After Arizona rallied from a 38-31 halftime deficit, head coach Tommy Lloyd explained what he said to the Wildcats at halftime. Lloyd was concerned about Arizona's rhythm with 20-minute halftimes and the three-minute timeouts during the game disrupting the Wildcats' rhythm.
Arizona outscored Purdue 48-26 in the second half to earn a 79-64 win and its first Final Four berth since 2001. Lloyd told his team, "We have to be the team that comes out with the most effort out of a timeout." Halftimes during the regular season are 15 minutes.
Lloyd praised Arizona assistant coach Jack Murphy for developing opponent scouting reports and the game plan for the Wildcats. Per Lloyd Murphy shows the players some clips (videos of the first half) after he is finished talking to the team to tell them his thoughts and expectations for the second half.
Halftime took a unique twist after Lloyd explained the above. Lloyd said his players have been unbelievable and that is when they are at their best. The Arizona coaching staff, including Lloyd, left the locker room at halftime and gave his players a chance to talk amongst themselves.
“Let’s go kick their ass in the second half.”
— Erika Day (@erikaleaday) March 29, 2026
Tommy Lloyd talks his halftime speech when Arizona was down 7 to Purdue: pic.twitter.com/kkMBPGifQE
"The coaching staff and I are going to leave right now. You guys got a few minutes to talk about talk amongst yourselves and kind of figure this deal out and let's go kick their ass in the second half. "Arizona head coach Tommy Lloyd
Lloyd felt like a spectator in the second half
Lloyd said he felt like a spectator in the second half and was proud of what his players accomplished for the Arizona program and the community. Arizona came out with a sense of purpose in the second half. Arizona started the second half on an 11-4 run to tie the game with 15:53 remaining.
An Oscar Cluff free throw with 15:21 remaining in the game put Purdue back in front, 43-42. That was Purdue's last lead. A pair of Bradley free throws with 14:34 left gave Arizona its first lead since the Wildcats were ahead 21-20 with 8:36 remaining in the first half.
Arizona played nearly perfectly in the second half. The Wildcats made 51.6 percent of their field goal attempts in the second half, connecting on four out of its nine three-point shots and did not commit a turnover. The second half was the dominant team Arizona has been all season.