OREG

ARIZ

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No. 3 Arizona battles for hard-fought 84-81 win over Oregon

AP
Feb 20, 2022

TUCSON, Ariz. (AP) Kerr Kriisa had tossed a few ugly bricks toward the rim in the minutes before his biggest shooting opportunity of the night.

Then he sized up a 25-footer as the shot clock was winding down, splashed home the 3-pointer, and the Arizona Wildcats were on their way to winning their eighth straight game.

Bennedict Mathurin scored 24 points, Kriisa hit his crucial 3 with 1:26 remaining and No. 3 Arizona beat Oregon 84-81 on Saturday.

''I'm proud of our guys for hanging in there and winning a close game,'' Wildcats coach Tommy Lloyd said. ''We haven't had a lot of those.''

It was an entertaining, high-scoring game that featured 16 lead changes in front of a sold-out crowd at the McKale Center. Kriisa's long 3 pushed Arizona ahead 79-76, earning arguably the biggest roar of the night.

''The kid's got belief, he's got confidence,'' Lloyd said.

The Wildcats didn't trail again, hitting enough of their free throws to stave off Oregon's final charge. The Ducks had a chance to tie on their final possession but Will Richardson was called for traveling as time expired.

Azuolas Tubelis added 14 points and seven rebounds for the Wildcats, and Christian Koloko had 10 points and eight rebounds.

Arizona (24-2, 14-1 Pac-12) has a 15-game winning streak at home dating to last season. The Wildcats also snapped a seven-game losing streak against the Ducks.

''It was really fun,'' Mathurin said. ''The crowd was going crazy. It was a really good experience.''

Richardson scored 22 points for Oregon, which has lost three of four. Quincy Guerrier added 21 points and made six 3-pointers. N'Faly Dante had 13 points and 15 rebounds.

It wasn't quite enough for the Ducks (17-10, 10-6), who were swept in Arizona after also losing to Arizona State on Thursday night.

''A couple bad plays late,'' coach Dana Altman said. ''Guys played hard. In the second half, we had a few opportunities to open up a little gap and didn't do it. Just didn't get it done.''

Arizona took its first lead of the second half when Koloko made a jumper at the free-throw line for a 55-54 advantage. Kriisa added a 3-pointer and Mathurin made a tough layup in the paint to push the lead to 60-54, capping a 13-0 run.

Oregon had a terrific offensive start, making 13 of 21 shots to take a 32-20 lead midway through the first half. Arizona stormed back with a 10-0 run as the shooting excellence continued for both teams.

''They're a formidable opponent,'' Lloyd said of Oregon. ''They've been a little up and down this year, but we know their ceiling is really high.''

The Ducks had a 47-45 halftime lead and the Wildcats trailed despite shooting nearly 71% before the break. Richardson led Oregon with 16 points while Mathurin had 11 for Arizona.

GONZAGA AND ARIZONA

Lloyd is in his first season leading Arizona after 20 years as an assistant for coach Mark Few at Gonzaga.

Now the two teams are probably going to be No. 1 and No. 2 when the new AP Top 25 is released on Monday. No. 2 Auburn lost to Florida 63-62 on Saturday, making room for Arizona to climb.

Lloyd was asked postgame if he thought it was ''weird, good or cool'' that his current and former teams were in that situation.

''Probably all those things,'' Lloyd said, smiling. ''You probably answered your own question. Weird, cool, awesome - I'm proud of those guys, they've got a great team. They're family, and I think they're happy for us.''

BIG PICTURE

Oregon: Not many teams can match Arizona's offensive pace but Oregon looked just fine trading buckets with the Wildcats. The Ducks are going through a tough stretch but certainly have the talent to challenge anyone when the Pac-12 Tournament comes. Still, there's little doubt it was a lost opportunity for a team on the NCAA Tournament bubble.

Arizona: The Wildcats shook off Oregon's hot shooting and won their eighth straight game. It's a deep team that can get its offense from a lot of places. Many pundits believe Mathurin is going to be a very good NBA player and Saturday's game certainly showed that talent.

