[desertrat]

Coming away from this scrimmage, the one thing that stands out os the new emphasis on defense. The last few seasons Arizona has allowed easy drives to the basket and wide open uncontested 3-point shots. That won't be the case this year as Arizona will get into the face of shooters on nearly every possesion. I sat in the 4th row just behind the red teams bench so had a good look at everything on the floor.

My first look at new PG Jerryd Bayless left me with the impression that he will be a shoot first type of PG with an outstanding outside shot and some incredible athletic ability in driving to the hoop and converting alley oop slams. He went one-on-one most of the night against Chase Budinger and showed a tendency to draw fouls, he will need to work on that aspect of his game.

Chase Budinger was simply unstoppable on offense and showed a new tough attitude on defense that should go a long way towards establishing him as the team leader this season.

Freshman center Alex Jacobsen is huge and showed a nice mid range offensive game, but he needs a lot of work overall. He can potentially be very good with his 7'2" body clogging the lane.

Daniel Dillon was very impressive on both ends of the floor and looks to be the top defender among the guards and the biggest hustler on the team with the possible exception of Bret Brielmaier.

Bret Brielmaier was a force defensively and generated offense with his put backs on the offensive boards. We know he will bring high energy each time he steps on the floor.

Nic Wise looked like he could be the best true PG in the way he handled the ball on offense and distributed it for easy baskets, also showed a nice outside shot. Not sure if he will be able to drive inside much due to his lack of size but the rest of his game looks solid.

Jawann McClellan looked frustrated and did not play particularly well in the scrimmage. He will need to step up his game if he is to become the team leader he says he wants to be.

Mohammed Tangara was a beast in the middle both defensively and offensively, grabbed some tough rebounds and played very physical inside. If he can stay out of foul trouble he could become a dominant force in the middle.

The rest of the team wasn't too overly impressive though there were flashes from Kirk Walters, Zane Johnson, and Jamelle Horne. The first exhibition will be next weekend when Concordia comes in for a buttwhooping.