(Video below.)
That may seem a bit harsh, but it’s hard to argue.
Why? Read on, won’t you?
UAB seemed to give Arizona every chance possible to come back and take the game last night in Tucson. UAB missed, free throws included, seven of its last nine shots, and blew an 11-point lead with 8:30 remaining.
Then, with the score 71-69 after Arizona’s Garland Junkins missed a free throw, Arizona’s Kyle Fogg scrapped up the loose ball and put it in the hoop, tying the game at 71 with :30 seconds remaining. Fogg, not thinking because he was probably told in the timeout before the free throw to foul by the coaches (thinking they’d be down by one or two after the free throw), fouled UAB’s Aaron Johnson.
OK … honest mistake. You should know the situation, but it’s an honest mistake. You get the rebound and you score. Your emotions get the best of you and you instinctively foul. I get it.
But the title of this post is not about Fogg; it’s about Jamelle Horne. Keep reading.
So Johnson misses his one-and-one attempt. Jordan Hill grabs the rebound. Arizona calls timeout, sets up a play, and puts it in the hands of Nic Wise. Wise’s shot clanks off the rim with about three seconds to go and UAB’s Paul Delaney (the THIRD) gets the rebound. That’s when Jamelle Horne completely forgets how to play the game of basketball, ignores the fact that the game is tied at 71 and lunges for Delaney III, causing the refs to call an intention foul on Horne, giving UAB two shots and the ball.
It was unlike anything I had ever seen. Horne was completley unaware of the situation DESPITE THE FACT FOGG HAD MADE THE SAME DUMB ERROR ON THE PREVIOUS POSSESSION. Delaney III hit the first freebie, missed the second. But it didn’t matter because UAB got the ball back, passed it inbounds and the game was over.
UAB 72, Arizona 71 . Let the disappointment in Tucson begin, and what a way to usher in what could be a rough, long season. (It should be mentioned that UAB was absolutely giving this game away.) There is still plenty of talent on this Arizona team, and if it cannot make a difference in a rebuilding Pac-10, what a disappointment — even with new coach Russ Pennell — it will be. Jordan Hill, by the way, could be in for a monster year. Hill had 22 rebounds last night and was a huge catalyst in the comeback.
