2022–23 Arizona Wildcats women's basketball team


The 2022–23 Arizona Wildcats women's basketball team will represent the University of Arizona during the 2022–23 NCAA Division I women's basketball season. The Wildcats will be led by seventh-year head coach Adia Barnes. This will be the Wildcats' 49th season at the on-campus McKale Center in Tucson, Arizona and 44th season as a member of the Pac-12 Conference.

2022–23 Arizona Wildcats women's basketball
NCAA tournament, Second Round
ConferencePac-12 Conference
Ranking
APNo. 25
Record22–10 (11–7 Pac-12)
Head coach
Assistant coaches
  • Ashley Davis (2nd season)
  • Salvo Coppa (7th season)
  • Erin Grant (2nd season)
Home arenaMcKale Center
Seasons
2022–23 Pac-12 Conference women's basketball standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT
No. 8 Utah 15 3   .833 27 5   .844
No. 5 Stanford 15 3   .833 29 6   .829
No. 21 Colorado 13 5   .722 25 9   .735
No. 14 UCLA 11 7   .611 27 10   .730
No. 25 Arizona 11 7   .611 22 10   .688
USC 11 7   .611 21 10   .677
No. 23 Washington State 9 9   .500 23 11   .676
Oregon 7 11   .389 20 15   .571
Washington 7 11   .389 19 15   .559
California 4 14   .222 13 17   .433
Oregon State 4 14   .222 13 18   .419
Arizona State 1 17   .056 8 20   .286
2023 Pac-12 Tournament winner
As of May 1, 2024
Rankings from AP poll

Previous season edit

The Wildcats finished the 2021–22 season with a record of 21–8, 10–6 in Pac-12 play. The Wildcats were invited to the 2022 NCAA tournament where they defeated UNLV in the first round before losing to North Carolina in the second round.

Offseason edit

Departures edit

Arizona Wildcats Departures
Name Number Pos. Height Year Hometown Notes
Sam Thomas 14 F 6'0 Graduate Student Bloomfield Hills, MI Completed college eligibility
Ariyah Copeland 22 F 6'3 Graduate Student Columbus, GA Completed college eligibility
Reference:

Outgoing Transfers edit

Arizona Outcoming Transfers
Name Number Pos. Height Year Hometown New School Source
Anna Gret Asi 0 G 5'8 Freshman Tartu, Estonia Transferred to Oklahoma State
Koi Love 5 F 6'0 Junior Orlando, FL Transferred to USC
Derin Erdogan 10 G 5'6 Sophomore Istanbul, Turkey Transferred to Northeastern
Aaronette Vonleh 21 C 6'3 Freshman West Linn, OR Transferred to Colorado
Gisela Sanchez 30 F 6'3 Freshman Barcelona, Spain Transferred to Kansas State
Semaj Smith 34 C 6'6 Senior Long Beach, CA Transferred to San Jose State
Bendu Yeaney 23 G 5'10 Senior Portland, OR Transferred to Oregon State
Taylor Chavez 3 G 5'10 Senior Surprise, AZ TBD
Reference:

Acquisitions edit

Incoming Transfers edit

Arizona Incoming Transfers
Name Number Pos. Height Year Hometown Previous School Years Remaining Date Eligible Source
Lauren Fields 23 G 5'9 Junior Shawnee, OK Oklahoma State 1
Esmery Martínez 12 F 6'2 Junior Hato Mayor del Ray, DR West Virginia 1
Jade Loville 30 F/G 5'11 Graduate Student Scottsdale, AZ Arizona State 1
Reference:

2022 recruiting class edit

US college sports recruiting information for high school athletes
Name Hometown High school / college Height Weight Commit date
Maya Nnaji
F
Lakeville, MN Hopkins High School 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) N/A May 10, 2021 
Recruiting star ratings: ScoutN/A   RivalsN/A   247SportsN/A    ESPN:    ESPN grade: 97
Paris Clark
G
Mount Vernon, NY Long Island Lutheran High School 5 ft 8 in (1.73 m) N/A Dec 13, 2021 
Recruiting star ratings: ScoutN/A   RivalsN/A   247SportsN/A    ESPN:    ESPN grade: 96
Kailyn Gilbert
G
Tampa, FL Seffner Christian Academy 5 ft 8 in (1.73 m) N/A Jan 6, 2021 
Recruiting star ratings: ScoutN/A   RivalsN/A   247SportsN/A    ESPN:    ESPN grade: 95
Lemyah Hylton
G
London, ON Southwest Academy Girls Prep 5 ft 11 in (1.80 m) N/A Oct 16, 2021 
Recruiting star ratings: ScoutN/A   RivalsN/A   247SportsN/A    ESPN:    ESPN grade: 91
Overall recruiting rankings:
  • Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight.
  • In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale.

