Friday, November 26
St. Thomas, USVI
2:15 P.M. CT
DePaul University
vs
No. 9/12 Arizona
Great Time for DePaul to DREAM BIG
11/25/2021 11:27:00 PM | WOMEN'S BASKETBALL
Tall task for Blue Demons Friday vs. No. 9/12 Arizona at Paradise Jam on ESPN3
ST. THOMAS, U.S. Virgin Islands – Looming quite large in front of the often undersized Blue Demons is the biggest challenge of their nonconference schedule.
And we do mean big. Big as in No. 9/12 Arizona which came a mere two points away from winning the 2021 NCAA tournament title last April.
Big as in five frontcourt players ranging in height from 6-foot, 2-inches to 6-5 and led by starting 6-5 forward Lauren Ware and fellow starter 6-2 Cate Reese.
Off the bench, Wildcat coach Adia Barnes can turn to second-leading scorer 6-3 freshman Aaronette Vonleh, 6-3 Ariyah Copeland who had 11 points and six rebounds in Thursday's 48-46 win over Vanderbilt, 6-3 Gisela Sanchez and 6-6 Semaj Smith.
Arizona (5-0) had a close call in its Paradise Jam opener. Underdog Vandy used a zone defense in forcing the taller Wildcats to shoot from outside where they wound up making just 40.9 percent of their attempts including 6-of-20 from three-point range.
The Commodores tied it 46-46 with eight seconds left and only a buzzer-beater from point guard Shaina Pellington avoided overtime.
Along with the zone defense, Vanderbilt's pressure defense disrupted the Arizona attack and forced an uncharacteristic 25 turnovers.
DePaul coach Doug Bruno's defense starts with full-court pressure in much the same fashion as Vandy. His team has forced 20 or more turnovers in three of its five games.
Bruno has also deployed a zone defense during parts of the last two games.
Pulling off an upset beginning at 2:15 p.m. Friday will require most or all of the six Blue Demon double-figure scorers to match or come close to their numbers.
Deja Church and Aneesah Morrow lead the team at 15.4 points per game with Morrow adding a team-high 9.2 rebounds.
Sonya Morris is contributing 15 points a game and after one game, Drake transfer Kierra Collier is at 14 points since receiving clearance from the NCAA.
Rounding out the "Six-Shooters" are Lexi Held averaging 14 points and six assists while Darrione Rogers is turning in 10 points and nine rebounds a game.
Add up the numbers, and if everyone attains their average on Friday at the UVI Sports & Fitness Center, that rounds out to 84 points.
Bruno's biggest headache defensively is managing a Wildcats team that is fond of scoring down low. Opponents have exploited DePaul's interior defense, although the presence of the 6-1 Morrow has discouraged some of that.
The Blue Demons can ill afford the kind of foul trouble that hampered Morrow in Thursday's 77-74 win over Rutgers.
The Wildcats have a balanced offense of their own and can tear apart opponents with Reese, Ware, Sam Thomas, Bendu Yeaney and Pellington.
You saw Arizona at its best during a 61-59 upset of then No. 6 Louisville on Nov. 12 when Reese led the way with 21 points.
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And we do mean big. Big as in No. 9/12 Arizona which came a mere two points away from winning the 2021 NCAA tournament title last April.
Big as in five frontcourt players ranging in height from 6-foot, 2-inches to 6-5 and led by starting 6-5 forward Lauren Ware and fellow starter 6-2 Cate Reese.
Off the bench, Wildcat coach Adia Barnes can turn to second-leading scorer 6-3 freshman Aaronette Vonleh, 6-3 Ariyah Copeland who had 11 points and six rebounds in Thursday's 48-46 win over Vanderbilt, 6-3 Gisela Sanchez and 6-6 Semaj Smith.
Arizona (5-0) had a close call in its Paradise Jam opener. Underdog Vandy used a zone defense in forcing the taller Wildcats to shoot from outside where they wound up making just 40.9 percent of their attempts including 6-of-20 from three-point range.
The Commodores tied it 46-46 with eight seconds left and only a buzzer-beater from point guard Shaina Pellington avoided overtime.
Along with the zone defense, Vanderbilt's pressure defense disrupted the Arizona attack and forced an uncharacteristic 25 turnovers.
DePaul coach Doug Bruno's defense starts with full-court pressure in much the same fashion as Vandy. His team has forced 20 or more turnovers in three of its five games.
Bruno has also deployed a zone defense during parts of the last two games.
Pulling off an upset beginning at 2:15 p.m. Friday will require most or all of the six Blue Demon double-figure scorers to match or come close to their numbers.
Deja Church and Aneesah Morrow lead the team at 15.4 points per game with Morrow adding a team-high 9.2 rebounds.
Sonya Morris is contributing 15 points a game and after one game, Drake transfer Kierra Collier is at 14 points since receiving clearance from the NCAA.
Rounding out the "Six-Shooters" are Lexi Held averaging 14 points and six assists while Darrione Rogers is turning in 10 points and nine rebounds a game.
Add up the numbers, and if everyone attains their average on Friday at the UVI Sports & Fitness Center, that rounds out to 84 points.
Bruno's biggest headache defensively is managing a Wildcats team that is fond of scoring down low. Opponents have exploited DePaul's interior defense, although the presence of the 6-1 Morrow has discouraged some of that.
The Blue Demons can ill afford the kind of foul trouble that hampered Morrow in Thursday's 77-74 win over Rutgers.
The Wildcats have a balanced offense of their own and can tear apart opponents with Reese, Ware, Sam Thomas, Bendu Yeaney and Pellington.
You saw Arizona at its best during a 61-59 upset of then No. 6 Louisville on Nov. 12 when Reese led the way with 21 points.
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Players Mentioned
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