It wasn’t easy, but Arizona picked up its first exhibition win of the season on Tuesday, beating Humboldt State 60-51.
The Wildcats turned the ball over seven times in the game’s first five minutes and 20 times total, but got 12 points and 14 rebounds from Jesse Perry — both team highs. Freshman forward Angelo Chol came on strong late in the second half, scoring five straight points and blocking a shot.
Arizona found itself in a 12-point hole midway through the first half but used an 11-3 run to take a 34-31 lead into the locker room.
Both teams were sloppy to start the second half, combining for 25 fouls and 18 turnovers, and Arizona didn’t hit its second field goal until over eight minutes had passed.
After being outrebounded 29-20 by Seattle Pacific in the exhibition opener, the Wildcats destroyed HSU on the glass — holding a 48-23 advantage. Junior forward Kyryl Natyazhko added 12 boards, seven of which came on offense.
Freshman guard Josiah Turner added 8 points and 3 assists, and Arizona connected on 41 percent of its shots from the floor and 20 percent of its 3-point attempts.
The Wildcats struggled from the free throw line, hitting just 22 of 38 attempts.
Arizona starts the regular season on Monday with a 7 p.m. contest with Valparaiso.