The Arizona Wildcats put on a show at home defeating Auburn 97-68. Arizona was able to punk the Tigers in this one, completely overpowering Steven Pearl’s group. The 29 point win was the fifth-largest margin of victory over a ranked team in program history. The Wildcats have been getting it done with physicality and well-rounded play all non-conference and tonight was no different. This was a dominant performance that saw Auburn playing from behind from early in the first half.
The win over Auburn was Arizona’s fourth win over a top 25 opponent this season and they are still slated to play six ranked teams as of now. The ceiling of this team continues to rise and their performances against ranked teams does nothing but accelerate that process.
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Arizona Gives Auburn Some Michigan Flashbacks
The Auburn Tigers are a really strong team that without Bruce Pearl has still been finding ways to win games and gain experience as a group. There have only been a few hiccups on their path so far. One of those said hiccups was a demolition at the hands of Yaxel Lendeborg and Michigan. Michigan was able to put a punishment on the Tigers to the tune of a 30 point blowout.
That win had fans and pundits across the country assuming that Michigan is simply in a class of their own. However, Arizona was able to replicate that level of dominance tonight and even the Tigers head coach Steven Pearl stated that he feels Arizona and Michigan are in a tier of their own according to what he’s seen so far this season.
Tommy Lloyd responded to Pearl’s praise in his post game press-conference.
Arizona Draws A Line In The Sand
One thing has been made clear so far this season, if a team is going to defeat Arizona, they’re going to have to have a combination of size and skill that not many teams possess. Arizona’s front court is a dominant force and their rim-pressure is a unique obstacle for teams to overcome.
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Auburn scored 68 total points in the game, Arizona scored 60 points in the paint alone. Auburn was out rebounded by six overall and 11 on the defensive boards. The Tigers shot less than 40 percent on their two-pointers in this one and just 28.6% on two-pointers in the second half.
The paint was not safe, it’s never safe against this Arizona team. Between Koa Peat, Motiejus Krivas and Tobe Awaka, Arizona has three elite level bigs while most teams have one or none. Arizona’s proficiency in the painted area will only continue to expand until teams find a solve, if there is a solve.
Freshmen Getting Their Sea Legs
Arizona’s number two rated recruiting class this season has been a mixed bag in their on-court reps. Peat came out night one and dominated the defending champions, Brayden Burries fouled out in that game and only just started showing signs of the player that fans know he can be, Ivan Kharchenkov has been impactful in every phase of the game and even tallied eight assists against Auburn and Dwayne Aristode has been up and down but has begun showing flashes of a high level “3 and D” player.
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Not every freshman can come in and dominate like Peat. Burries has shown a lot more positive indicators over the last three games but the competition level took a steep step up with Auburn and the five star recruit responded. 16 points and five rebounds for Burries in what was his best game so far this season.
Burries is highly talented and has all the tools to be an impact player on a team trying to win it all. The patience is proving wise.
Arizona Taking Over Alabama
Arizona’s next game will see the Wildcats fly to Birmingham to take on Alabama. The Crimson Tide are a top 15 team right now with two losses coming at the hands of Gonzaga and Purdue. Nate Oates’ group is known for their high octane, three point shooting offense that is surely going to test the Wildcats in a semi-road environment.
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If the Wildcats can take down the Tide, the nation will be looking at the most battle tested team around. Arizona’s matchup with Alabama will be live on ESPN December 13th, at 7:30pm MST.
For more on the fallout from this game and any upcoming Arizona athletics events, tune into the AZ Wildcats Podcast with Damon Fairall and Kevin Thomas.
