Arizona Wildcats men’s basketball shows off aggressiveness of new backcourt in season-opening win

Arizona displayed an impressive performance in its season-opening victory over Morgan State, with only seven turnovers on 74 offensive possessions. This 9.5 percent turnover rate marks the Wildcats’ lowest since their first-round NCAA win against Wright State in 2022 and ranks as the fourth-lowest under Tommy Lloyd. The UA’s backcourt played a pivotal role in this success.

Coach Lloyd commended the team for the minimal turnovers, stating, “Seven turnovers is a tremendous number in a high-possession game. I was proud of our guys; the message was heard. Last exhibition game when we had 20-something turnovers, that’s obviously not good enough.”

The backcourt, consisting of Caleb Love, Kylan Boswell, KJ Lewis, and Jaden Bradley, only committed two turnovers in 80 minutes of game time.

Boswell expressed his satisfaction with the backcourt, saying, “It was great to play with really good guards. I know everybody can see that, us three work well together. Great connection on the court. Just gotta keep working on chemistry.”

Boswell led UA in scoring, tallying 18 points on 7-of-10 shooting and 4-of-6 from three, and adding five rebounds. Love, his starting counterpart, finished with 12 points, three rebounds, four assists, and zero turnovers.

“All of us bring different aspects than we had last year and we’re just using it to our advantage,” Kylan Boswell said. “Everybody brings what they got to the table and plays their best role.”

The backcourt will face a tough test on Friday as they go on the road to play No. 2 Duke. Lloyd remains confident in Love’s ability to handle the pressure of playing at Cameron Indoor Stadium.

“I’m not worried about it,” Lloyd said. “I think Caleb is pretty tough and tough-minded. I just know this: we can go there and play a good basketball game without Caleb playing out of his mind. I’ve tried to give him the gift of settling in and letting the game come to him.”

Lloyd emphasized the importance of efficient guards, stating, “To have guards that finish 2-point shots at the rim is really, it’s kind of rare. So to have a few guys that have that ability, and we still got to get better.”