Arizona Basketball: 3 takeaways from Courtney Ramey choosing the Wildcats
By Joey Loose
The current state of the roster
Last year was quite the unexpected success story for the Wildcats, as Arizona put together a 33-4 season in Tommy Lloyd’s debut as head coach. Arizona won the Pac-12 regular-season and tournament titles, earned a top-seed in the NCAA Tournament, and advanced to the Sweet Sixteen. All-American guard Bennedict Mathurin and talented center Christian Koloko played huge roles on that success last season, though players will not be back next season, nor will talented young guard Dalen Terry, also off to the NBA Draft.
Fortunately, there are still pieces in play for success, highlighted by the return of forward Azuolas Tubelis, who averaged 13.9 points and 6.2 rebounds per game last season. The Wildcats will also see guard Kerr Kriisa (9.7 ppg, 4.7 apg last year) playing an even more important role, while young guards shooters Pelle Larsson and Adama Bal return for another year. One of the more important pieces if center Oumar Ballo, who slides into a more upfront role with Koloko’s absence, after putting up impressive numbers in limited minutes last season.
As previously mentioned, the Wildcats landed a transfer earlier in the week, nabbing former Campbell guard Cedric Henderson Jr., who will have one final year of eligibility. Henderson slides right in where Terry left off, bringing an important scoring presence to the Wildcats and helping to solidify that backcourt. Arizona also adds a few intriguing freshmen into the mix, highlighted by 4-star center Dylan Anderson, who should learn a ton from Ballo this upcoming season.