SAN JOSE β The Arizona Wildcats wonβt be making a home-state visit to the Final Four next week, after allowing Xavier to shoot 52.8 percent in a 73-71 loss in the West Region semifinal on Thursday at the SAP Center.
UA wing Allonzo Trier, who heated up for 15 straight Arizona points in the middle of the second half after a cold first half, missed a potential game-winning 3 with eight seconds left. Kadeem Allen also missed a jump shot with 22 seconds left.
The loss ended UAβs season at 32-5, while 11th-seeded Xavier moved to 24-13 and into a West Region final game Saturday against Gonzaga for a spot in the Final Four.
It was only the third time UA coach Sean Miller has ever lost to a lower seeded team in the NCAA Tournament, but the second straight year, after sixth-seeded Arizona was bounced by 11th-seeded Wichita State in the first round last season.
Trevon Bluiett led Xavier with 25 points.
Trier finished with 19 points while Dusan Ristic had 17. Lauri Markkanen had nine points and eight rebounds but only took nine shots, many of which were closely guarded by Xavier's ever-changing defense.
Arizona held an eight-point lead with 1:53 remaining but a 7-0 run pulled Xavier into a 71-71 tie entering the final minute. Ristic missed a heavily guarded eight-footer with 51 seconds left and, when Bluiett had the ball with 40 seconds left, instead of shooting it, he passed under the basket to Sean O'Mara who made what became the game-winning basket.
Trailing by two points entering the final seven minutes, UA went on a 12-0 run to take a 67-61 lead, getting 3-pointers from Allonzo Trier and Kadeem Allen during the run. But 3-pointers from Trevon Bluiett and Malcolm Bernard cut the Wildcatsβ lead to four points and two free thrwos from Bernard later pulled Xavier within 71-69.
After Arizona took a two-point halftime lead, Xavier had gone on a 7-0 run early in the second half. The Musketeers hit 6 of 8 shots immediately after halftime, prompting UA coach Sean Miller to call a timeout with 15:22 left.
UA went on a 7-0 run to take a 52-48 lead, but with 13 minutes to go, Kadeem Allen and Bluiett were called for offsetting technical fouls after they had an animated conversation.
After the technicals, Malcolm Bernard hit a 3-pointer and Quentin Goodin dunked to put Xavier back ahead 53-52 entering the final 11 minutes.
At the end of the first half, Rawle Alkins hit a 12-foot jumper just before the halftime buzzer to give Arizona a 37-35 halftime lead.
Alkins, who was playing with a broken index finger, missed his first four shots of the half.
Trevon Bluiett scored 18 points on 7-for-8 shooting in the first half for Xavier but didnβt have to often face UAβs top defender, Kadeem Allen, who played just five minutes in the first half after picking up two early fouls.
The Wildcats allowed Xavier to shoot 50 percent from the field in the first half but outrebounded the Musketeers by six and gave up only three offensive rebounds. Xavier entered the game with the 29th best offensive rebounding percentage in Division I, grabbing an offensive rebound on 34.9 percent of its chances to do so.
It was the fourth straight game in which the UA defense has allowed an opponent to shoot 50 percent or better for a half.
Arizona struggled with perimeter shooting, making just 3 of 16 3-pointers. The Wildcats shot 41.2 percent overall.
After Xavier pulled into a one-point lead midway through the half, the game stayed within one possession the rest of the half. UA took a 27-25 lead entering the final four minutes when Chance Comanche dunked in a missed 3-pointer by Parker Jackson-Cartwright.
Bluiett had 16 points on 6-for-6 shooting to lead Xavier through the first 16 minutes. Arizona outrebounded Xavier 15-10 at that point and limited the Musketeers to just one offensive rebound.
Arizona went inside often early to Dusan Ristic as it has many times this season, building a 7-0 lead while Xavier missed its first three shots and had two turnovers in that stretch. Ristic finished the half with a team-high nine points while Lauri Markkanen had seven points and seven rebounds.
But Bluiett and RaShid Gaston helped Xavier take an 18-17 lead with 8:43 left. Bluiett hit a 3-pointer and a 15-footer during the drive, while Gaston made a three-point play and scored on a hook shot inside.
Through the first 12 minutes of the half, Xavier shot 53.3 percent from the field while Alkins and Allonzo Trier were both 0 for 3.
