Arizona starting guard Kerr Kriisa is a question mark for their Round of 64 game of the NCAA Tournament.
Kriisa hasn’t played since suffering an ankle injury last Thursday in the closing seconds of Arizona’s Pac-12 quarterfinal game. Without him, the Wildcats were still able to beat Colorado in the semis and second-seeded UCLA in the championship game. Suffice it to say, they’ll be heavily favored to beat the winner of the First Four game between Wright State and Bryant even if Kriisa remains out. However, it only gets more difficult beyond that with the 8-9 winner looming.
By the time Arizona begins tournament play on Friday, it will have been a full week since Kriisa suffered the injury. He shared a photo Monday that doesn’t look promising for his chances to be 100%, but the caption sounds like he wants to give it a go soon.
Not easy but doing everything I can to get back on the court with my brothers! Its March. Time to go!! @JustinKUofA pic.twitter.com/DdUOsbOkW9
— Kerr (@KerrKriisa) March 14, 2022
The deeper Arizona gets into the tournament, the more important Kriisa becomes as the margin for errors shrink. He’s their lead facilitator, with a team-high five assists per game, and he also leads the team in made three-pointers (78). Kriisa is one of four Wildcats averaging double-digit scoring (10.1 points).
“The update is he’s doing everything he can to prepare himself and give himself the opportunity to play,” head coach Tommy Lloyd told Arizona Sports on Monday.
“We’re hopeful, but at the end of the day I think we proved this last weekend no matter who we roll out there and who we go against, we’ll be competitive.”
Arizona has the second-best odds to win the NCAA championship at +600 and its odds to make the Final Four are tied for second at +150. The team’s depth is a big reason why, as it can count on a number of players to pick up the scoring load and has another guard in the lineup, Dalen Terry, who averages four assists himself.
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The team’s depth makes it possible that Arizona decides to let Kriisa heal an extra game or more before testing out his ankle, hoping to advance without their point guard but have him healthier down the line. It certainly represents a risk when betting Arizona futures, but one that could potentially pay off if he can return close to his old form.