Sources:

  • "2022 Player Commits". ESPN.com. Archived from the original on December 13, 2021. Retrieved December 13, 2021.
  • "2022 Team Ranking". Rivals.com. Retrieved December 13, 2021.

2023 recruiting class edit

US college sports recruiting information for 2023 recruits
Name Hometown High school / college Height Weight Commit date
Breya Cunningham
POST
Chula Vista, CA La Jolla Country Day School 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) N/A Jun 26, 2022 
Recruiting star ratings: ScoutN/A   RivalsN/A   247SportsN/A    ESPN:    ESPN grade: 97
Montaya Dew
F
Las Vegas, NV Centennial High School 5 ft 11 in (1.80 m) N/A Dec 23, 2021 
Recruiting star ratings: ScoutN/A   RivalsN/A   247SportsN/A    ESPN:    ESPN grade: 97
Jada Williams
PG
Kansas City, MO La Jolla Country Day School (CA) 5 ft 6 in (1.68 m) N/A Aug 1, 2022 
Recruiting star ratings: ScoutN/A   RivalsN/A   247SportsN/A    ESPN:    ESPN grade: 96
Overall recruiting rankings:
  • Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight.
  • In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale.

Sources:

Preseason edit

Preseason rankings edit

Pac-12 media poll (Coaches)
Predicted finish Team Votes (1st place)
1 Stanford 121 (11)
2 Oregon 101
3 Arizona 100
4 UCLA 91
5 Utah 84 (1)
6 Oregon State 62
7 Washington State 61
8 Colorado 55
9 USC 50
10 Washington 28
11 California 21
12 Arizona State 18

Source:[1]

Preseason All-conference teams edit

Award Player Position Year
Preseason All Pac-12 team Cate Reese F GS
Jade Loville F/G
Shaina Pellington F

Source:[2]

Award watch lists edit

Listed in the order that they were released

Award Player Position Year Source
Ann Meyers Drysdale Award Jade Loville SG GS [3]
Katrina McClain Award Cate Reese PF [4]
Esmery Martínez Sr.
Naismith Trophy Jade Loville SG GS [5]
Cate Reese PF
Wooden Award Cate Reese PF [6]

Roster edit

Source:[7]

2022–23 Arizona Wildcats women's basketball team
Players Coaches
Pos. # Name Height Year Previous school Hometown
G 1 Shaina Pellington 5 ft 8 in (1.73 m) GS Dunabarton Pickering, ON
G 4 Madison Conner 5 ft 11 in (1.8 m) So AZ Compass Prep Chandler, AZ
G 10 Lemyah Hylton 5 ft 11 in (1.8 m) Fr Southwest Academy Girls Prep London, ON
F 12 Esmery Martínez 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) Sr Hamilton Heights Christian Academy Hato Mayor del Rey, DR
G 13 Helena Pueyo 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) Sr Palma de Mallorca, Spain
G 15 Kailyn Gilbert 5 ft 8 in (1.73 m) Fr Seffner Christian Academy Tampa, FL
G 22 Paris Clark 5 ft 8 in (1.73 m) Fr Long Island Lutheran Mount Vernon, NY
G 23 Lauren Fields 5 ft 9 in (1.75 m) Sr Shawnee Shawnee, OK
F 25 Cate Reese 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) GS Cypress Cypress, TX
G/F 30 Jade Loville 5 ft 11 in (1.8 m) GS Skyline Scottsdale, AZ
F 32 Lauren Ware   6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) Jr Century Bismarck, ND
F 34 Maya Nnaji 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) Fr Hopkins St. Louis Park, MN
Head coach
Assistant coach(es)

Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (S) Suspended
  • (I) Ineligible
  • (W) Walk-on

Roster
Last update: May 1, 2022

  • Notes
    • Junior Lauren Ware to miss 22–23 season with a knee injury.[8]

