Coach Sean Miller says Arizona basketball team is a work in progress

November 6, 2:28 AMPhoenix Sports ExaminerTom Kessler

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University of Arizona basketball coach Sean Miller, pictured here at last week's Pac-10 Media Day in Los Angeles, said following Wednesday night's exhibition game against Augustana College that the Wildcats still have a lot of work to do in preparation for the regular season. (AP photo/Reed Saxon)
 

University of Arizona basketball coach Sean Miller saw some things he liked and plenty he didn’t in the Wildcats’ 92-76 exhibition victory over Augustana College.

On the plus side of Wednesday night’s win at McKale Center in Tucson were solid efforts from veteran team leaders Nic Wise and Jamelle Horne, as well as encouraging performances from freshmen Derrick Williams, Kevin Parrom, Kyryl Natyazhko, Solomon Hill and Lamont “MoMo” Jones.

“I thought our team at times tonight made some very good plays and looked good,” said Miller, who is in his first season coaching the Wildcats after five highly successful years at Xavier.

The positives, however, were accompanied by an abundance of negatives, including 17 team fouls committed by the Wildcats in the second half and a plethora of mistakes that a young squad is apt to make in its pre-season opener. After jumping out to a 50-34 halftime lead, Arizona struggled throughout the second 20 minutes when the visiting Vikings, a Division II team from South Dakota, matched the Wildcats point for point.

“The second half was more of a reflection of who we are right now,” Miller said. “We fouled them six times in the first four minutes of the second half -- a total of 17 times. The score in the second half was 42-42. To give up 42 points in a half is a lot.”

Miller described the second half as “a reflection of where we have to get better.”

The Arizona coach pointed to rebounding and defense as the two main areas that need to improve.

“We have to get better at rebounding the ball as a team,” Miller said. “We don’t have that one player that’s going to go get ’em. We gotta be more disciplined, tougher defensively. If we make strides there, we’ll continue to get better.”

With sophomore guard Kyle Fogg missing Wednesday’s game because of the flu, the Wildcats took the court with just two of their three returning mainstays from last season’s Sweet 16 team – senior point guard Wise and junior forward Horne.

Horne led the Wildcats with 19 points, 10 rebounds and three blocked shots in 21 minutes.

“Jamelle Horne is right now among our best players,” Miller said. “You can make a point that he was the best player on the court tonight. He played tonight like he’s practiced. He rebounds the ball better than anybody on our team. He’s really explosive.”

Augustana sophomore guard Cody Schilling, who led all scorers with 25 points, came away duly impressed with Horne.

“I think Jamelle Horne is the most athletic person we’ve ever played,” Schilling said.

Arizona’s Wise, who is recovering from a sprained ankle, finished with 12 points, five assists and two steals in 19 minutes.

“It was a good experience,” Wise said. “We learned a lot about our team, what we need to work on. When we were clicking at times, it looked good. And when we weren’t, it looked real bad.”

The Wildcats finished with 15 turnovers, 10 of which were committed by the freshman five of Hill, Williams, Parrom, Natyazhko and Jones. Despite their miscues, the first-year quintet exhibited flashes of potential brilliance.

“We really have to step up as a freshman class – and not play like freshmen,” Hill said.

Hill, a 6-6 forward, finished with five points and seven rebounds in 19 minutes.

“He sees the floor,” Miller said about Hill. “He really can think the game. He’s a smart player.”

Williams, who threw down a pair of emphatic dunks early in the second half, scored 14 points and grabbed four rebounds in 13 minutes before leaving with a twisted ankle with 6:32 remaining. Miller described the 6-8 power forward as “the most gifted physically and (having) the biggest upside” of the Arizona freshmen.

“You can really see that he has a long way to go in certain areas,” Miller said about Williams. “But when he gets there, he’ll be a special player. No question that when you see him in conference play, I think he’ll be more well-rounded.”

Parrom, a 6-6 swingman, contributed 12 points, five rebounds and three assists in 26 minutes.

“He made some terrific plays in the first half,” Miller said about Parrom. “As you can see, he is very versatile.”

The 6-10 center Natyazhko had seven points and six rebounds, while Jones, a 6-0 guard, played a team-high 29 minutes and finished with six points and three assists.

“MoMo is working hard,” Miller said about Jones. “He’s getting better. I think he really has to understand the pace of the game. One play quickly becomes the next play.”

A trio of returning sophomores also contributed to the victory. Brendon Lavender started at guard and played 25 minutes, scoring three points and adding three rebounds and three assists. Garland Judkins, a 6-3 guard, scored eight points in 15 minutes, while 7-0 center Alex Jacobson had six points and two rebounds in nine minutes.

In all, 10 players saw at least nine minutes of action for the Wildcats – with nine players logging at least 13 minutes.

“To me, there’s not a big difference between a lot of players on our team,” Miller said. “We’re going to do it with depth. I love to play nine or 10 guys.”

The Wildcats will host Western New Mexico in an exhibition game on Tuesday night and will open the regular season against visiting Northern Arizona on Sunday, Nov. 15.