Anthony Dell'Orso had his Arizona career high 22 points and the Wildcats survived a late BYU comeback attempt to beat the Cougars 75-668. Arizona led by as many as 16 points in the second half, before it had the ball down five points with 42 seconds remaining.
Leading 73-68, Arizona forced a BYU turnover and Jaden Bradley found Dell'Orso for a dunk with 32 seconds remaining to extend the Wildcats' lead to 75-68 and provide the final margin. A.J. Dybantsa missed a dunk and BYU had a turnover on its last two possessions to help Arizona secure the win.
Dell'Orso was efficient, making 8-15 from the field and 4-8 three-point attempts with four rebounds and a steal. One of the biggest shots of the game was a Dell'Orso three-point shot at the halftime buzzer to extend the Arizona lead to 42-35 at halftime.
Ivan Kharchenkov was the second leading scorer for Arizona with 18 points on 7-12 from the field, 2-5 on three-point attempts, with seven rebounds, two assists and one steal. Arizona needed the stellar offensive performances from Dell'Orso and Kharchenkov with Dwayne Aristode and Koa Peat out.
Dybantsa was the dominant BYU scorer
Dybansta, projected as a top two pick in the 2026 NBA Draft, scored 35 points on 13-28 from the field with seven rebounds. Everyone else for BYU scored 33 points on 12-40 from the field and 3-13 on three-point attempts. Arizona held BYU second leading scorer, Rob Wright III, to 13 points on 5-13 from the field.
Wright entered the game against Arizona, averaging 18.7 points per game and shooting 48.8 percent from the field. BYU made five out of its 19 three-point attempts. Arizona made nine of its 21 three-point attempts to defy the frequent criticism of not making enough shots from beyond the arc.
After a tight first half until the three-point shot at the halftime buzzer, Arizona was in control for most of the second half until the too-late surge by BYU. BYU last led 26-25 with 5:58 remaining in the first half. Arizona led by at least five points for the entire second half.