Schedule edit

Date
time, TV
Rank# Opponent# Result Record High points High rebounds High assists Site (attendance)
city, state
Exhibition
October 27, 2022*
6:00 p.m.
No. 19 West Texas A&M W 86–63  —-
 20  Loville   12  Martinez   6  Pellington  McKale Center (2,763)
Tucson, AZ
November 2, 2022*
6:00 p.m.
No. 19 Cal State Los Angeles W 104–46 
 26  Lovelle   12  Martinez   7  Pueyo  McKale Center (6,430)
Tucson, AZ
Non-conference regular season
November 10, 2022*
6:30 pm
No. 19 Northern Arizona W 113–56  1–0
 20  Martinez   15  Martinez   7  Pellington  McKale Center (6,809)
Tucson, AZ
November 13, 2022*
5:00 pm
No. 19 Cal State Northridge W 87–47  2–0
 16  Gilbert   5  Martinez   3  Pueyo  McKale Center (6,653)
Tucson, AZ
November 18, 2022*
6:30 pm
No. 18 Loyola Marymount W 87–51  3–0
 19  Pellington   11  Martinez   4  Tied  McKale Center (7,206)
Tucson, AZ
November 20, 2022*
2:00 pm
No. 18 Long Beach State W 86–64  4–0
 19  Martinez   9  Tied   4  Tied  McKale Center (6,898)
Tucson, AZ
November 25, 2022*
5:00 pm
No. 15 vs. Cal Baptist
USD Thanksgiving Classic
W 81–63  5–0
 25  Gilbert   10  Martinez   3  Tied  Jenny Craig Pavilion (149)
San Diego, CA
November 26, 2022*
5:00 pm
No. 15 at San Diego
USD Thanksgiving Classic
W 86–60  6–0
 22  Pueyo   9  Martinez   4  Pueyo  Jenny Craig Pavilion 
San Diego, CA
December 4, 2022*
1:00 p.m.
No. 14 at New Mexico W 77–60  7–0
 27  Loville   8  Martinez   9  Pueyo  The Pit (6,087)
Albuquerque, NM
December 8, 2022*
6:30 p.m., P12N
No. 12 Kansas L 50–77  7–1
 14  Reese   8  Reese   2  Tied  McKale Center (7,381)
Tucson, AZ
December 14, 2022*
6:30 p.m., P12N
No. 20 Texas Southern
Pac-12/SWAC Legacy Series
W 89–55  8–1
 20  Reese   12  Martinez   4  Pueyo  McKale Center (6,577)
Tucson, AZ
December 18, 2022*
5:30 p.m., ESPN2
No. 20 vs. No. 18 Baylor
Pac-12 Coast-to-Coast Challenge
W 75–54  9–1
 18  Pellington   15  Martinez   8  Pellington  American Airlines Center 
Dallas, TX
December 21, 2022*
2:00 pm, ESPN+
No. 18 at UT Arlington W 78–59  10–1
 13  Martinez   9  Tied   4  Gilbert  College Park Center (1,109)
Arlington, TX
Pac-12 regular season
December 29, 2022
6:00 p.m., P12N
No. 18 Arizona State W 84–66  11–1
(1–0)
 21  Martinez   10  Martinez   4  Tied  McKale Center (9,495)
Tucson, AZ
December 31, 2022
8:00 p.m., P12N
No. 18 at California W 63–56  12–1
(2-0)
 14  Reese   7  Reese   4  Pellington  Haas Pavilion (605)
Berkeley, CA
January 2, 2023
12:30 p.m., P12N
No. 15 at No. 2 Stanford L 57–73  12–2
(2–1)
 12  Loville   7  Pueyo   3  Pellington  Maples Pavilion (3,824)
Stanford, CA
January 6, 2023
8:00 p.m., P12N
No. 15 Oregon State W 72–69  13–2
(3–1)
 16  Reese   8  Martinez   6  Tied  McKale Center (7,182)
Tucson, AZ
January 8, 2023
5:00 p.m., ESPN2
No. 15 No. 18 Oregon W 79–71  14–2
(4–1)
 16  Conner   6  Tied   6  Pellington  McKale Center (7,963)
Tucson, AZ
January 13, 2023
7:00 p.m., P12N
No. 14 at Colorado L 65–72  14–3
(4–2)
 14  Reese   9  Reese   3  Tied  CU Events Center (1,974)
Boulder, CO
January 15, 2023
12:00 p.m., P12N
No. 14 at No. 10 Utah L 79–80  14–4
(4–3)
 25  Reese   10  Reese   4  Fields  Jon M. Huntsman Center (2,915)
Salt Lake City, UT
January 22, 2023
3:00 p.m., P12N
No. 19 at Arizona State W 80–67  15–4
