KANSAS CITY, Mo. — There is so much change in college sports and women’s basketball isn’t excluded from it, as the Arizona Wildcats prepare for their first Big 12 Conference season.
In a sense, it’s a fresh start for coach Adia Barnes and her team. In another sense, it’s a pivot from what was to what is — and not just for the Wildcats.
“I feel like with this time in the state of women’s basketball, you’re always constantly adjusting, because every team is different,” Barnes said in her remarks at Big 12 women’s media day at T-Mobile Center. “There’s rarely teams that have all their players for four to five years now. So I think that every they’re adding new players, adding new transfers, and that’s just kind of the way women’s basketball is.”
The curve isn’t unique in this day and age. Teams are moving from conference to conference at a frantic rate. The Wildcats moved to the Big 12 along with three other schools, after the Pac-12 essentially broke up in the wake of USC and UCLA leaving for the Big Ten, which triggered a series of moves.
So Barnes and her staff had to dig in during the summer to learn about 12 new teams, including personnel, tendencies and philosophies. What she learned is that her team, as it’s configured now, is a good fit for the league.
“I think there’s a lot more size inside at the post, a lot more players that play with their back to the basket, and a lot bigger, so (it’s good) we have a lot more depth inside,” Barnes said.
That puts some pressure on sophomore forward Breya Cunningham. The 6-4 California native started nearly every game last season and averaged 7.7 points and 4.7 rebounds. The former McDonald’s All-American was selected Pac-12 All-Freshman Honorable Mention last season.
With her, the Wildcats can lean on 6-3 forward Isis Beh — who formerly played for West Virginia, which is in the Big 12 — along with Pepperdine transfer forward Jorynn Ross, who is 6-3.
Many of the top teams in the Big 12 have great post-play, including Ayoka Lee at Kansas State, Audi Crooks at Iowa State and TCU’s Sedona Prince. For the Wildcats to be competitive in this league in their first year, they’ll need to be able to hold their own in the paint.
But, Barnes stressed that it’s not just about her team adjusting to everyone else.
“Our style is also very different than most of the 12 teams,” she said. “So I think in some ways, some teams will have to adjust to us, and we’ll have to adjust to them.”
Arizona isn’t that far removed from its appearance in the 2021 national championship game, and Barnes is eager for a deeper run than last year’s appearance in the first round, which included a First Four victory in the NCAA Tournament.
Before last year’s 18-16 season, the Wildcats had won 20 or more games in five straight seasons. That seems like a baseline for what Barnes is hoping for from this year’s team.
She’s excited for the challenge — and the change.
“I think it’s just fun, new rivalries, just a different conference, 16 teams,” she said. “So I’m just excited to see you know how our game translates here in this conference, and it’s just exciting times.”