UP NEXT

Oregon: Hosts UCLA on Thursday night.

Arizona: At Utah on Thursday night.

---

More AP college basketball: https://apnews.com/hub/college-basketball and https://twitter.com/AP-Top25

1st Half
ORE
Ducks
47
ARIZ
Wildcats
45

Time		Play	Score
20:00		N'Faly Dante vs. Christian Koloko (Wildcats gains possession)
19:47		De'Vion Harmon personal foul (Kerr Kriisa draws the foul)
19:45	+3	Bennedict Mathurin makes three point jump shot (Dalen Terry assists)	0-3
19:24	+2	Quincy Guerrier makes two point jump shot	2-3
19:24		Azuolas Tubelis personal foul (Quincy Guerrier draws the foul)
19:24	+1	Quincy Guerrier makes regular free throw 1 of 1	3-3
19:09		Azuolas Tubelis turnover (3-second violation)
18:48	+3	Will Richardson makes three point jump shot (Jacob Young assists)	6-3
18:39	+2	Dalen Terry makes two point layup (Kerr Kriisa assists)	6-5
18:18		N'Faly Dante misses two point layup
18:16		Christian Koloko defensive rebound
18:12	+2	Azuolas Tubelis makes two point dunk (Dalen Terry assists)	6-7
17:48	+3	Quincy Guerrier makes three point jump shot (De'Vion Harmon assists)	9-7
17:37	+3	Bennedict Mathurin makes three point jump shot (Kerr Kriisa assists)	9-10
17:12	+3	Quincy Guerrier makes three point jump shot (Will Richardson assists)	12-10
16:43	+2	Christian Koloko makes two point alley-oop dunk (Bennedict Mathurin assists)	12-12
16:30		Will Richardson misses three point jump shot
16:28		Bennedict Mathurin defensive rebound
16:21	+2	Bennedict Mathurin makes two point jump shot	12-14
16:00	+3	Quincy Guerrier makes three point jump shot (Jacob Young assists)	15-14
15:44		Jump ball. Kerr Kriisa vs. De'Vion Harmon (Ducks gains possession)
15:44		Kerr Kriisa turnover (lost ball) (De'Vion Harmon steals)
15:44		TV timeout
15:22	+2	Jacob Young makes two point jump shot	17-14
15:08		Kerr Kriisa turnover (bad pass) (Eric Williams Jr. steals)
15:01		Will Richardson misses two point layup
14:59		Dalen Terry defensive rebound
14:55		Dalen Terry turnover (bad pass) (Quincy Guerrier steals)
14:55		Quincy Guerrier offensive foul
14:55		Quincy Guerrier turnover
14:34	+3	Dalen Terry makes three point jump shot (Bennedict Mathurin assists)	17-17
14:03		Christian Koloko blocks Franck Kepnang's two point dunk
14:01		Dalen Terry defensive rebound
13:51		Kerr Kriisa misses three point jump shot
13:49		Jacob Young defensive rebound
13:45		Eric Williams Jr. misses three point jump shot
13:43		Will Richardson offensive rebound
13:34	+2	Will Richardson makes two point layup	19-17
13:29		Bennedict Mathurin misses two point layup
13:27		Eric Williams Jr. defensive rebound
13:12	+2	Jacob Young makes two point jump shot	21-17
12:54		Franck Kepnang shooting foul (Pelle Larsson draws the foul)
12:54	+1	Pelle Larsson makes regular free throw 1 of 2	21-18
12:54	+1	Pelle Larsson makes regular free throw 2 of 2	21-19
12:43		Rivaldo Soares misses three point jump shot
12:41		N'Faly Dante offensive rebound
12:29	+2	Will Richardson makes two point layup (N'Faly Dante assists)	23-19
12:22		Rivaldo Soares shooting foul (Pelle Larsson draws the foul)
12:22		Pelle Larsson misses regular free throw 1 of 2
12:22	+1	Pelle Larsson makes regular free throw 2 of 2	23-20
12:08		Quincy Guerrier misses three point jump shot
12:06		Eric Williams Jr. offensive rebound
11:43		Will Richardson turnover (bad pass) (Oumar Ballo steals)
11:36		Justin Kier misses three point jump shot
11:34		Eric Williams Jr. defensive rebound
11:28		Dalen Terry personal foul (De'Vion Harmon draws the foul)
11:28		TV timeout
11:19		Eric Williams Jr. misses two point jump shot
11:17		N'Faly Dante offensive rebound
10:59	+2	N'Faly Dante makes two point layup	25-20
10:48		Christian Koloko turnover (bad pass) (Quincy Guerrier steals)
10:38	+2	De'Vion Harmon makes two point jump shot	27-20
10:29		Pelle Larsson misses three point jump shot
10:27		Ducks defensive rebound