(5–3)
 16  Conner   15  Martinez   4  Pueyo  Desert Financial Arena (3,508)
Tempe, AZ
January 27, 2023
7:00 p.m., P12N
No. 19 Washington W 61–54  16–4
(6–3)
 15  Reese   12  Martinez   5  Pellington  McKale Center (7,884)
Tucson, AZ
January 29, 2023
12:00 p.m., P12N
No. 19 Washington State L 59–70  16–5
(6–4)
 14  Martinez   7  Reese   4  Pueyo  McKale Center (7,494)
Tucson, AZ
February 3, 2023
9:00 p.m., P12N
No. 22 at No. 14 UCLA W 71–66 OT 17–5
(7–4)
 21  Pellington   13  Martinez   3  Tied  Pauley Pavilion (3,482)
Los Angeles, CA
February 5, 2023
1:00 p.m., P12N
No. 22 at USC W 81–75 2OT 18–5
(8–4)
 33  Reese   8  Tied   7  Pellington  Galen Center (1,356)
Los Angeles, CA
February 9, 2023
7:30 p.m., ESPN
No. 17 No. 6 Stanford L 60–84  18–6
(8–5)
 10  Tied   6  Martinez   4  Clark  McKale Center (9,868)
Tucson, AZ
February 12, 2023
12:00 p.m., P12N
No. 17 California W 80–57  19–6
(9–5)
 24  Pellington   15  Martinez   7  Martinez  McKale Center (7,268)
Tucson, AZ
February 17, 2023
7:00 p.m., P12N
No. 18 No. 4 Utah W 82–72  20–6
(10–5)
 35  Pellington   8  Pellington   2  Tied  McKale Center (8,238)
Tucson, AZ
February 19, 2023
12:00 p.m., P12N
No. 18 No. 21 Colorado W 61–42  21–6
(11–5)
 19  Pellington   7  Martinez   5  Pellington  McKale Center (8,267)
Tucson, AZ
February 23, 2023
8:00 p.m., P12N
No. 14 at Oregon L 59–73  21–7
(11–6)
 19  Reese   10  Clark   2  Tied  Matthew Knight Arena (6,173)
Eugene, OR
February 25, 2023
1:00 p.m., P12N
No. 14 at Oregon State L 70–78  21–8
(11–7)
 16  Martinez   8  Martinez   7  Pellington  Gill Coliseum (4,357)
Corvallis, OR
Pac-12 Women's Tournament
March 2, 2023
1:00 p.m., P12N
(4) No. 21 vs. (5) No. 19 UCLA
Quarterfinals
L 59–73  21–9
 10  Tied   9  Reese   3  Tied  Michelob Ultra Arena (4,245)
Paradise, NV
NCAA Women's Tournament
March 17, 2023
9:00 a.m., ESPN
(7 G1) No. 25 vs. (10 G1) West Virginia
First round
W 75–62  22–9
 25  Reese   12  Martinez   4  Pellington  Xfinity Center 
College Park, MD
March 19, 2023*
2:30 p.m., ESPN
(7 G1) No. 25 at (2 G1) No. 7 Maryland
Second round
L 64–77  22–10
 19  Reese   13  Martinez   3  Martinez  Xfinity Center (6,622)
College Park, MD
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses.
G1=Greenville 1.
All times are in Mountain Time.

Source:[9]

Awards and honors edit

Weekly honors
Recipient (Position) Award (Pac-12 Conference) Stats (PPG/RPG/APG) Week Date Awarded Ref.
Kaitlyn Gilbert (G) Freshman Player of the Week 17.5 PPG, 4.5 RPG, 2.0 APG, 1.5 SPG Week 4 November 28, 2022

Postseason edit

Conference honors
Recipient (Position) Award (Pac-12 Conference) Stats (PPG/RPG/APG) Ref.
Shaina Pellington (G) Co-Most Improved Player Of The Year 13.4 PPG/3.1 RPG/3.7 APG/1.9 SPG [10]
All Pac-12 First Team
All Pac-12 Defensive Team
Cate Reese (F) All Pac-12 First Team 23.8 PPG/5.8 RPG/1.0 APG
Helena Pueyo (G) All Pac-12 Defensive Team 5.6 PPG/3.0 RPG/2.3 SPG

Rankings edit

Ranking movements
Legend: ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking
RV = Received votes
Week
PollPre123456789101112131415161718Final
AP19181514122018181514191922171814212425Not released
Coaches19181413121716151310151420151814202223RV


Media coverage edit

Radio edit

TV edit

References edit