The No. 24 University of Arizona men’s basketball team closed out its final home game this season on Senior Night with a dominating 113-100 victory over ASU on Tuesday, March 4 at 9 p.m. in McKale Center. This is Arizona’s fifth consecutive victory over ASU, with the Wildcats leading the all-time series record 163-87.The Wildcats (20-10, 14-5 in Big 12) have secured themselves a 13-3 home record this season.
Five Wildcats finished the night in double digits as Henri Veesaar led the charge with an impressive 22 points, a career high. In addition to him shooting 8-for-12 from the field, Veesaar secured eight rebounds and four blocks. Caleb Love and KJ Lewis collected 21 points apiece. Tobe Awaka and Jaden Bradley both had a perfect night shooting from the field, as Awaka shot 5-for-5, collecting 15 points while Bradley scored 12 points on 4-of-4 shooting.
Senior night
Prior to tip-off, Arizona coaches, fans and players shined light on their graduating seniors from this year who will not be returning to wear a Wildcat jersey for the next season. Graduating seniors that were honored included Liam Lloyd, Grant Weitman, Will Menaugh, Trey Townsend and Love. While bittersweet, it was a special night to honor all the time and commitment these players have put into Arizona men’s basketball.
First half
Coming off of a celebration and entering a rival match, energy was high in McKale. Awaka, a junior forward, came out hot for the Wildcats. He was efficient on the glass, bringing down rebounds from the get-go and attempting shots down low to put the Wildcats in the lead 10-5 only four minutes into the game.
Townsend made impressive efforts on the court as well. He had an easy lay in from Bradley and a crucial 3-pointer to give the Wildcats a 3-point separation from ASU. Carter Bryant made an appearance early in the first half, grabbing boards and ultimately contributing 5 points in the first period
ASU never allowed Arizona to get too comfortable, hitting several of its 12 attempted shots from beyond the arc in the first half. These attempts were made by Alston Mason, who aided the Sun Devils as he went 5-for-7 from the 3-point line and 10-for-17 from collectively, securing 33 points himself.
Love showed up and showed out with hot hands from around the arc. He put in 3-pointers throughout the first period, furthering the Wildcat’s advantage from the Sun Devils to 24-18 with just about 10 minutes left before halftime. Bobby Hurley, ASU’s head coach, earned a technical foul, creating tension on both the court as well as in the stands.
Lewis, a sophomore guard for Arizona, was effective on all areas of the court, finding openings from outside to add to Arizona’s gradual lead. Lewis secured 6 first half points on 3-for-9 shooting from the field, prepping for what was to be a higher scoring second half.
“[KJ] knows how teams’ kind of guard him now and he’s picking and choosing his spots pretty well. I thought he put himself in a lot of good positions to help us out and make plays and took care of them all,” head coach Tommy Lloyd said.
However, ASU continued to find opportunities by earning fouls off of Arizona’s players. The Wildcats found themselves in foul trouble with a few minutes remaining in the period as four players from Arizona had two violations on them. This gave the Sun Devils 12 total opportunities from the line in the first half as they proceeded to make 10 of them.
Bryant found chances to score down low and secured them with engaging dunks. He added on to his makes from the outside as he made a 3-point attempt with 3:56 remaining, stretching Arizona’s lead to 12 points. In addition to the lead building, Awaka’s defense was crucial against ASU, as the Sun Devils were not able to get many shots off against him.
With only two minutes remaining in the half, Bradley was dealt a technical foul after a gesture he made regarding why there was no foul called on his lay-in. This caused McKale to react negatively as he is a consistent ball handler for the Wildcats.
“I just know Jaden [Bradley]. Jaden is such a classy, quiet guy. If he’s complaining to an official, like in a way that the official feels like he should be t’d up, my assumption is he probably got fouled,” Lloyd said.
Arizona carried on, continuing to find buckets from Love and other players on the field and at the free throw line. Despite Mason nailing a 3-pointer on the fast break to end the first half, Arizona managed to lead ASU 55-47. Love led the Wildcats with 13 points, three rebounds and three assists.
Second half
Love continued to dominate offensively with a 3-pointer in the first minute of the second half. Townsend also got his name on the board in the first minute with two free throw attempts, making one of them.
Wildcat defense stepped things up after being called for several fouls against Sun Devil players. Defensive efforts from Veesaar were crucial during this second half. His height, as he stands at 7-foot, was an asset beneath the hoop, allowing him to block ASU’s shot attempts.
ASU continued to find looks outside from Mason. However, after a made shot by ASU, Veesaar retaliated with a 3-pointer of his own to bring the Wildcats up 70-58.
As the half got closer to midway, Arizona continued to hold control of the double-digit lead. With tight defense, ASU found little success from inside the paint. When matched up against Bryant and Veesaar, the Sun Devils had to figure out how to combat their shot blocking and execution throughout the game.
Lewis continued to spark up the arena with points off of dunks and difficult layups down low. He slowly contributed to the team’s total along with Anthony Dell’Orso who snuck easy points in as well. Along with Lewis ending the night with 21 points, Dell’Orso had 7.
The Wildcats again found themselves in foul trouble nearing the final 10 minutes of the game. Bryant was called for several penalties down low in an attempt to block ASU shots. Lewis was also called for untimely fouls that were arguably results of good defensive efforts.
Bradley returned to the court after his foul trouble in the
first half and managed to stay consistent in bringing the ball down the court and even drawing fouls down low, contributing to his 12 points he ended the night with.
As the game progressed and the time ran down close to five minutes remaining, ASU entered a comeback period, narrowing the gap to just 3 points. Entering crunch time, the Sun Devil’s found a way to make it a one possession game.
“You could win a game, you know, with a huge run in the first half,” Lloyd said. “But you can also win with 16, 12, eight minutes to go. So, we just needed to keep fighting that opportunity.”
Following an Arizona timeout, Veesaar came out with a bucket from underneath the hoop. Soon after scoring, the Wildcats put a stop to ASU’s possession, finishing with a shot-attempt foul from Awaka who sank both of his free throws to help stretch the 93-86 lead.
After another possession, Lewis returned with, yet another made lay-up to give the Wildcats a 9 point lead. He continued to bring down points for Arizona as the time ran out with free throws and shots from inside. Awaka made big plays under the basket, earning baskets and drawing fouls alongside contributing securing nine rebounds.
As the game neared its end, Arizona came away with the 113-100 victory over rival ASU.
“Henry played well. He played really well and he actually threw up a big-time right-hand jump hook and a crunch on time which was the most impressive basket of the night. He made a big three in the corner that kind of went in, out, in, which was huge,” Lloyd said.
Looking ahead
The Wildcats look to close out its regular season as Arizona travels to take on the University of Kansas on Saturday, March 8 at 2:30 p.m. in the Allen Fieldhouse in Lawrence, Kan.
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