FAIRFAX, Va. – The University of Arizona women's basketball team is set to face George Mason on Friday, Nov. 18 at 3 p.m. MST in Fairfax, Va. Both Arizona and George Mason are coming off victories.
 
On the Patriots
George Mason comes into the game with a record of 2-1. The Patriots are coming off a 64-48 win over LIU Brooklyn on Tuesday. Kara Wright leads the team in both scoring and rebounding as she averages 17.3 points and 7.3 rebounds per game. Wright has made six three pointers in the first three games as well. Tiffany Padgett is second on the team with 9.7 points per game and Chinyere Bell is third with nine points per game. The Wildcats and the Patriots have faced each other just one time, and that was last year when Arizona won by a score of 68-60.
 
LB in the Record Books
Senior LaBrittney Jones is back for her senior season in Tucson. Jones will go down as one of the great Wildcats as she is sure to climb the record books should all go well. She is currently fifth all time in blocked shots with 103 and needs 19 to pass Marte Alexander for fourth. Jones is also 106 rebounds away from cracking the top 10, which shouldn't be an issue as she has averaged a little over 161 boards a year. Her average of 5.8 rebounds per game for a career is tied for seventh all time. Finally, Jones needs just 162 points to crack the top 20 in Arizona history.
 
Washington's World
Malena Washington led the Wildcats in total points scored last year as she scored 346 for an average of 10.8 per game. She also led the team with 146 three-pointers made, which was the most in one season since Davellyn Whyte knocked down 218 in the 2012-13 season. Although she is a senior, Washington is entering just her third season as a Wildcat as she started her career at Tyler Junior College, where she was named a JC All-American. Washington scored 13 points in the season-opener against Alcorn State.
 
Go DJ, That's my DJ
Senior forward Dejza James has played more than 13 games in a season just once in her career due to injuries, but she is healthy now and ready to return to action. Last year in 13 games, she grabbed 6.2 rebounds per game and scored 5.3 points per game. She had two double-digit rebounding performances as well, which included 10 against San Diego on Nov. 21 and 13 against New Mexico State on Dec. 2. James finished the game with at least six rebounds in seven of her 13 games played. James scored eight points, grabbed four rebounds and blocked two shots against Alcorn State.
 
TG For Three
Redshirt Sophomore Taryn Griffey has been through her fair share of adversity as she has undergone multiple knee surgeries, but she is back this year after having a solid start to her college career in the 2015-16 season. Last year, she shot 42.4% from downtown, which was the third-highest three-point percentage for one season in school history. She started off the season by shooting 6-9 from deep against Toledo on Nov. 14 and also drilled seven against Gardner-Webb on Dec. 21. Griffey drilled one three-pointer against Alcorn State on Sunday.
 
It's Your Destiny
Sophomore forward Destiny Graham was a monster on the boards in the season-opener against Alcorn State. She grabbed 11 rebounds, which is a career high and also had five offensive rebounds, another career high. Graham also blocked two shots, which tied her career high.
 
Buenos Dias, Lucia
Freshman guard Lucia Alonso made her first-career start in her first collegiate basketball game against Alcorn State on Nov. 13. She finished the game with 10 points, six assists and four rebounds. Alonso also led the team with 34 minutes played, and spent the majority of them at the point guard position. Her six assists was a game-high.
 
Hey There Holloway
After not playing during her sophomore season last year, Charise Holloway is set to return for her junior season this year. Holloway was someone the Wildcats could lean on during her freshman year back in 2014-15 as she averaged 6.6 points per game and made 103 three-pointers, which led the team. She scored in double digits six times and made at least two three-pointers in eight of the 28 contests she played in. Here career high was on Jan. 3, 2015 when she went 4-4 from downtown against Washington State. She scored 20 points that night, which is her career high.
 
Going Hard in the Paint
Of Arizona's 74 points scored in the season opener against Alcorn State, 42 of them were scored in the paint. The Wildcats outscored the Braves 42-20 in the paint.
 
