Arizona extended a 12-point halftime lead with a 16-2 run to open the second half and cruised to a 97-68 win over Auburn on Saturday. Coupled with Purdue's loss to Iowa State on Saturday, Arizona could be the number one ranked team nationally when the polls are released on Monday.
Arizona took control of the game in the first half with 12-0 and 15-0 runs to go up 44-24 before Auburn scored the last eight points of the first half. Koa Peat led five Arizona players in double figures. Tahaad Pettiford led Auburn with 30 points.
Arizona led by double figures for the last 26:31 and by at least 20 for the last 17:03. The Wildcats took control of the game midway through the first half and were never seriously threatened after that. Arizona was dominant again inside with a 60-24 advantage.
Arizona's bench outscored Auburn 27-6 and the Wildcats had a 23-7 assist advantage. It was a complete team effort for Arizona. Tommy Lloyd will probably be frustrated with Arizona committing 21 fouls, but that did not impact a game that was basically decided early in the second half.
Arizona was efficient, shooting 61.2 from the field, made six out of 15 three-point attempts, and nine out of 12 from the free-throw line. The eight players in the primary Arizona rotation all shot at or over 50 percent against Auburn on Saturday night.
Auburn shot 33.3 percent from the field and made only six of 25 three-point attempts. Lloyd will probably be disappointed with Auburn making 20 out of 25 from the free-throw line. This is the largest margin of victory for Arizona against a top 25 team since defeating California by 46 points in 2002.
The win was arguably the most complete for Arizona in 2025-26, considering the opponent. Arizona is off for a week before playing against Alabama in Birmingham on December 13. Alabama is 6-2 and hosts Texas-San Antonio on Sunday.