Thursday in Abu Dhabi saw the Wildcats make history by becoming the first college basketball team to play an international tour game in the United Arab Emirates when they took on the UAD Select team at the Mubadala Dome. The game started at 2:00 a.m. in Tucson, but nearly 300 rabid fans tuned in live on YouTube to see Arizona come away with the 127-90 victory.
Seven different Wildcats scored in double figures and they racked up 33 assists for the second straight game. As a team, UA shot 55% and came away with 13 steals to improve to 2-0 on the Summer Tour.
The third and final game of the Summer Tour will be played on Saturday, Aug. 19 at 6:00 a.m. (PT) against Lebanon. The game will take place at Etihad Arena, with a capacity of 18,000 fans, and will be streamed live on YouTube.com/@ArizonaWildcats. Lebanon is ranked No. 43 in the current FIBA men's national team rankings.
In Thursday's game against UAE Select, Filip Borovicanin once again paced Arizona in scoring with 17 points to go with nine rebounds and five assists. In two games, he is averaging 15 points and 5.5 assists.
Freshman center Motiejus Krivas matched Borovicanin with 17 points on 8 of 8 shooting from the floor and grabbed six rebounds. KJ Lewis, who missed the first game of the tour with a minor ankle injury, returned in a big way with 15 points and seven boards. Pelle Larsson (12), Paulius Murauskas (12), Caleb Love (11) and Oumar Ballo (10) also scored doubled figures.
The Wildcats led by just five points, but it was a run in the middle of the second quarter that put the game out of reach, as Arizona outscored them by a 34-16 margin.
But the team was not done with their duties for the day. After finishing off a postgame meal back at the hotel, the travel party was given the honor of a VIP tour of the Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque. The architectural marvel was built in 2008 to honor the late Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan and features the world's largest hand-knotted carpet in the main prayer hall that was completed by 1,300 Iranian artisans. From the outside, the four minarets stand an astounding 106 meters in the air. The group was able to go behind the scenes and see the intricate details on the vast marble expanses and set foot on the carpet in the prayer room.
Many in the group remarked how in awe they were of the mosque after spending a little more than an hour inside.
The group closed the evening with another amazing dinner at a local restaurant and a brief opportunity to do some shopping before returning to the hotel.
On the schedule for Friday will be an opportunity to ride jeeps in the desert, a visit to the Louve art museum and a tour of the historic Abrahamic House.
Please check @ArizonaMBB on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook or online at arizonawildcats.com/SummerTour for the most up-to-date content from the trip.