10:13	+3	Eric Williams Jr. makes three point jump shot (Quincy Guerrier assists)	30-20
9:43		Justin Kier turnover (bad pass) (Will Richardson steals)
9:29	+2	De'Vion Harmon makes two point jump shot	32-20
9:26		Wildcats 30 second timeout
9:15		Quincy Guerrier shooting foul (Azuolas Tubelis draws the foul)
9:15	+1	Azuolas Tubelis makes regular free throw 1 of 2	32-21
9:15		Azuolas Tubelis misses regular free throw 2 of 2
9:15		N'Faly Dante defensive rebound
9:09		Will Richardson misses two point jump shot
9:07		Christian Koloko defensive rebound
8:53	+2	Christian Koloko makes two point layup (Azuolas Tubelis assists)	32-23
8:16		Will Richardson misses three point jump shot
8:14		Christian Koloko defensive rebound
8:09		Rivaldo Soares personal foul (Azuolas Tubelis draws the foul)
8:01	+3	Kerr Kriisa makes three point jump shot (Dalen Terry assists)	32-26
7:39		De'Vion Harmon misses two point jump shot
7:37		Dalen Terry defensive rebound
7:30		Kerr Kriisa misses three point jump shot
7:28		Christian Koloko offensive rebound
7:23	+2	Azuolas Tubelis makes two point layup (Christian Koloko assists)	32-28
7:04		Christian Koloko blocks Franck Kepnang's two point layup
7:02		Azuolas Tubelis defensive rebound
6:59	+2	Azuolas Tubelis makes two point layup	32-30
6:59		Franck Kepnang shooting foul (Azuolas Tubelis draws the foul)
6:59		TV timeout
6:59		Azuolas Tubelis misses regular free throw 1 of 1
6:59		N'Faly Dante defensive rebound
6:34	+2	Eric Williams Jr. makes two point jump shot	34-30
6:16	+3	Bennedict Mathurin makes three point jump shot	34-33
5:45	+3	Will Richardson makes three point jump shot (N'Faly Dante assists)	37-33
5:24	+2	Oumar Ballo makes two point jump shot	37-35
5:03		Eric Williams Jr. misses two point jump shot
5:01		Bennedict Mathurin defensive rebound
4:57	+2	Dalen Terry makes two point alley-oop dunk (Bennedict Mathurin assists)	37-37
4:45		Ducks 30 second timeout
4:30		Dalen Terry shooting foul (Will Richardson draws the foul)
4:30	+1	Will Richardson makes regular free throw 1 of 2	38-37
4:30	+1	Will Richardson makes regular free throw 2 of 2	39-37
4:21		Christian Koloko turnover (lost ball) (Eric Williams Jr. steals)
4:14	+2	Eric Williams Jr. makes two point dunk	41-37
4:05		Eric Williams Jr. shooting foul (Oumar Ballo draws the foul)
4:05	+1	Oumar Ballo makes regular free throw 1 of 2	41-38
4:05		Oumar Ballo misses regular free throw 2 of 2
4:05		N'Faly Dante defensive rebound
3:42		Jacob Young misses two point jump shot
3:40		Oumar Ballo defensive rebound
3:33		Bennedict Mathurin misses three point jump shot
3:31		Will Richardson defensive rebound
3:26		Will Richardson misses three point jump shot
3:24		Bennedict Mathurin defensive rebound
3:13		Christian Koloko turnover (lost ball) (Will Richardson steals)
2:48		Pelle Larsson shooting foul (Will Richardson draws the foul)
2:48		TV timeout
2:48	+1	Will Richardson makes regular free throw 1 of 2	42-38
2:48	+1	Will Richardson makes regular free throw 2 of 2	43-38
2:29		Kerr Kriisa misses three point jump shot
2:27		Ducks defensive rebound
2:12		Jacob Young misses two point jump shot
2:10		Jacob Young offensive rebound
2:04	+2	N'Faly Dante makes two point dunk (Jacob Young assists)	45-38
1:56	+2	Christian Koloko makes two point jump shot (Pelle Larsson assists)	45-40
1:42		Jacob Young turnover (out of bounds)
1:35		Pelle Larsson turnover (bad pass)
1:22		N'Faly Dante misses two point jump shot
1:20		Christian Koloko defensive rebound
1:00	+3	Pelle Larsson makes three point jump shot (Azuolas Tubelis assists)	45-43
0:46		Azuolas Tubelis shooting foul (Will Richardson draws the foul)
0:46	+1	Will Richardson makes regular free throw 1 of 2	46-43
0:46	+1	Will Richardson makes regular free throw 2 of 2	47-43
0:36	+2	Azuolas Tubelis makes two point driving layup (Pelle Larsson assists)	47-45
0:06		Eric Williams Jr. misses three point jump shot
0:04		Bennedict Mathurin defensive rebound
0:00		End of period

