Arizona in a York State of mind; Senior helps UA exorcise some Demons
TEMPE – On Sunday afternoon, the Devils didn't get their due.
Do they ever on Sundays?
Gabe York, Dusan Ristic, Ryan Anderson, Kaleb Tarczewski (remember him?) and a kid named Allonzo Trier made sure of that.
Arizona's 94-82 grind-it-out victory over host Arizona State exorcised the demons of years past at Wells Fargo Arena.
Figure that Arizona had brought better teams into this building and had faced worse ASU teams and lost (sometimes inexplicably), but on Sunday afternoon Arizona did what it had to to win on the all-important road in the Pac-12 Conference.
Road victories will come at a premium this season.
“That was always on the back of my mind,” said York, referring to UA's two consecutive losses here as a sophomore and junior. “For Kaleb as well. He was lucky to be able to play today but he was able to come out with an intensity and a fire that we didn't have.”
Heck, Sean Miller said had Tarczewski not been available UA would have lost the game. His eight points and five rebounds in 15 minutes were part elixir and motivation.
Anderson added 10 points and 10 rebounds after a slow start. Ristic had 10 points and Kadeem Allen added 10 points
York called it “fulfilling” and “amazing” to get out with win No. 1 in the conference. It was also Arizona's 13th overall against one loss.
“All the mess they talk and all the things you hear throughout the game especially the last three years (makes it) definitely fulfilling to go and clap my hands and raise my hands up (to the crowd) to let them know it was a hard-fought win and that we did it,” York said.
He was a huge reason why. Once again, he was in a York state of mind: he scored and assisted. He finished with a team-high 22 points, hitting 5 of 12 shots which included 4 of 7 from beyond the 3-point line. It was his 3-pointer with UA up 53-49 and just 11:42 left that helped spark Arizona. He hit another one shortly after teammate Mark Tollefsen hit a jumper to make it 61-51. He added six assists.
Boom! Arizona, although it saw some tenuous moments, was slowly pulling away.
“On the perimeter they have experienced guys like York who hit some big shots in the second half, down the stretch when the game was still pretty close,” ASU coach Bobby Hurley said. “His three point shots there kind of opened things up for them.”
York, who saved the day for Arizona in a win against Gonzaga earlier this season, did it again. He used a standard line of his teammates trusting him to take the shots.
Under his breath, Trier said, “when he gets going” it's all good. And York was good.
“When either of us get going,” York said, including Trier in the conversation, “it's hard to stop either one of us. As a two (guard) and a three (small forward) you have to guard both of us. And you're not going to be able to guard both of us throughout the entire game. I was able to get open and hit shots.”
And hit free throws … kind of.
He hit eight of 10 in the final 78 seconds to secure the win and likely keep Arizona in the top 10 for another week. He said he'd take about 17,000 free throws this week because he missed a couple down the stretch.
Ok, it was an exaggeration. Much like the apparent elbow he did – or did not – take to the head. Refs went to the monitor to see if indeed Willie Atwood hit York with a intentional elbow or inadvertent one. Apparently, word was he didn't get hit at all.
“They said I didn't get hit. So I just told the refs you can come and see me tomorrow when I have a black eye,” York said. “I don't think it was intentional. He came up to me and told me it wasn't intentional. It was a hard play on the ball. We're not too worried about it.”
And so, Arizona moved on. As did York, who later heated up to help get UA the win.
“He's the ultimate testament on what college basketball and sports is because he has earned his stripes,” Miller said. “He has practiced and been on a team where he has barely played. He's been on a team where he's been a key sub. A year ago he was a huge part of our success and (he's in a) different seat on the bus this year in that he's our senior leader and one of our best players.”
More importantly, Arizona survived the Devils, something two very good UA teams couldn't the last couple of years.
“Today we beat what I would consider a very good team in ASU,” Miller said. “That's what I'm more fulfilled about. I'm most happy about is that we beat a good basketball team on their home court.
Steve Rivera has covered the Arizona men's basketball team full-time since the 1991 season, filling in since 1988. He's the author of the Arizona Basketball Vault and "100 Things Arizona Fans Need to Know & Do Before They Die."