Cleaning the Glass
The Wildcats will lean on seniors LaBrittney Jones, Dejza James and Breanna Workman to dominate the boards this year, which isn't a bad things. Last year, James averaged 6.2 per game, Jones averaged 5.9 per game and Workman averaged 4.8 per game. Jones grabbed double-digit rebounds four times last season while James did it twice last season. James' season was cut short last year though due to injury as she only played in 13 games. Against Alcorn State, Jones and Destiny Graham both posted double-digit rebound performances.
 
Double-digit rebounding games
11/13/16: LaBrittney Jones (12 vs. Alcorn State)
11/13/16: Destiny Graham (11 vs. Alcorn State)
 
It's a Block Party and LB is Hosting
Senior LaBrittney Jones has 103 career blocks through 85 games, which is good for an average of 1.2 swats per game. Last year, she blocked 23 shots in 21 games. Throughout her career, she has posted 25 games where she has blocked multiple shots and as blocked 3+ shots in 14 games. Her career high was set back on Feb. 1, 2015 when she sent six shots into the seats.
 
Not Up in Here!:
The Wildcats blocked 12 shots against The last time Arizona blocked double-digit shots in a single game was back on Nov. 9, 2012 when they sent back 10 of CSU Bakerfield's shots. Cheshi Poston led the way for Arizona that night as she swatted away six shots.
 
Arizona Career Blocked Shots Leaders
1. Shawntinice Polk, 222
2. Ify Ibekwe, 166
3. Elizabeth Pickney, 147
4. Marte Alexander, 121
5. LaBrittney Jones, 103
6. Dana Patterson, 91
7. Anne McFadden, 87
 
Lock it Up
Arizona was solid on the defensive end last season as they generally didn't allow the opposing team easy buckets and forced them into bad three-point shooting percentages. In the 2015-16 season, opposing teams scored just 62.4 points per game and shot 32.6% from downtown. Both of those were in the top half of the Pac-12 last year. Against Alcorn State, the Wildcats allowed just 59 points and forced the Braves to shoot 29.5%.
 
Depth Isn't Overrated
Last season, nine Wildcats averaged at least 15 minutes on the floor per game. What is the significance of that? Eight of those players are back for the 2016-17 season, so they know what to expect when it comes to college basketball. Against Alcorn State, six Wildcats played at least 16 minutes and four played at least 23 minutes.
 
2015-16 Minutes (min. 15.0 mpg)
1. LaBrittney Jones, 27.9
2. Malena Washington, 25.4
3. Breanna Workman, 24.5
4. JaLea Bennett, 20.9
5. Lauren Evans, 20.4
6. Taryn Griffey, 18.8
7. Dejza James, 18.1
8. Destiny Graham, 15.8
 
One Last Go Around
Of the 14 players on the roster, six of them are seniors, which is the most in the Pac-12 as no other team has more than four seniors on their roster. Those six seniors include LaBrittney Jones, Malena Washington, Breanna Workman, Lauren Evans, Dejza James and Farrin Bell. Those six seniors have combined to play in 356 games.
 
Experience Pays Off
Although there is a brand new coaching staff in place, this team is generally made up of players who were a part of the 2015-16 campaign. 11 of the 14 current players on the roster are returning this year and have played in a combined 535 games. Only one other school has more than nine returners (Colorado returns 11).
 
Barnes is Back
Adia Barnes is back in Wildcat Country, and this time it's as the head coach of the University of Arizona. Barnes is known as one of, if not the best women's basketball player to come through Tucson. As a player, she is the program's leading scorer as she finished with 2,237 career points (18.5 ppg). She is also second all-time in career rebounds (921). During Barnes' freshman year in the 1994-95 season, the Cats finished with a record of 11-19. The next three years were a complete turnaround as the Wildcats won at least 22 games in each season and made a three-straight postseason appearances. Over those three years, Arizona was 68-23, which is still the best three-year stretch in Arizona history.
 
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