Long the ugliest arena in college basketball. It won't be as Arizona begins its first losing streak in three years.
The Wildcats once again demonstrated their uncanny ability to perform immediately after a loss, winning 87-78 at Oregon on Saturday afternoon. It was their first win at Matthew Knight Arena since 2015, ending a six-game skid there, as well as ending a 3-game losing streak.
Ninth-ranked Arizona (15-5, 6-3 Pac-12) improved to 14-0 in post-loss games on the season, and this is only the second one not decided by double digits and only because Oregon (14-) is 6, 6-3. ) Hit a garbage 3-pointer with 10 seconds left.
The Ducks were 7 of 18 from 3 but made just 4 of 14 to start, one of those coming from outside their half court to end the first half, and shot 44.8 percent overall including 39.4 percent in the second half. It was a stark contrast to Thursday's 83-80 loss at Oregon State when the Beavers made 12 of 20 3s including a buzzer-beater to win it.
UA was 10 of 19 from 3, with five of those coming from Caleb lovewho scored a career-high 36 points on 12-of-18 shooting. It was the most points by a Wildcat in an actual road game since Ivan Radinovich He had 37 at Stanford in 2007, the most at Oregon State since then Slim Stoudamire He was 37 in 2004.
Kellan Boswell He added 14 points, his most since Jan. 4 and matched his scoring in the previous four games Keshad Johnson It was 12 and Omar Balu He went for 10 with nine rebounds.
Arizona led 45-38 at halftime, but went up by 14 with 1:09 left before halftime after Love delivered a one-handed dunk in transition. He immediately ran toward the Oregon State student section, where he talked trash throughout the game, and was fouled for a technical.
The Ducks made two free throws, got a Dante dunk, and then, after Arizona missed two in the final 10 seconds, Germaine Cousinard Drained 70 feet at the bell. Cousinard led Oregon with 20 points, but it came on 6 of 19 shooting, while… Navali Dante It was 19.
However, the Wildcats were able to push it back to a double-digit lead early in the second half and maintained that until Oregon scored five straight goals to get to 54-46 with 15:57 remaining. Love responded with his fourth 3-pointer, and his fifth got him to the 30 and put Arizona ahead 63-48 with 12:13 remaining.
The lead rose to 16 after Johnson's 3, but Oregon used the foul line to get back within 10 with 8:29 remaining. Love then hit two free throws and a floater to set a career-high.
The dagger came a few minutes later when Boswell scored five straight, a backdoor layup on a feed from Johnson and then pulled down a 3 from the top of the key to put the Wildcats up 75-59 with 6:05 remaining.
UA made six of its first eight shots, creating a 17-5 lead less than four minutes later, but that was followed by an empty-possession three that allowed Oregon to get within five minutes. The Wildcats were able to maintain a 2 or 3 point lead over the next 11 minutes Palo And Motigos Crevas Combined with five fouls in the first half.
The Wildcats started to get some separation late in the first half thanks to Love, who scored his third goal and later added a reverse layup in transition to make it 41-29 with 2:50 remaining.
Arizona's defense forced 12 turnovers in the first half, leading to 14 points, but the Ducks still shot 52 percent in the first 20 minutes.
UA returns home for its next two games, hosting Cal on Thursday and Stanford on Saturday. The Wildcats are 10-0 at the McKale Center this season, the same record Oregon held at home entering the day.
“Coffee ninja. Web fan. Hipster-friendly beer enthusiast. Professional creator.”