The head coach’s radio show is a good time to get to know the program’s leader, players, staff, and other fans. It’s also a good time to get bits of information that may not be common knowledge. Arizona women’s basketball head coach Becky Burke let listeners and attendees in on some of that during her final radio show of the season with Arizona play-by-play radio broadcaster Derrick Palmer of 1400 AM (KTUC).
Replays of the radio show can be found on Spotify or Apple Podcasts.
On 2026 recruiting
The Wildcats signed four
players last November. One of those—center Callie Hinder—is already on campus. Three more will arrive this summer. Three of the four are ranked in the top 100 by ESPN HoopGurlz. Burke noted that of the seven top 100 players committed to Big 12 schools, three will come to Arizona.
“We’ve got three 4 stars, another like 3-and-a-half star kid,” Burke said on her show. “We’re really, really excited about our freshman class, but they’re not…going to solve all our problems next year, although that they would probably start for us right now. They’re going to be great pieces around a tremendous transfer class that we’re getting ready to bring in now that we’re going to be here and be settled and have time to get the portal really, really early. It’s going to be a combination of both of those things.”
One of those 4-star recruits is a prototype.
“My dream recruit probably looks like Jasleen Green, the kid that we have coming in from Florida,“ Burke said. ”You guys will see why. She’s incredible. She’s everything, everything you want. And we get her as a little baby. We just get to watch her grow.“
That’s not all of the story, though. That group of four signed players expects to add one more to their number according to the head coach.
Burke could not name the player because she has not signed yet, but she did let fans know that there is an unannounced international commit in the class. While there’s no way to know if she is the player Burke was referring to, there does seem to be mutual interest between Arizona and 20-year-old Karolina Ulan from Poland.
Ulan has played for the Polish national youth teams since 2021 when she appeared on the U16 team at European Challengers. The wing first appeared at the European Championships in 2022 on the U18 team and followed that with another appearance in 2023. She has played Eurobasket the past two years on the U20 team.
Ulan plays club ball for VBW Gdynia. She has played both EuroCup and EuroLeague with that club. If she is the player Burke was referring to, she might fit the mold of the kind of player the head coach said she is looking for in the portal—a long, shifty wing.
On players leaving after this season
Burke has now made it clear on two occasions within the past week that there will be players leaving Arizona after this season. This is not uncommon after the first year of a new staff when players decide whether they fit into the environment both on and off the court.
It should be even less of a shock considering that Burke had to hastily assemble a roster for this season. Some players may not have found the right fit in the amount of time they had.
Burke was forthcoming when Palmer asked about what offseason changes she foresees.
“I think year one, it’s really laying the foundation and getting everything figured out, from a roster standpoint, a staff standpoint,” Burke said. “There’s going to be changes made and good, bad, like all the things. There’s gonna be a couple players that are homesick or not happy with their playing time. There’s gonna be a couple that need to move on. And from some other aspects, there’s just gonna be a lot of change in the off season, but I think it’s definitely a good thing. It’s definitely needed, and we’re definitely revamping for the future.”
After the Baylor game, Burke said in her press conference that she hopes players like Sumayah Sugapong and Molly Ladwig return. Both of those players were a topic of discussion after having big impacts against the Bears.
On portal needs and possibilities
Grad transfers can enter the portal whenever they want, but it will be another month before the bulk of transfers start declaring their intent to change programs. Burke was most adamant about needing perimeter players, but she said Arizona needs “impact players” all over the court.
“We’re definitely gonna need a point guard to replace Lani [Cornfield],” Burke said. “Doesn’t mean it needs to be the exact same player that Lani is, but we need a Big 12 starting point guard caliber player at that position. We also want a couple big wings, some six-foot, six-one wings that have some shiftiness and some more athleticism. That’s something that we need to definitely address on the perimeter.”
The biggest problem?
“Six-one shifty wings are expensive,” she said.
On the rematch with Utah
Arizona lost a heartbreaker against Utah in the first Power 4 competition of the Burke era. It was an encouraging outing even if it didn’t get the win the Wildcats hoped for.
Since that time, the team has lost leading scorer Micky Perdue but has continued to find its identity. It typically puts together three strong quarters of basketball but struggles mightily in one period. That often torpedoes the Wildcats’ hopes of winning, but it doesn’t stop them from fighting hard the next time out.
The Utes are fighting for the final first-round bye in the Big 12 Women’s Basketball Tournament. They went on the road and beat a tough Colorado team. Now, they hope to put a bow on the regular season with a home win over Arizona.
Burke is hoping that the win over the Buffaloes has Utah feeling good about themselves.
“I’m hoping, coming off a big win at Colorado, that there’s a little bit of a—maybe they’re sleeping on us a little bit, or just a little bit of a let down by them,” Burke said. “But even if there’s not, I think we’re going to compete at a high level.”
Burke thinks the Wildcats will go in with some confidence because of how closely they played Utah at the beginning of the year. However, they also gave up a ton of points to Lani White, and she’s not the only one they have to worry about.
“This is not like a one-headed snake game,” Burke said. “They’re very balanced, and they rely on a lot of different things. And I think that’s why they’re so good is because they’re not an easy scout or an easy out with just one player.”
Burke would probably like White to pursue her other dream before Saturday, though.
“After that game was when we all left for Christmas break,” Burke said. “I actually ran into her at the airport, and I was pissed off at her, but I was like, she’s a really, really, really fun player to watch. She’s one of the best in the league. I think she’s a first-team all conference kid. Fun fact about her, she doesn’t even want to play…pro. She wants to be a lawyer. She wants to get into law school. She was telling me all that at the airport…A really, like, really, really good, genuine kid, but I hope she has a horrible game against Arizona.”
On the numbers and how to watch
- NET rating: Utah’s NET rating places the Utes at No. 56. Arizona is at No. 120.
- Big 12 standings: There are things on the line for both teams. Most importantly, seeding for the Big 12 Tournament. That’s especially important for Utah, which is on the bubble for a berth in the NCAA Tournament.
- The Utes are tied with Iowa State and Arizona State by record at 9-8. They lost to ISU in their only matchup and lost to ASU twice, so they need to win and have both to lose in order to move up in the Big 12 Tournament seeding. They are currently 9th, putting them outside the group that gets first-round byes next week.
- Arizona’s 3-14 record places it in 14th place ahead of UCF and Houston. The ‘Cats cannot go any higher, but they can fall back to No. 15. They do not want to end up tied with UCF, which is currently 15th, since the Knights beat them head-to-head. Currently, they are slated to play Kansas State in the first round of the conference tournament. While they beat the other Wildcats earlier this season, that was in McKale. K-State had the biggest at last year’s tournament due to their close proximity to the venue.
- When and where: The game will be played in the Jon M. Huntsman Arena in Salt Lake City, UT. It tips off at 5 p.m. MST on Saturday, Feb. 28.
- How to watch: The game will be streamed on ESPN+
- How to follow the stats: In-game stats can be found on Arizona Live Stats
