After losing its first exhibition match to West Texas A&M, it felt like it was a matter of when, not if, the Wildcats would lose their first game of the season. Add in an entirely new coaching staff and roster, and the chemistry opportunities that naturally come with that newness, and a loss was pending. After a 6-0 start to the regular season, Arizona Women’s Basketball fell on Wednesday to Southern 63-57 for the first loss of the Becky Burke era.
Turnovers were the story of the game for the Wildcats. Arizona struggled against the speed, quickness, and physicality of Southern, turning the ball over a season-high 24 times, leading to 25 points for the Lady Jags. Point guard Noelani Cornfield turned the ball over nine times, a career-high for the veteran. After the game, head coach Becky Burke said Arizona got “bullied.”
“They were blowing up our dribble hand offs. They were making catches difficult. I mean, we weren’t strong with the ball, we weren’t in triple threat. We were on our heels. We were weak with our dribble. I mean, you name it, like, they brought it, and we did not respond by any stretch of the imagination. We looked weak.”
Mickayla Perdue led all scorers with 17 points, shooting 7-16 from the field, but just 2-9 from beyond the arc. Perdue tacked on three rebounds, but her full 40 minute effort wasn’t enough to will the Wildcats to a win. Sumayah Sugapong also finished in double-figures with 10 points, along with four rebounds and a team-high three steals.
Arizona once again got off to a slow start, trailing the 16-11 at the end of the first quarter. Unlike its previous wins, the UA was unable to overcome the sluggish start with a second quarter offensive explosion, only outscoring Southern in the third quarter 22-20. Overall, Arizona shot 21-51 (41.2%) from the field, but went just 3-13 from 3-point range and 12-17 (70.6%) from the free throw line. The Wildcats finished on top of the rebounding margin, out-rebounding the Lady Jags 34-31, but finished with just 12 assists compared to the 24 turnovers.
The Wildcats struggled to get any offense going at the beginning of both quarters of the first half. Arizona was held without a field goal until inside the four minute mark of both the first and second quarter, but was able to end the first half on a 9-0 run.
The Wildcats used the hot streak to end the first half to take a two-point lead midway through the third quarter, but ultimately could not find enough offensive rhythm with the turnover issues to sustain the lead.
Arizona now shifts its attention to New Mexico on Sunday, December 7, at 2:00 PM MST. The Wildcats have won the last five meetings against the Lobos, including a 77-60 win in Albuquerque in 2022 in their most recent contest.
[…] – Arizona Women’s Basketball looked to bounce back on Sunday following its first loss of the season midway through the week against Southern. While the Wildcats showed improved effort on both ends of the floor, it wasn’t enough, as […]