TEMPE β After trailing 16-3 to begin Monday night's showdown at Desert Financial Arena, the fourth-ranked Arizona Wildcats flipped a switch and routed their in-state rival Arizona 91-79 Monday night to complete the season sweep.Β
Six Wildcats finished the night in double-figure scoring: Azuolas Tubelis (19 points), Bennedict Mathurin (18 points), Pelle Larsson (14 points), Oumar Ballo (13 points), Dalen Terry (12 points) and Christian Koloko (10 points).Β
Tommy Lloyd became the third head coach in program history to sweep the Sun Devils in their first season at the helm, joining Walter Davis (1925) and Lute Olson (1984).Β
The victory over ASU brings the Wildcats to 20-2 on the season. Here's what Lloyd said after Monday night's win:Β
Facing adversity in a 'gut-check win'
βThey punched us, man. β¦ Iβm really proud of them, though. Thatβs a gut-check win.β β Tommy Lloyd after Arizonaβs win over ASU pic.twitter.com/fNsr4gTkSV
— The Wildcaster (@TheWildcaster) February 8, 2022
Wildcats' frontcourt performance
Tommy Lloyd on Azuolas Tubelisβ βhigh-levelβ performance at ASU and the versatility Arizonaβs frontcourt has: βWhen you have two big guys on the floor, dominating the paint, itβs a real weapon.β pic.twitter.com/FB0TU0vTIP
— The Wildcaster (@TheWildcaster) February 8, 2022
Bench production from Oumar Ballo, Pelle Larsson and Justin Kier
Tommy Lloyd says Arizonaβs bench βreally changed the game.β pic.twitter.com/rSlNMdARtB
— The Wildcaster (@TheWildcaster) February 8, 2022
Outrunning the Sun Devils
Tommy Lloyd says he wanted Arizona to push the tempo against ASU after the Sun Devilsβ triple-OT win over UCLA. βWe wanted to test it and create a little bit of adversity.β pic.twitter.com/OtWznCtuDX
— The Wildcaster (@TheWildcaster) February 8, 2022
Mathurin stepping up
βWhen he has that look, heβs special.β β Tommy Lloyd on Bennedict Mathurinβs 18-point, five-rebound performance pic.twitter.com/d0rzvTgawZ
— The Wildcaster (@TheWildcaster) February 8, 2022
Returning to old habits β in a positive way
βThat looked like that team in early December, which is special.β β Tommy Lloyd on Arizonaβs second half against ASU and how the Wildcats responded to the early 16-3 deficit pic.twitter.com/nhsye3exKU
— Justin Spears (@JustinESports) February 8, 2022
Challenging Kriisa after sloppy end to first half
Tommy Lloyd says heβs been disappointed with how Arizona has ended first halves lately, which is why he ripped into PG Kerr Kriisa before halftime.βSomething we have to be better at.βAs for Kriisaβs wrist injury?βTape and aspirin to it, heβll be fine.β pic.twitter.com/XKS7ZwjWkJ
— Justin Spears (@JustinESports) February 8, 2022