No Kerr Kriisa, no problem! No. 6 Arizona Basketball routes Utah

TUCSON, AZ – Despite shooting 3-18 from three and missing Kerr Kriisa, No. 6 Arizona Basketball (14-1, 4-0) still routed Utah, 82-64. 

Playing in their second game this week, No. 6 Arizona Basketball returned to action against Utah on Saturday evening; however, it was without their starting point guard as head coach Tommy Lloyd revealed Kerr Kriisa got hurt in pregame warmups.

Led behind the stellar play of Azuolas Tubelis, the sophomore forward led all scorers with 32 points on 14-24 shooting to go along with eight rebounds and five assists.

Arizona would finish their day shooting just 3-18 from three and committed 16 turnovers. Despite some sloppiness, the Wildcats routed the Utes 82-64 in Tucson.

However, things did not start so pretty. Missing Kriisa seemed to surely have an impact on Arizona as the Wildcats experienced a shaky start, falling behind Utah 17-12 after the first nine minutes of play.

The Utes would keep up the pressure in the first half too, maintaining pace with the Wildcats until Arizona was able to close out the first half on a 14-7 run, taking a narrow, three-point lead at halftime.

Using another big run in this one, Arizona Basketball would wear down Utah in the second half, eventually cruising to the 18-point victory.

Opening the second half on a 10-4 run, the Wildcats would push their lead to nine after five minutes of play; however, the Utes wouldn’t go quietly in this one, responding with a 10-2 run of their own, as Utah would get within one point of the Wildcats with 12:24 to play.

Luckily, Arizona wouldn’t let this one remain close, holding Utah scoreless over the next seven minutes of play as they used a 21-0 run to put this one away for good!

Doing it on both ends of the floor, the Wildcats showed why they are one of the better teams in the country, using their talent and depth to come away with the 82-64 victory.

What’s next for Arizona Basketball?

With the win, the Wildcats improve to 14-1 (4-0) on the year and will have a little time off before returning to action against Stanford in Palo Alto on Thursday evening, followed by at Cal on Sunday.

Listen to head coach Tommy Lloyd following the teams’ win!