2nd Half
ORE
Ducks
34
ARIZ
Wildcats
39

Time		Play	Score
19:45		Christian Koloko misses two point jump shot
19:43		N'Faly Dante defensive rebound
19:35		Jacob Young misses two point jump shot
19:33		N'Faly Dante offensive rebound
19:29	+2	N'Faly Dante makes two point layup	49-45
19:29		Christian Koloko shooting foul (N'Faly Dante draws the foul)
19:29	+1	N'Faly Dante makes regular free throw 1 of 1	50-45
19:19		Dalen Terry misses two point jump shot
19:17		Jacob Young defensive rebound
19:11	+2	Will Richardson makes two point layup (Jacob Young assists)	52-45
18:59		Azuolas Tubelis misses two point layup
18:57		Quincy Guerrier defensive rebound
18:44		De'Vion Harmon misses two point layup
18:42		N'Faly Dante offensive rebound
18:39		N'Faly Dante misses two point layup
18:37		Christian Koloko defensive rebound
18:38		Quincy Guerrier personal foul (Christian Koloko draws the foul)
18:24	+2	Dalen Terry makes two point layup	52-47
18:01	+2	Will Richardson makes two point layup	54-47
17:42	+3	Dalen Terry makes three point jump shot (Christian Koloko assists)	54-50
17:28		Will Richardson misses two point jump shot
17:26		Dalen Terry defensive rebound
17:19	+3	Bennedict Mathurin makes three point jump shot (Dalen Terry assists)	54-53
16:55		Bennedict Mathurin personal foul (De'Vion Harmon draws the foul)
16:39		Jacob Young misses three point jump shot
16:37		Kerr Kriisa defensive rebound
16:30	+2	Christian Koloko makes two point jump shot (Dalen Terry assists)	54-55
16:19		Eric Williams Jr. misses three point jump shot
16:17		Dalen Terry defensive rebound
16:11		Will Richardson personal foul (Dalen Terry draws the foul)
16:05		Bennedict Mathurin misses three point jump shot
16:03		Will Richardson defensive rebound
15:56		Eric Williams Jr. misses three point jump shot
15:54		Azuolas Tubelis defensive rebound
15:44		Franck Kepnang personal foul (Bennedict Mathurin draws the foul)
15:44		TV timeout
16:52		Eric Williams Jr. personal foul (Azuolas Tubelis draws the foul)
15:35	+3	Kerr Kriisa makes three point jump shot (Dalen Terry assists)	54-58
15:12		N'Faly Dante turnover (lost ball)
14:56		Bennedict Mathurin misses two point layup
14:54		Azuolas Tubelis offensive rebound
14:45		Azuolas Tubelis misses two point layup
14:43		Bennedict Mathurin offensive rebound
14:38	+2	Bennedict Mathurin makes two point layup	54-60
14:33		Jacob Young misses two point layup
14:31		Bennedict Mathurin defensive rebound
14:18		Azuolas Tubelis misses two point jump shot
14:16		Jacob Young defensive rebound
14:10	+2	Jacob Young makes two point layup	56-60
13:53		Christian Koloko misses two point jump shot
13:51		Eric Williams Jr. defensive rebound
13:43		Quincy Guerrier misses three point jump shot
13:41		Eric Williams Jr. offensive rebound
13:34		Eric Williams Jr. misses two point layup
