No. 1 Arizona will try to achieve the best start in program history and match the record for its longest winning streak when the Wildcats play at rival Arizona State in Tempe on Saturday.
Arizona (21-0, 8-0 Big 12) is tied for the best start in program history with the 2013-14 team. The school’s longest winning streak, 22 games, stretched from 1914 to 1917.
Arizona State (11-10, 2-6) has lost four of its last five games, including Tuesday’s 79-76 defeat at UCF.
Arizona beat No. 13 BYU 86-83 on Monday in Provo, Utah, behind 29 points from Brayden Burries and 26 from Jaden Bradley.
The Wildcats, who led by 19 points with close to 10 minutes remaining, withstood BYU’s late rally, which included a 12-2 run in the last 1:01.
The win was the closest of the season for Arizona, which is defeating opponents by an average margin of 21.3 points.
“It’s a big-time finish for us,” Arizona coach Tommy Lloyd said. “We’ve been talking a lot about that from going back to this summer that there’s going to be some games that come down to getting one stop, and then we haven’t been in a lot of them. So it was great to experience that and have it come out our way.”
Burries, who averages 15.2 points a game, and fellow freshman Koa Peat (14.5) are the leading scorers for the Wildcats.
Peat, who hails from the Phoenix area, will experience a homecoming in Tempe.
Burries struggled in the first meeting with Arizona State, in which Arizona won 89-82 in Tucson on Jan. 14. He scored six points on 3-of-7 shooting from the field, 0 of 3 from 3-point range.
He has averaged 20.4 points a game in the four games since, including shooting 50% from the field (25 of 50) and from 3-point range (10 of 20).
“I feel like we are just getting better each and every day,” Burries said. “I feel like we have the best freshmen on our team in the whole nation. … It’s just getting better every day. We just continue to have that growth mindset.”
Arizona State kept it close at Arizona, cutting the lead to three points with 56.3 seconds remaining following a 3-pointer by Maurice Odum. A jumper by Bradley and two free throws by Tobe Awaka sealed the win for Arizona.
Odum is the Sun Devils’ catalyst, leading the team with 17.2 points and 6.6 assists per game.
Arizona State freshman center Massamba Diop competed well against counterpart Motiejus Krivas in the previous meeting. Diop had 16 points on 7-of-11 shooting from the field.
Krivas finished with four points after making the only shot from the field that he attempted and going 2 of 4 from the free-throw line.
Against UCF in its most recent game, Arizona State lost Tuesday despite leading 70-58 going into the final six minutes.
“It’s brutal to lose,” Arizona State coach Bobby Hurley said. “It always is. This was certainly a winnable game. We played very well. We probably played near the level that we played at Arizona, and that one again, we were down three with 50 seconds in that game.
“We only have what, like, 10 games left in league play? It’s getting late, just to feel good that we played well. I mean, it’s time where you have to capitalize and try and win these kinds of games.”
–Field Level Media
