Arizona led by 19 points early in the second half and held on for a 72-67 win at Cincinnati on Saturday. Cincinnati tied the game at 64 before a critical drive in the lane by Jaden Bradley put Arizona back ahead to stay with 43 seconds remaining. Arizona made six of seven free throws from there to close the game out.
Bradley led Arizona with 15 points, freshman Carter Bryant scored 14 and Caleb Love had 12. Arizona won the game at the free-throw line. The Wildcats made 21 of their 27 free throw attempts. Cincinnati was 12-23 from the free-throw line. Arizona also had a 31-15 advantage off the bench. Bryant and K.J. Lewis were each huge off the bench.
Lewis finished with nine points and three rebounds. Arizona overcame a poor shooting day by Love. Love was 3-15 from the floor and 2-8 from the free-throw line with six rebounds and two steals. Cincinnati got back in the game by outrebounding Arizona 23-15 in the second half.
The free throws were particularly significant for Arizona in the second half. Arizona made 10 of 14 free throws and Cincinnati was six of 13 in the second half. The strategy to foul Dillon Mitchell was particularly clear. Mitchell scored 13 points on 6-8 from the floor with seven rebounds but missed all five of his free throws.
Dan Skillings led Cincinnati with 18 points and six rebounds. Mitchell was the only other Bearcat in double figures. Arizona held Cincinnati to 39.1 percent from the floor and five of 25 on three-point attempts. The Wildcats shot 43.4 percent from the floor and made five of their 14 three-point attempts.
Arizona will play on Tuesday at West Virginia. The win at Cincinnati is the biggest for Arizona this season. Cincinnati entered the game on Saturday 26th in the NCAA Net Ratings. Arizona was 21st. The win over Cincinnati was the first for Arizona against a quadrant one opponent.