Arizona untested in thrashing of physical Abilene Christian

The No. 1 Arizona Wildcats were unchallenged against a physical Abilene Christian team in a 96-62 win on Tuesday.

With their fifth-straight win of at least 20 points, the Wildcats (10-0) continued their undefeated season and their best start since opening 11-0 in 2021-2022.

Abilene Christian, which ranks 349th in the country in opponent free throws attempted per game, repeatedly sent Arizona to the foul line, which set the tone early.

“Abilene Christian has an identity. They’re a scrappy defensive team,” Arizona coach Tommy Lloyd told reporters. “They do a great job stealing the basketball, and putting pressure on you and kind of denying some maybe normal passes you would get.

“So you want to be able to attack that pressure. But one of the downfalls with the way they play, is there’s a lot of fouls. They have a high foul rate. So we don’t overthink that. We wanted our guys to be strong with the ball. Attack. We were able to get in the bonus early.”

Abilene Christian had seven fouls in the game’s first five minutes, and Arizona senior Jaden Bradley tied his career high of 10 made free throws just 11:29 into the game.

“We knew they were going to be aggressive,” Bradley said. “That’s what they hang their hat on, steals and just amping up on defense. So just trying to get to the basket and make layups and just happened to be at the free throw line.”

Bradley finished with those 10 points and without a field goal (0 of 2) for the first time this season, something he did just once all of last season.

The Wildcats found themselves in the double bonus 8:59 into the game and shot more free throws (25) than field goals (23) in the first half. Arizona’s final free-throw tally was 30 of 39.

Arizona had six players score in double figures and was again led by five-star freshman Brayden Burries.

Burries continued his scoring burst on Tuesday after scoring a season-high 28 points on Saturday. The five-star freshman finished with 20 points on 9-for-11 shooting and scored seven points during a 65-second stretch deep into the second half to push Arizona’s lead to 34, the largest it grew.

Burries struggled to begin the season, scoring just 39 points over the first five games, but he’s since scored 99 over his past five games, where he’s displayed his ability as a three-level scorer.

“I feel like I’m starting to get more comfortable,” Burries said. “Just learning after the vets like (Bradley) and (Anthony Dell’Orso) and them. And coach just believing in me. My teammates believe in me, so I feel like it’s just confidence, honestly, I’m starting to get it.”

In addition to Bradley and Burries, Ivan Kharchenkov tallied 11 points on 3-for-4 shooting, Koa Peat had 10 points on 3-for-5 shooting, Motiejus Krivas added 15 points on 4-for-4 shooting and Tobe Awaka had 10 points on 3-for-5 shooting off the bench.

Arizona was the highest-ranked team Abilene Christian has ever played, and the Wildcats from Abilene Christian looked out of their element against the opposing Wildcats.

Arizona held Abilene Christian without a field goal the last 5:50 of the first half, taking a 20-point lead into the break.

The only area Arizona struggled in was limiting turnovers. After coughing up just four against Alabama on Saturday, tying the fewest in a game in program history, Arizona surrendered 11 turnovers in the first half, which Abilene Christian turned into 13 points. Arizona ended the night with 19 turnovers but allowed just two points off turnovers in the second half.

Arizona freshman Sidi Gueye had nine points all season long coming into Tuesday but finished with four points on 2-for-2 shooting and three blocks in nine minutes.

“Sidi has gotten off to a slower start here for a variety of reasons, but Sidi is really talented, and he’s a great kid, and he can catch up fast, so I want to get him in catch-up mode right now,” Lloyd said. “Physically just with his strength, his conditioning, his physicality, his IQ and understanding of what we’re trying to do. You can see his ability out there and some flashes, but there’s obviously more we need to get to.”

Gueye, who started playing basketball as a 12-year-old, had several highlight-worthy plays in Tuesday’s victory.

WHAT A SEQUENCE BY SIDI pic.twitter.com/v96FXEL6HT

— Arizona Basketball (@ArizonaMBB) December 17, 2025

Up next, Arizona will play San Diego on Saturday at 8:30 p.m. MST in the Hall of Fame Series at the Phoenix Suns’ Mortgage Matchup Center.

Related

Arizona holds at No. 1 in college basketball rankings after beating AlabamaSecond-half surge fuels Arizona to win in Alabama, continuing undefeated seasonWho needs a SP? Bratt bests Mize in D-backs W over PadresKelsey Plum leads Mercury scorers in 1st start, Phoenix falls to DreamArizona S Daylen Austin among ESPN’s 40 most important college players for 2026Dillon Brooks to sign extension with Suns, becoming long-term piece