All but kicked to the curb by foul trouble in a loss at Stanford five nights earlier, Arizonaβs Azuolas Tubelis nearly did it to himself early Thursday.
But this time, the Wildcats survived just fine.
Tubelis went scoreless in the first half after picking up a technical foul for kicking the ball, but Arizona still managed to beat Utah 88-62 by holding the Utes to just 32.2% shooting while reverting to their artful offensive ways.
The Wildcats shot 56.9% from the field, including 9-for-18 3-point shooting, while setting up 26 of their 37 field goals with assists, tying their second-most assists of the season. They also turned the ball over only six times, their second fewest of the season.
Tubelis had somewhat of a second-half rejuvenation, scoring 11 points on 5-for-11 shooting after halftime, but by then Wildcats were already well on their way.
Arizona led Utah 43-31 at the half, went ahead by 23 less than seven minutes into the second half. By the final minute, the Wildcats put some icing on it with a basket from walk-on Luc Krystkowiak, who just happens to be the son of former Utah coach Larry Krystkowiak.
Arizona guard Luc Krystkowiak, left, gets a reverse layup under guard Luka Tarlac and his former team in the dying second of the Wildcatsβ Pac-12 victory over Utah at McKale Center on Feb. 16, 2023.
The win moved Arizona to 23-4, 12-4 in the Pac-12, where the Wildcats moved two games ahead of Utah (17-10, 10-6) and avenged their 81-66 loss to the Utes on Dec. 1 in Salt Lake City.
βOn Dec. 1, we went back there and we got our ass kicked, so theyβre a good program,β UA coach Tommy Lloyd said. βWe were expecting a tough game, and theyβre a team that might be hard for us to match up with a little bit. They have a skilled big (Branden Carlson) who looks like heβs shooting the ball like Dirk Nowitzki.β
Carlson, who hit 5 of 9 3s in that first UA-Utah game this season, hit 3 of 8 3-pointers Thursday to finish with a team-high 19 points. But the Wildcats had plenty to compensate for that, too.
UA received 17 points and six assists from guard Kerr Kriisa, who hit all four 3-pointers he took, while Courtney Ramey added 13 with 3-of-6 3-point shooting. In addition, Pelle Larsson had 11 points, while freshman big man Henri Veesaar, getting an extended look because of Tubelisβ absence, added nine points and two rebounds.
βEverybody knows Zu is a special part of our team, but we know how to play with four guards or whatever the situation may be,β UA guard Kylan Boswell said. βReally didnβt change much.β
For Tubelis, maybe it turns into a learning experience. Tubelis was coming off a four-point night at Stanford, where he suffered from foul trouble and his teammatesβ inability to get him the ball. His frustration appeared to carry over into Thursdayβs game.
Tubelis missed his first three field goals. After Ramey hit a 3-pointer to give UA a brief 8-7 lead, Tubelis picked up a foul and kicked the ball away. Officials didnβt immediately whistle Tubelis for the infraction. But after reviewing it, they assessed a technical foul.
Arizona forward Azuolas Tubelis can't believe he picked up his fourth foul against Utah in the second half of their Pac-12 game at McKale Center on Feb. 16, 2023.
βYou canβt do what Zu did,β Lloyd said. βZu is a great kid. Heβs had an incredible year, but you canβt boot the ball up into the stands. This isnβt like open gym. I mean, this is a game with rules and customs and standards
βSo obviously a disappointing decision by Zu.β
Utahβs Lazar Stefanovic hit two ensuing technical free throws, and Tubelis went to the bench for the rest of the half. But Arizona still managed to go on a 10-0 run and take an 18-9 lead after a 3-pointer from Kriisa and a three-point play from Larsson.
The Wildcats then kept double-digit leads most of the rest of the first half while Lloyd also tried out a different strategy to fight Tubelisβ absence: Instead of sticking only to his top seven guys and playing a smaller lineup as he did at Stanford when Tubelis went out, Lloyd instead turned to freshman Veesaar.
Veesaar had four points and two rebounds over eight minutes in the first half, while Kriisa and Larsson had nine points each to lead the Wildcats before halftime. Veesaar also hit his only 3-point attempt of the game in the second half.
βIt was good to see,β Lloyd said. βHenri lost a bit of confidence, which happens with a young player. I always tell the guys this is going to be harder than they ever expect, but they donβt believe you.
βI think heβs finally gotten to the point where heβs maybe gotten broken down a little bit and realizes that weβre right. He just needs to take a step back and open his ears and listen and start working harder.β
Former Ute Luc "Lucky" Krystkowiak, who's the son of ex-Utah head coach Larry Krystkowiak, made a basket against his former team on Thursday.
No. 8 Arizona 88, Utah 62
UTAH (17-10)
Be.Carlson 1-7 0-0 2, Br.Carlson 6-13 4-4 19, Anthony 3-9 4-5 12, Stefanovic 2-9 2-2 8, Worster 2-9 0-1 6, Exacte 4-8 0-0 10, Keita 0-2 0-0 0, Holt 1-1 1-2 3, Brenchley 0-0 2-2 2, Saunders 0-1 0-0 0, Tarlac 0-0 0-0 0, Haddock 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 19-59 13-16 62.
ARIZONA (23-4)
A.Tubelis 5-14 1-2 11, Ballo 4-6 0-2 8, Kriisa 6-8 1-3 17, Ramey 4-9 2-2 13, Henderson 4-7 0-0 9, Larsson 5-8 1-1 11, Boswell 4-5 0-0 8, Veesaar 3-4 0-0 7, Bal 0-0 0-0 0, Borovicanin 1-2 0-0 2, Anderson 0-1 0-0 0, Krystkowiak 1-1 0-0 2. Totals 37-65 5-10 88.
Halftime: Arizona 43-31. 3-Point Goals: Utah 11-33 (Br.Carlson 3-8, Anthony 2-4, Worster 2-4, Exacte 2-6, Stefanovic 2-6, Be.Carlson 0-5), Arizona 9-18 (Kriisa 4-4, Ramey 3-6, Henderson 1-1, Veesaar 1-1, Anderson 0-1, Boswell 0-1, Larsson 0-1, A.Tubelis 0-3). Rebounds: Utah 34 (Be.Carlson 8), Arizona 35 (A.Tubelis 9). Assists: Utah 12 (Worster 4), Arizona 26 (Kriisa, Ramey 6). Total Fouls: Utah 12, Arizona 17.