13:32		N'Faly Dante offensive rebound
13:29	+2	N'Faly Dante makes two point dunk	58-60
13:20		Kerr Kriisa turnover (bad pass)
13:14		N'Faly Dante offensive foul (Kerr Kriisa draws the foul)
13:14		N'Faly Dante turnover
13:01		Oumar Ballo turnover (lost ball) (Eric Williams Jr. steals)
12:52		Pelle Larsson personal foul (Quincy Guerrier draws the foul)
12:48		Will Richardson misses three point jump shot
12:46		Kerr Kriisa defensive rebound
12:28		Dalen Terry misses two point layup
12:26		Azuolas Tubelis offensive rebound
12:22	+2	Azuolas Tubelis makes two point layup	58-62
12:18		Jacob Young offensive foul (Kerr Kriisa draws the foul)
12:18		Jacob Young turnover
12:05		Azuolas Tubelis offensive foul (De'Vion Harmon draws the foul)
12:05		Azuolas Tubelis turnover (illegal screen)
11:38	+3	Quincy Guerrier makes three point step back jump shot (De'Vion Harmon assists)	61-62
11:14		Pelle Larsson misses three point jump shot
11:12		Ducks defensive rebound
11:08		TV timeout
11:02		Dalen Terry personal foul (Quincy Guerrier draws the foul)
10:53		Quincy Guerrier misses three point jump shot
10:51		Eric Williams Jr. offensive rebound
10:43	+2	De'Vion Harmon makes two point jump shot	63-62
10:30	+2	Bennedict Mathurin makes two point layup (Christian Koloko assists)	63-64
10:11	+3	Quincy Guerrier makes three point jump shot (Will Richardson assists)	66-64
9:50		Bennedict Mathurin misses two point layup
9:48		Franck Kepnang defensive rebound
9:41		Will Richardson turnover (bad pass) (Oumar Ballo steals)
9:33	+2	Bennedict Mathurin makes two point layup	66-66
9:24		Will Richardson misses two point jump shot
9:22		Christian Koloko defensive rebound
9:15	+3	Pelle Larsson makes three point jump shot	66-69
9:00	+2	Will Richardson makes two point layup	68-69
8:46		Bennedict Mathurin misses two point layup
8:44		Christian Koloko offensive rebound
8:40		Pelle Larsson misses three point jump shot
8:38		De'Vion Harmon defensive rebound
8:12	+2	Eric Williams Jr. makes two point jump shot	70-69
7:57	+2	Christian Koloko makes two point alley-oop dunk (Bennedict Mathurin assists)	70-71
7:51		TV timeout
7:31		N'Faly Dante turnover (bad pass)
7:18		Azuolas Tubelis misses two point layup
7:16		N'Faly Dante defensive rebound
7:06		Bennedict Mathurin personal foul (Will Richardson draws the foul)
6:46		Quincy Guerrier misses three point jump shot
6:44		Ducks offensive rebound
6:44		Ducks turnover (shot clock violation)
6:29		Christian Koloko misses two point dunk
6:27		N'Faly Dante defensive rebound
6:21		De'Vion Harmon misses three point jump shot
6:19		Kerr Kriisa defensive rebound
6:05		Rivaldo Soares shooting foul (Bennedict Mathurin draws the foul)
6:05		Bennedict Mathurin misses regular free throw 1 of 2
6:05	+1	Bennedict Mathurin makes regular free throw 2 of 2	70-72
5:37		Christian Koloko shooting foul (Jacob Young draws the foul)
