a dark blue. The field, void of players the past three weeks, is alive again. A warm breeze follows Chico's first pitch to the plate...

I look at the clock nestled in the corner of my bedroom. It's three o'clock in the morning. How long have I been away?

A conversation with 'Father Time'

 The 60-and-over Tucson Old Timers have fielded baseball teams since 1968- fifty-five seasons, to be exact. An amateur old-time baseball club member has one age requirement -- the player must be at least 60.

So, just when is "the peak season" for a TOT?

The consensus is somewhere between the ages of 62 and 67.

After that, the baseball skills take a downward turn. Making a play at 75 is more challenging than at 62. It just stands to reason. The muscles, the bones, and, of course, the mental sharpness deteriorates.

'I remember my first two seasons with the TOTS.' Pigpen Price recalls. 'It was 2008 and 2009, and I was faster than a speeding bullet. Well, not really. Still, after 17 seasons, no teammate has ever used the word speed and my club nickname in the same sentence.'

When a TOT refers to the '60s as his best years, he's not referring to the 1960s but to his time with the TOTS when hits came in bunches and spectacular fielding plays were the norm.

With an active roster of 45 players, the youngsters go about their position on the field or their appearances at the plate, knowing that "Father Time" has an eye on them.

By the time a TOT reaches the mid-70s (and again, not the year, but the age), he has a daily conversation with Father Time.

'How long can I keep going?' the TOT asks. 'I have a new pain somewhere between my head and feet; what is that all about, or why is first base so far away?'

To be honest, I've never met Father Time, but in my mind, I imagine him as a dead ringer for Moses. His voice is pleasant, and his lengthy white beard twirls in the breeze. Yet, you get the sense, in the middle of a conversation, that he knows what lies ahead, and he knows exactly where you are going.

But for now, Father Time sits on his bench on Cloud Nine and keeps tabs on the game below at Udall Park, where a bunch of crazy old men play America's favorite pastime.

Father Time watches. He takes time out of his busy schedule on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday to watch his Triple-A team, the TOTS, as they complete yet another seven-inning game. At the same time, through a clearing in the fluffy white clouds, he can see an all-star team at play inside Heaven's Gate. Among the heavenly all stars are catchers Clarence Fieber and Richard McAnally; pitcher Chico Bigham and shortstop Ed Rife -- all TOTS' hall-of-famers, making "the play of the day" and leading their team to victory -- all of them with bright smiles and each one of them not looking a day over thirty.

Over 250 old-timers have donned a TOTS uniform over the years. All of them have left their mark and will be remembered as time marches on.

Life on the road in the Pac-12: Arizona 105 Utah 99 3OT

 Arizona Wildcats Basketball

Pelle Larsson poured in a career-high 27 points with seven rebounds and eight assists to lead 8th-ranked Arizona to a 105-99 Pac-12 win in three overtimes tonight in Salt Lake City to hand Utah (15-8, 6-6) its first loss at home this season.

All five starters for Arizona scored in double figures, and two players ended up with double-doubles as the Wildcats squandered a 16-point lead at the half and were forced to battle the hometown Utes for 55 minutes.

Caleb Love had an off-shooting night, hitting only 5 of 20 shots from the field, but did hit 3 of 11 3-pointers and 6 of 7 from the foul line to finish with 19 points and 10 rebounds.

Kylan Boswell scored 16 points with 5 for 9 from the field, including 2 of 4 from long range, while Keshad Johnson added 17 points and just missed a double-double with nine rebounds. Oumar Ballo grabbed 16 boards and scored 10 points.

Jayden Bradley and KJ Lewis did their thing off the bench, combining for 16 points, four rebounds, and four assists.

And it took all of the above to get the job done!

Arizona improves to 18-5 overall and remains in first place in the Pac-12 Conference at 9-3.

The Wildcats take a break tomorrow and move on to Boulder on Saturday for a showdown with the Colorado Buffaloes, who have yet to lose at home this season. The Buffaloes beat Arizona State tonight 82-70 to improve to 16-7 and 7-5 in Pac-12 play.

Wildcats take over sole possession of first place in Pac-12

 Arizona Wildcats Basketball

Arizona withstood another barrage of 3-pointers from the Cardinal, upped the defensive pressure in the second half, and beat Stanford 82-71 tonight at McKale to take over sole possession of first place in the Pac 12 Conference.

The 11th-ranked Wildcats surrendered 9-of-19 3-pointers to the Cardinal in the first half and headed for the locker room down 45-34. They returned to the court and quickly applied the pressure defensively, allowing Stanford to just 26 points the rest of the way.

In two Pac-12 games, the Cardinal has canned 30 3-pointers against the Wildcats, but tonight, Arizona weathered the storm and took the lead for good when Caleb Love drove the lane, scored, was fouled, and added a free throw to give the Wildcats a 53-52 lead with 12:27 remaining in the game.

Love finished the night with 18 points and eight rebounds, while Oumar Ballo added another double-double to his collection with 18 and 13 rebounds. Pelle Larsson scored 17 points, while KJ Lewis came off the bench and scored 12 points.

Arizona improves to 17-5 overall and an 8-3 record in the Pac-12 Conference. 

Way to go, Wildcats!

And now the Wildcats head back on the road next week to face Utah and Colorado. 

Rain puts a damper on start to TOTS 2024 season

Tucson Old Timers (TOTS)

60-and-over baseball

The January rainstorms have kept the TOTS off the baseball field at Udall Park.

The month ended with just seven games played, and so far, the TOTS have yet to play in February.

Rain, rain, go away and come back another day.

Joe Opocensky and Randy Livingston finished atop the hitting stats for January. Opocensky went 11 for 20 in seven games for a .550 average, and he led the TOTS with seven RBI, while Livingston played in just five games but went 11 for 14 and maintained a .786 average.

Thunder Tim Tolson was third in hitting with 10 hits in 20 at-bats and a .500 average.

Still, the turnout for January was one of the best ever, with 43 members seeing action.

On the mound, Pete Maldonado logged the most innings with 26 while compiling a 2-2 record. Livingston and Opocensky logged 21 innings apiece, with Livingston finishing the month at 2-1 and Opocensky at 1-2. 

The rain is supposed to stick around for another week, but currently, games are scheduled for Monday, Wednesday, and Friday (Feb. 5, 7, and 9) with a start time of 10 a.m. at Udall.

11th-ranked Arizona clears the bench in 91-65 win over Cal

 Arizona Wildcats Basketball

Arizona, the 11th-ranked team in the nation, cleared the bench tonight at McKale en route to a 91-65 win over California. Oumar Ballo led the Wildcats with a double-double, scoring 22 points while grabbing 13 rebounds.

KJ Lewis had a career night off the bench with 14 points, four rebounds and three assists.

The Wildcats, who improved to 16-5 overall and 7-3 in the Pac-12 Conference, remained unbeaten at home this season with an 11-0 record and now await the Stanford Cardinal on Sunday. Stanford beat Arizona State 71-62 tonight in Tempe to improve to 11-9 overall and 6-4 in the Pac-12.