On a day when Arizona celebrated its last Final Four team, from back in 2000-01, the Wildcats played like they might be the next one.
While setting new program and Big 12 records by starting the season 23-0, Arizona held Oklahoma State to just 24.6% shooting in an 84-47 blowout win on Saturday at McKale Center.
Arizona (23-0 overall and 10-0 in the Big 12) has now exceeded the 22 games in a row UA won between 1914-17 and the 22 straight Kansas won to start the 1996-97 season. The Wildcats have also tied the overall Big 12 record winning streak of 23 games set by Baylor in 2019-20.
As usual, the Wildcats did it this time with offensive balance and physical defense. Five UA players scored in double figures, led by guard Brayden Burries, who had 15 points and eight rebounds, while Tobe Awaka added eight points and 12 rebounds off the bench.
Arizona’s Brayden Burries (5) drives to the basket against Oklahoma State guard Anthony Roy (9) during the first half at McKale Center, Feb. 7, 2026.
"I'll say this, there were not very many open shots or easy shots to be had, especially when the game is called the way it was today," Oklahoma State coach Steve Lutz said, saying UA was at the top "one percent" of college basketball.
The Cowboys (16-7, 4-6) were coming off a 99-92 win over BYU on Wednesday that prompted their fans to storm the court, but couldn't manage half as many points on Saturday.
UA not only held them under 25% shooting overall but crushed them on the glass with a 56-35 rebounding edge -- and outscored Oklahoma State 54-14 in the paint.
"We know they have some talented offensive players, and we wanted to apply pressure, and make them play against size in tight windows, consistently, over and over again," UA coach Tommy Lloyd said. "I thought over time, our size kind of swallowed them up a little bit.
"Obviously I wasn't expecting that outcome today. They had a big, big win on Wednesday, and coach Lutz has done a great job. It's just every once in a while, I think that kind of happens in basketball, a game on the road kind of gets away from you."
Leading 40-22 at halftime, Arizona went on an 11-0 run early in the second half to take a 30-point lead and Lloyd began going deep into his bench when the Wildcats led 74-37 with 6:15 left.
The game did start out unevenly, with both the Wildcats and Cowboys each missing their first four shots while Arizona went on to miss six straight until Burries made a layup 3½ minutes into the first half.
Arizona took leads of up to 14 points midway through the half, going ahead 25-11 when Bradley scored twice in the paint, and, after Oklahoma State cut it to seven, went on a 10-0 run that featured an alley-oop dunk from Koa Peat off a feed from Bradley.
Arizona guard Jaden Bradley (0) cheers after sinking a three for the Wildcats during the game against Oklahoma State at McKale Center, Feb. 7, 2026.
The Wildcats led 35-18 with 4:35 left in the first half after that run, and the game was was never really competitive from there.
But much tougher games could be ahead for Arizona. The Wildcats face a quick turnaround to play at No. 11 Kansas on Monday, while they will face three more ranked teams after that -- Texas Tech, BYU and Houston. The end of their regular season schedule includes home games against Kansas and Iowa State, too.
Arizona is "about to face some of the better teams in this league. No offense here, this league is no joke," Lutz said. "I'm not going to guarantee you they're not going to physically whip Houston on the backboards, but they're not going to control Houston like they did us today.
"I think you guys have a fantastic basketball team. I love Tommy Lloyd. He's a good friend. I want y'all to win the title as much as anybody. But you got some fights coming your way."
