3 Players Who Stood Out in Arizona's Red-Blue Game
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It was an electric atmosphere at McKale Center for the Arizona Wildcats Red-Blue Showcase, which featured entertaining contests, appearances from former legends of the school, and high-flying action through two halves of basketball.
The Red Team won the contest by a close 45-44 score after being down 25-15 at halftime. The event was kicked off with the Adaptive Athletics Wheelchair Basketball game, which was followed by the introduction of the judges for the three-point contest.
The three-point competition had Anthony Dell'Orso and Harvard transfer Evan Nelson on the men's team and Mickayla Perdue and Mireira Jurado competing for the women's team.
Dell'Orso and Perdue advanced to the final round of the contest, where Dell'Orso won by a single shot, with the final score being 19-18.
The dunk contest was up next. Dwayne Aristode, Mabil Mawut, Addison Arnold and Koa Peat competed, but only one could win the competition. Aristode and Arnold moved on to the final round, but the winner was not who many in the audience would expect.
A surprise appearance by former tight end Rob Gronkowski was made, and he immediately stole the show with his surprisingly acrobatic dunks, which inevitably crowned him the winner over the other two contestants.
What followed was the main event of the night, the scrimmage of the team that was split off between the colors red and blue.
Many players showed out in the absolutely electric scrimmage, but we chose three that specifically stood out.
Jaden Bradley
The senior guard is expected to lead the team much like he did last year, and in this scrimmage, he displayed why he has those expectations on him.
In 18 minutes played, Bradley scored 12 points on 5-for-7 shooting with a defensive rebound and three steals.
His prowess on both offense and defense will be heavily needed, as Arizona has one of the toughest schedules in the NCAA.
Brayden Burries
Burries is one of the freshmen who is slated to make a massive difference in the upcoming season as he is a part of the No. 2-ranked recruiting class in the country, according to 24/7 Sports.
In 20 minutes played, Burries scored 22 points on 7-for-11 shooting with five total rebounds and two assists.
He is an offensive talent who can score points at times when the team needs it the most, making him a valuable asset to the Wildcats.
"It felt pretty good to finally play in front of the fans," Burries said. "I've never played in fonr of that many people before. They just gave me the energy I needed, my teammates had my back and the coaches drawing up great plays for me and the team, my teammates just gave me all the confidence, telling me to keep going."
Anthony Dell'Orso
Dell'Orso is another veteran player expected to take on a leadership role this upcoming season. He has been one of the premier perimeter shooters on the team since he joined.
In 17 minutes, Dell'Orso scored 10 points on 4-for-5 shooting with a perfect 2-for-2 behind the 3-point line. He also had five rebounds, one assist and a steal.
"I feel great. Obviously, the body and the offseason I've had," Dell'Orso said. "I feel both confident and all that kind of stuff, comfortable in the system, all that. So I feel great. I mean, I can't wait for the season to come and show kind of what I was, you know, expected to do in this second season."
Let us know your thoughts on the Red-Blue game and which players stood out to you by commenting on our X account. You can click the link to find us and be sure to follow us on social media.
Nathaniel Martinez and a set of shoulder pads at 7 years old. He later graduated from Pima Community College in 2023, where he began writing for the Pima Post. He is working to achieve a Bachelor’s in Mass Communication and Media Studies.