Arizona

Arizona women’s basketball gets first home win in Big 12 play

Published

10 months ago

January 23, 2025

Arizona women’s basketball gets first home win in Big 12 play

Cincinnati lives off offensive rebounds. It was no different on Wednesday night against Arizona. It just wasn’t enough as the Wildcats defeated the Bearcats 72-62 to get their first home win in Big 12 conference play.

“We played a super gritty, a good basketball team in Cincinnati that plays a similar style to us, just with athleticism on the wings and hard to guard one-on-one,” said Arizona head coach Adia Barnes. “I think their four, (Jillian) Hayes, is really good. And that was a matchup that I was kind of worried about. But, I mean, they just outmuscled us second half, but we still found a way to come up with a win. So I’m happy about that.”

Arizona started hot in all parts of the game. The Wildcats outscored UC 15-2 in the first quarter, hitting 50 percent of their shots from the field and going 3 for 4 from beyond the arc. They outrebounded the Bearcats 14-6 and held them to two offensive boards. UC hit just 1 of 15 shots.

“They got punched when we first got out here,” said UC head coach Katrina Merriweather. “I do think we had some really open, easy shots in the beginning that we normally make and go down. So to me, it was just to get settled. We have plenty of basketball to go, and don’t let this one quarter define who we are, because we know it doesn’t. But I was pretty burnt up on the inside.”

UC bounced back in the second quarter, outscoring Arizona 20-17. The Bearcats got extra possessions by grabbing four offensive rebounds and turning the Wildcats over four times.

A major turning point came just seconds before the end of the first half. Freshman guard Lauryn Swann lay on the court holding her head. The officials looked at the replay and said there was no foul on the play. There was no replay shown in the arena, but television replay showed she was hit near the ear.

Swann was eventually helped to her feet. She staggered out of the arena with aid from the Arizona training staff. She did not return. Barnes said she would be re-evaluated in the coming days.

Swann was Arizona’s leading scorer with 10 points, one rebound, and two assists in 15 minutes of play before going out.

The Wildcats struggled to get things going early in the second half. Barnes finally sent in sophomore guard Skylar Jones, whose minutes have been limited in some recent games.

“It’s tough when a player comes in the second half and gets 16 points in 16 minutes and is the leading scorer,” Merriweather said. “So I would say we were surprised, but we kind of expected at some point she would come in the game.”

In addition to her 16 points in just over 16.5 minutes, Jones added five rebounds and two assists.

“My coach put a little fire under my butt, and I need a little kick in the butt sometimes to get myself mentally in the right head space because when I’m in a good head space that’s when I play my best,” Jones said. “And I’m glad that my coach knows how to do that, even when I’m mad and I feel like it’s not what I want, I know that she’s doing it for a reason. I was mad when she said, ‘Come on, let’s play,’ in the third quarter.”

Cincinnati cut the Arizona lead to two points with 7:08 left to go in the game. The Bearcats were not able to tie or take the lead.

“I think in that moment, if I could do it again, I’d call a time out,” Merriweather said. “I think it took a lot out of us to get it down to two and probably should have reset the team.”

Arizona ended with four players in double figures. Jada Williams (14) and Paulina Paris (10) joined Jones and Swann. Breya Cunningham came up just short with 9 points but had a career-high 15 rebounds to help Arizona win the overall battle of the boards 41-38.

The Wildcats went 28-56 from the floor, hitting an even 50 percent of their shots. They went 9 for 22 from 3-point distance for the second straight game. UC won the battle for offensive rebounds 18-10. The Bearcats turned Arizona over 17 times while only giving the ball away 10 times on their end.

Arizona improved to 13-8 overall and 4-4 in Big 12 play. Cincinnati moved to 11-6 overall and 3-4 in the conference.

Next up for Arizona is West Virginia, another defensive-oriented team.

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Arizona

Hamilton vs. Chandler: Watch live Arizona high school football showdown Friday night (11/7/2025)

Published

12 hours ago

November 6, 2025

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Hamilton vs. Chandler: Watch live Arizona high school football showdown Friday night (11/7/2025)

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The undefeated Hamilton Huskies (9-0, 3-0) travel to take on the red-hot Chandler Wolves (8-1, 3-0) in a pivotal 6A Fiesta League regular-season finale showdown on Friday night. With both teams sporting impressive resumes, this matchup is a can’t-miss battle for supremacy in one of Arizona’s top high school football rivalries.

The Huskies have been dominant all season, most recently cruising to a 63-0 victory over Cesar Chavez. Sophomore quarterback Jax Sculley tossed three touchdown passes, while fellow sophomore Jake Disanti added two more scoring strikes, and senior signal-caller Daniel Vaita also found the end zone through the air in the rout.

Chandler enters this clash riding a seven-game winning streak after last week’s 28-22 triumph over Pinnacle. Junior quarterback Will Mencl was the catalyst, throwing for 338 yards and a touchdown while also rushing for two scores. Sophomore running back David Douglas chipped in with a rushing touchdown of his own in the victory.

Opening kickoff is set for 7 p.m. MT on Friday, November 7 with a live TV broadcast on NFHS Network.

• WATCH: Hamilton vs. Chandler football is livestreaming on NFHS Network

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How to watch Hamilton vs. Chandler football livestream

What: Hamilton and Chandler vie for Fiesta top spot in regular-season finale

When: Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. MT on Friday, November 7

Where: Chandler High School | Chandler, Arizona

Watch live: Watch Hamilton vs. Chandler live on the NFHS Network

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Arizona

Diné man who ran from Arizona to Santa Fe reflects on the Long Walk

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1 day ago

November 6, 2025

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Diné man who ran from Arizona to Santa Fe reflects on the Long Walk

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Arizona

How to spot November’s supermoon, the closest of the year, from Arizona

Published

2 days ago

November 5, 2025

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How to spot November’s supermoon, the closest of the year, from Arizona

PHOENIX (AP/AZFamily) — The moon will look slightly bigger and brighter Wednesday during the closest supermoon of the year, which can be seen from Arizona!

The moon’s orbit around the Earth isn’t a perfect circle, so it gets nearer and farther as it swings around. A so-called supermoon happens when a full moon is closer to Earth in its orbit. That makes the moon look up to 14% bigger and 30% brighter than the faintest moon of the year, according to NASA.

November’s supermoon is the second of three supermoons this year and also the closest: The moon will come within just under 222,000 miles of Earth.

Tides may be slightly higher during a supermoon because the moon is closer to Earth, said astronomer Lawrence Wasserman with Lowell Observatory. But the difference isn’t very noticeable.

No special equipment is needed to view the supermoon if clear skies permit. But the change in the moon’s size can be tough to discern with the naked eye.

“The difference is most obvious as a comparison between other images or observations,” said Shannon Schmoll, director of Abrams Planetarium at Michigan State University, in an email.

Supermoons happen a few times a year. One in October made the moon look somewhat larger, and another in December will be the last of the year.

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