Arizona controlled the first half and used a 12-3 run over 4:06 late in the game that extended the lead to 10 and advanced to the Big 12 Tournament semifinals with an 88-77 win on Thursday night. Arizona led 45-37 at halftime and stretched the lead to 47-37 on a Trey Townsend layup to begin the second half.
Kansas answered with a 13-3 run to tie the game at 50. Arizona scored the next four points, but Kansas answered with a 9-2 run to take its first lead since 3-2 at 59-56. The game remained a one-score margin until Arizona went on the decisive 12-3 run late to advance to the semifinals versus Texas Tech.
Four Arizona players finished in double figures and two more had seven. K.J. Lewis and Henri Veesaar each scored 19 points, Trey Townsend had his third consecutive strong game with 16 and Caleb Love finished with 11. Zeke Mayo led Kansas with 20 points, Hunter Dickinson had 19 and Dajuan Harris scored 16.
Arizona outscored Kansas 46-20 in the paint on Thursday night after Kansas had a 40-34 advantage on Saturday. Arizona also outscored Kansas 45-20 off the bench. Tommy Lloyd changed the starting lineup with Townsend in and Veesaar coming off the bench. Lewis, Townsend and Veesaar were Arizona's players on Thursday night.
Lewis scored 14, Townsend 12 and Veesar nine in the second half. That is Arizona's third, fourth and sixth leading scorers who dominated Kansas in the second half. The other Arizona players combined for eight second-half points. Love had five of his 11 points in the second half and Jaden Bradley did not score after having seven in the first half.
Playing with the lead in the last six minutes, Arizona made 12 of 15 free throws to Kansas making their only attempt from the line in the second half. Arizona finished 53.4 percent from the floor and made eight of their 18 three-point attempts. Kansas shot 42.2 percent but made 14 of their 31 three-point shots.
Arizona advances to play Texas Tech on Friday at 6:30 PM Mountain Standard Time on ESPN. Texas Tech survived with a 76-74 win over Baylor on Friday night. Texas Tech led 52-39 at halftime and extended the lead to 15 in the second half before holding off a Baylor shot at the buzzer.