The Week in Arizona Basketball

Arizona Basketball This Week (5-2, 0-0 Pac-10)

Dec. 2  W   84-57   vs. Loyola Marymount
Dec. 5  L   66-67   at Texas A&M

Next Week
Dec. 10 vs. San Diego State (7 p.m. MST, FS Arizona)
Dec. 14 vs. No. 6 Gonzaga (4 p.m. MST, Fox Sports Net)


Player of the Week Nominee

Jordan Hill, F, 6-10, 235, Jr., Atlanta, Ga. (The Patterson School)

Hill and the Wildcats split a pair of games as the junior from Atlanta averaged
17.5 points, 12.5 rebounds and 2.5 blocks per game.  Hill connnected on 64.0
percent (16-of-25) of his field goal attempts to go with three assists and one
double-double.  His week began with a 15-point, 17-rebound, three-block
performance against Loyola Marymount, marking his Pac-10 leading fifth
double-double of the season.  He followed that up with 20 points, eight boards,
and two blocks at Texas A&M.  It was the second time this season that Hill has
made 10 or more field goals in a game, and his third 20-point scoring effort
this season (sixth career).  On the year, he averages 17.4 points, 12.3
rebounds and 2.6 blocks per game, while shooting 61.0 percent from the field.

Notes
**  Arizona slipped to 5-2 on the season following a 67-66 loss at Texas A&M in
what was the Cats? first true road game of  the season.  The 66 points,
including 26 in the second half, were a season low for UA, a team that is
averaging 75.0 points per game.  Interestingly, Arizona has won five games this
season by an average of 16.5 points, while its two losses were by one point
each.

**  It?s not often that a team shoots 58.3 percent (28-of-48) from the field
and posts a +15 rebound advantage on the road and still comes up short, but
that?s what happened Friday at Texas A&M.  Turnovers turned out to be the
great equalizer, as the Cats tallied 11 more miscues than the Aggies (15-4).
Nic Wise played just 10 second-half minutes before fouling out with 7:33 to go.
Chase Budinger handled the point guard duties for the majority of the second
half and finished with a career-high seven assists.

**  The Wildcats continue to shoot the ball very well this season, posting a
.537 field goal percentage (198-of-369) through seven games. Arizona has shot
50 percent or better five times in 2008-09, including four games of better than
55 percent as a team.  XX STREAK of games won when shooting 50 XX.  Chase
Budinger and Jordan Hill lead the way for the Cats, as each has connected on
50-of-82 (.610) FG attempts this season.

** Having hit on 62.5 percent (20-of-32) of his three-point attempts this
season, junior Chase Budinger is one three-pointer shy of moving into 10th
place on the UA career three-point field goals made list.  He enters
Wednesday?s game with San Diego State with 143 treys in 360 career attempts
(.397) behind the arc.  Budinger?s percentage ranks eighth in Arizona
history.

**  With a pair of blocked shots Friday, Jordan Hill became just the eighth
player in Arizona history to register 100 career blocked shots.  The 6-foot-10
junior from Atlanta, Ga., averaging 2.7 blocks per game in 2008-09, an
improvement over his career average of 1.4 blocks per game (101 in 70 games
played).

**  Jordan Hill equaled a career best with 10 field goals Friday (in 15
attempts) en route to a game-high 20 points. For Hill, it was his third
20-point game of the season, a figure that equals his total from last season
and doubles his career output. Through seven games, Hill averages 17.4 points
per game, which ranks second on the team.

**  Forward Jamelle Horne has become a regular as a sophomore, having started
all seven games.  The 6-foot-6 San Diego, Calif., product is averaging 8.0
points, 4.3 rebounds and 2.7 assists per game. Horne is shooting 54.5 percent
from the field (24-of-44) and is averaging nearly 30 minutes per game.

**  A sizeable portion of Arizona?s .537 cumulative field goal percentage
comes from its long range efforts, especially of late.  On the season, the
Wildcats are shooting .458 (44-of-96) from behind the arc.  Over the last five
games, UA has connected on 35-of-58 attempts (.603) from three-point range.
The Cats have shot better than 50 percent from behind the arc in four of those
five games, including a season-best 61.5 percent (8-of-13) in Friday?s game.

** Sophomore guard Zane Johnson enjoyed an impressive week where he averaged
11.0 points and 2.0 assists per game, while shooting 66.7 percent (8-of-12)
from the field.  Six of those eight FGs came from behind the arc, where he hit
6-of-10 attempts.  On the season, the 6-foot-5 Johnson has made 7-of-14
attempts from behind the arc, and now ranks third on the club in treys made
this season.

**  Redshirt freshman center Alex Jacobson also had a productive week, averaging
4.0 points, 2.0 rebounds and 12.0 minutes played in two appearances.  The
6-foot-11 native of Santa Ana, Calif., put forth a nice effort at Texas A&M,
while Jordan Hill battled first-half four trouble.  Jacobson posted four points
(2-of-3 FG), two boards and an assist in 10 minutes during the opening period.
The effort boosted his seasons averages to 2.8 points and 1.3 rebounds to go
with a .500 field goal percentage.

- Richard Paige - Arizona Media Relations