Arizona Beats Stony Brook, Earns 1st March Madness Win Since 2005

TUCSON, AZ — The Arizona Wildcats' path to the school's first women's March Madness win in 16 years was as easy as they come on Monday.

That's because the third-seeded Wildcats shellacked 14th-seed Stony Brook in the tournament's opening round 79-44, advancing to Wednesday's round of 32.

The game's outcome was never in doubt, with Arizona jumping out to a 26-10 lead after one quarter of play and only increasing the lead from there.

The net result was the Wildcats' first appearance in the tournament's second round since 2005, when the team beat eighth-seeded Oklahoma in the opening round before falling to then-top-seeded Louisiana State 76-43 in the tournament's second round.

Fast-forward 16 years, and the Wildcats will face off against the 11th-seeded Brigham Young Cougars, who upset sixth-seeded Rutgers Monday in the round of 32.

It's a moment that seniors such as do-it-all guard Aari McDonald, who scored a game-high 20 points on Monday, have been waiting for.

"I can’t stress this enough, I’m proud of my teammates. We came and we did what we were supposed to do," McDonald said. "I’m just glad it translated to the game, but I’m just really proud. And we’re not done yet. We’ve got to cherish it, but we’ve got another game to look forward to."

Above all, McDonald said that the Wildcats' effort on Monday showed what they're capable of, after the team was knocked out of the Pac-12 tournament by UCLA in the semifinal round on March 5.

"My teammates and I, we live for these moments. This is what we’ve been waiting for. This is what all the work that we’ve been putting in is for," McDonald said. "So I’m excited and we just have to take all of this effort and put it forward to our next game."

Others, such as senior forward Trinity Baptiste, discussed how the Wildcats knew they had an edge over the Seawolves in depth and talent level heading into Monday's game.

That confidence manifested itself in the form of Baptiste and company holding Stony Brook to 29.2 percent shooting on Monday, while the senior scored a season high 18 points in the victory.

"We had an advantage everywhere, but we realized that we just had to pound it inside and talked about how we’re 14-0 when our post players score in double figures," Baptiste said. "So I think that me and Cate have to be more aggressive, and we have to do it all game long."

Head coach Adia Barnes addressed her team's play, saying the Wildcats met all of her expectations after a disappointing outing at the conference tournament a few weeks ago.

"I saw a different sense of urgency, I saw a different sense of hunger that I didn’t see in the Pac-12 tournament," Barnes said. "We came out with the fire and intensity that I knew that we could show each and every day. I’m proud of the way that we responded with everything else going on."