5:37	+1	Jacob Young makes regular free throw 1 of 2	71-72
5:37		Wildcats 30 second timeout
5:37		TV timeout
5:37	+1	Jacob Young makes regular free throw 2 of 2	72-72
5:17		Kerr Kriisa misses three point jump shot
5:15		Azuolas Tubelis offensive rebound
5:11		Eric Williams Jr. blocks Azuolas Tubelis's two point layup
5:09		Wildcats offensive rebound
4:59		Bennedict Mathurin misses two point jump shot
4:57		Eric Williams Jr. defensive rebound
4:50		Eric Williams Jr. misses two point layup
4:48		N'Faly Dante offensive rebound
4:43	+2	N'Faly Dante makes two point layup	74-72
4:38		Kerr Kriisa misses three point jump shot
4:36		N'Faly Dante defensive rebound
4:16		Jacob Young offensive foul (Kerr Kriisa draws the foul)
4:16		Jacob Young turnover
3:50		Bennedict Mathurin misses three point jump shot
3:48		N'Faly Dante defensive rebound
3:24	+2	N'Faly Dante makes two point jump shot	76-72
3:04	+2	Bennedict Mathurin makes two point jump shot (Christian Koloko assists)	76-74
2:36		Quincy Guerrier misses three point jump shot
2:34		Azuolas Tubelis defensive rebound
2:24	+2	Azuolas Tubelis makes two point reverse layup (Kerr Kriisa assists)	76-76
2:12		Ducks 30 second timeout
2:12		TV timeout
1:54		N'Faly Dante turnover (lost ball)
1:29	+3	Kerr Kriisa makes three point jump shot (Bennedict Mathurin assists)	76-79
1:07		Eric Williams Jr. misses three point jump shot
1:05		Bennedict Mathurin defensive rebound
0:46		Kerr Kriisa turnover (lost ball) (Jacob Young steals)
0:42	+2	Jacob Young makes two point layup	78-79
0:42		Ducks 30 second timeout
0:42		Eric Williams Jr. personal foul (Bennedict Mathurin draws the foul)
0:42	+1	Bennedict Mathurin makes regular free throw 1 of 2	78-80
0:42		Bennedict Mathurin misses regular free throw 2 of 2
0:42		N'Faly Dante defensive rebound
0:39		Pelle Larsson personal foul (N'Faly Dante draws the foul)
0:39		N'Faly Dante misses regular free throw 1 of 1
0:39		Azuolas Tubelis defensive rebound
0:38		Quincy Guerrier personal foul (Azuolas Tubelis draws the foul)
0:38		Azuolas Tubelis misses regular free throw 1 of 2
0:38	+1	Azuolas Tubelis makes regular free throw 2 of 2	78-81
0:38		Wildcats 30 second timeout
0:23		Jacob Young misses two point layup
0:21		Pelle Larsson defensive rebound
0:17		Eric Williams Jr. personal foul (Pelle Larsson draws the foul)
0:19	+1	Pelle Larsson makes regular free throw 1 of 2	78-82
0:19	+1	Pelle Larsson makes regular free throw 2 of 2	78-83
0:15	+3	Quincy Guerrier makes three point jump shot (Jacob Young assists)	81-83
0:14		Ducks 30 second timeout
0:10		De'Vion Harmon personal foul (Dalen Terry draws the foul)
0:10		Dalen Terry misses regular free throw 1 of 2
0:10	+1	Dalen Terry makes regular free throw 2 of 2	81-84
0:00		End of period

+ 1

Dalen Terry makes regular free throw 2 of 2