NCAA Basketball: Gonzaga’s comeback, Villanova’s upset and other takeaways

Kerr Kriisa notches his second career triple-double

Arizona is a preseason top-15 team with a starting point guard that has a high ceiling and a low floor due to his erratic play. Kriisa is inefficient but can fill a stat sheet fairly well in the main categories. Last season, he produced a triple-double against Utah, and last night, he did it again versus Southern.

Krissa finished off the night with 14 points, 11 rebounds, and 12 assists in 29 minutes in the game. He also shot only seven times overall, making four of them. Most of the assists went towards Pelle Larsson, Oumar Ballo, and Azulouas Tubelis, who each had 17 points apiece in the team’s 95-78 victory.

Including the seven assists against Nicholls State, the junior point guard is off to a good start as a distributor. And as a team, Arizona is looking like a Final Four contender once again, along with UCLA. Considering that teams such as Oregon, USC, and Stanford have already lost this week, there’s a clear gap in the Pac-12 between the top two teams and the rest of the league.

The Bruins have Tyger Campbell to run their offense, a veteran steady player. Kriisa certainly isn’t as “steady” but may have a higher ceiling overall, which is what Arizona needs to be a national contender.