Previewing Arizona Vs. LIU: First Round Matchup

The last time Arizona was a No. 1 seed was in 2022, when it made it to the Sweet 16 before falling to Houston in San Antonio by a 72-60 score. LIU, on the other hand, is back in the dance for the first time since the 2017-2018 season. The Sharks posted a 24-10 record, 15-3 in their conference and won the NEC tournament

With that game fast approaching, let's take a look at what both teams are bringing to open up the first round of the tournament.

Starting lineup and rotation

Arizona has one of the most impressive lineups in the NCAA. Senior guard Jaden Bradley won the Big 12 Player of the Year Award, while Motiejus Krivas won the Defensive Player of the Year Award. Brayden Burries made it on the All-Freshmen list as well as Koa Peat. Ivan Kharchenkov has been a force on the defensive end and Koa Peat.

Tobe Awaka, Arizona's enforcer on the glass, won the Sixth Man of the Year award while also being an honorable mention in the All-Big 12 list. Anthony Dell'Orso came off the bench in relief of both Bradley and Burries, nailing clutch perimeter shots and showing huge improvements on defense from the year before.

LIU has used a guard-heavy rotation that prioritizes a strong defense and quick scoring. Jamal Fuller is the team's leading scorer, averaging 16.4 points per game. Malachi Davis is second on the team with 14.4 PPG and is the assist leader with. Greg Gordan finished the year with 14.1 PPG and was the NEC Defensive Player of the Year.

Jomo Goings and Shadrak Lasu, while not utilized as much in the offense, are key contributors on the defense and make up the starting five. Mason Porter-Brown is the first off the bench and provides effective scoring and gives energy to the team during close games.

Strengths

All season long, Arizona has dominated teams with imposing will in the paint and a defense that has made it a nightmare for teams to score on. According to KenPom.com, Arizona averages the 10th-best 2-point percentage in the NCAA. It is also a rebounding menace ranking second in the NCAA defensively, fourth in rebounds per game, and sixth in rebounding margin.

The Sharks' strength on offense is in their guards Fuller, Davis, and Gordon, who account for 60% of the teams points scored. Together, they rely on efficient shooting from the field, not having to rely on streaky shooting to get ahead.

Defense has seemed to be a big identity of LIU as well, ranking in the top 100 in defensive efficiency. It also created chaos on the court by stealing the ball on 11% of possessions, averaging 7.8 steals per game and 5.4 blocks.

Weaknesses

Although Arizona is a very well-rounded team, there are still a handful of flaws with the team. At times, the Wildcats' offense can go stagnant for some periods of time. An example of that would be when Arizona failed to score a basket against Iowa State in the first meeting for a few minutes, allowing the Cyclones to catch up.

Arizona can also go cold from the perimeter, shooting 32% in Big 12 play. It can also be inconsistent from the free throw line, shooting 73,4%, an NCAA ranked 147th. Teams have also shown that when they can get ahead of the Wildcats in both rebounding and points in the paint, it can spell trouble for them.

While the Sharks are a quick-moving, guard heavy team, that shows given the lack of a strong frontcourt, something the Wildcats can take advantage of with Krivas, Peat, and Awaka. LIU is also a poor free-throw shooting team, going 66.8% on the line. Lastly, LIU's lack of a strong schedule could spell trouble for it. Although it did play power 4 schools, it went 0-4 in those games,

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