Punching first is something Adia Barnes and her players talk about often. On Sunday afternoon, that’s exactly what the Arizona Wildcats did. The Washington State Cougars didn’t quite know what hit them out of the gates as Arizona defeated them 72-57.
“It starts with pregame,” Aari McDonald said. “Coach Barnes emphasized that Washington State is a team you don’t want to sleep on and you can’t let them in the game, so we came out with energy.”
That eneregy included a full-court press that forced the Cougars into several turnovers. Arizona’s first points came off a McDonald steal.