The University of Arizona men’s basketball team claimed a 84-49 crushing victory over NAU on Tuesday, Nov. 11, at 7 p.m. in McKale Center. With this victory, Arizona improves to 3-0 in the early season.
Dwayne Aristode, a 6-foot-8 freshman forward, led the match with 18 points, going 6-for-9 from beyond the perimeter. This marked a career high for Aristode and proved his threat from the outside. Aristode also tied the school record for 3-pointers made by a freshman, the most since Bennedict Mathurin had (6) in a 98-64 win over Oregon State University in 2021.
“He’s a really good shooter. He just needed a few games to get comfortable,” Arizona head coach Tommy Lloyd said. “I don’t know what it’s going to be like on Friday [against UCLA], but today he was great. That’s a big step forward for him. He’s a really good player.”
Beneath the hoop, Tobe Awaka grabbed nine rebounds, another game-high. Awaka was one board shy of a double-double for the match, recording 10 points.
First half
Brayden Burries kicked off the start of the game with a deep 3-pointer, drawing the foul and collecting the extra point to put the Wildcats in an early 4-0 lead.
In transition, NAU looked to put points on the board but ultimately struggled against Arizona’s Motiejus Krivas, earning a block just a minute into the match. Shortly after, the Lumberjacks were able to pull a foul on Krivas, causing Awaka to enter the court.
NAU was able to find a lead after the fact, securing a jumper outside the paint to increase the score to 5-4.
Koa Peat corrected their trail with a massive dunk, Awaka following with a put-back lay-in. Unfortunately, his shot was no-good as Burries was fouled prior to the made basket, granting Arizona just 1 point from the line.
In the following play, Lumberjacks’ head coach Shane Burcar earned a technical, granting Jaden Bradley two chances at the line. After making both, Anthony Dell’Orso checked in and drained his first shot of the match, adding 3 points to the Wildcats 12-5 lead.
Bradley continued to drive to the hoop, racking up fouls on the Lumberjacks’ account. This system also pocketed easy points for Arizona.
Peat got back on the board with a deep jumper. NAU worked to find openings in the paint and around the arc offensively, but weren’t able to break through the Wildcats’ defense to keep a close enough leash on them.
Aristode made his appearance on the court, sinking a 3-pointer from the left side. Ivan Kharchenkov contributed heavily on defense, diving across the floor and earning two blocks and three steals in the game.
The depth in the Wildcats’ bench is part of what makes them so dangerous on the court. With over eight minutes remaining in the half, Arizona had pulled into a 10 point lead, 21-11.
Peat dominated the boards alongside Krivas, recording seven a piece. Bradley continued to drive Arizona’s offense, collecting three assists and adding two 3-pointers to his book. Seconds later, Bradley drove down the court, taking on two Lumberjacks to make an impressive lay-in and draw the and-one.
Krivas extended the lead, putting 12 points on the match. In a last minute 3-pointer shot, Dell’Orso sank another bucket for Arizona just before the shot-clock violation turned the ball over to the Lumberjacks. On the other end, the Wildcats made a stop and transitioned down the court for Peat to add 2 more points on the half.
“We get off to a decent start and then you get overwhelmed with their length, they’re pretty dang strong and they start making some shots, and we’re chasing our tail for the rest of the night,” Burcar said.
Off Wildcat mistakes, NAU was able to secure some final points before the end of the first half, still unable to close the growing gap with Arizona.
Awaka put up last minute efforts defensively and offensively to close out the half, 46-17.
Second half
Out the gate, NAU put the first points on the board for the half. Krivas responded with back-to-back points from inside, working to find an opening and finishing with a hook. Notably, he brought down boards on the other end, turning defense into offense for Arizona. In just minutes, Krivas had collected 6 points and a block.
Aristode put forth impressive looks for the Wildcats in hopes to expand their already comfortable lead. Awaka and Krivas worked side-by-side beneath the hoop, turning the ball to Burries for easy points on the opposite end.
“[In practice] I stay out of the paint for sure,” Bradley said. “It’s dangerous down there. You got Tobe [Awaka], Koa [Peat], [Motiejus] Krivas, even Sidi [Gueye].”
On the same note, the pair worked to slip behind Lumberjack defense and slam dunks for easy points. Aristode contributed with a baseline 3-pointer, his fourth of the night.
NAU responded with one of its own, but it wasn’t enough to gain momentum moving into the final 10 minutes of the game.
At this point, Arizona led by more than double the Lumberjacks’ points, 65-30. Evan Nelson entered the game for the Wildcats, a fifth-year Tucson native from Harvard University.
Through the final minutes, Burries surged offensively, driving into the paint and earning easy buckets for the team. Alongside Burries was Awaka, seeing the free-throw line several times for back-to-back points.
Kharchenkov and Dell’Orso worked together to see easy transition points as well, clarifying the outcome of this Arizona school matchup.
In the final minutes of play, Lloyd put in his bench, allowing them to get some reps and finish out the blowout against NAU 84-49.
Looking ahead
The Wildcats will head to Los Angeles to face UCLA in their upcoming matchup on Friday, Nov. 14, at 8 p.m. on the Bruins’ home court.
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