NEW YORK β Does anyone wonder if the Arizona Wildcats can eventually turn into Final Four contenders now?
The fourth ranked Wildcats went on a 12-3 second-half run to beat sixth-seeded Duke 72-66 for the NIT Season Tip-Off title tonight at Madison Square Garden.
The Wildcats were paced in the first half by forward Brandon Ashley while Nick Johnson and Aaron Gordon became hot in the second half. But overall, Β Arizona showed the balance that has kept it undefeated so far on college basketballβs highest early season stage.
Five Arizona players scored in double figures, led by Johnson, who had 15 points, two rebounds, two steals and two blocks although he turned the ball over four times.
Johnson was named the NITβs MVP with 35 points and seven rebounds in two games in New York while Aaron Gordon was named to the all-tourney team along with Dukeβs Rodney Hood and Jabari Parker, plus Drexelβs Frantz Massenat.
For Duke, Rodney Hood had 21 points and Jabari Parker had 19. It was the first time in Dukeβs eight games that Parker had been held below 20 points.
The win was Arizonaβs fifth in nine alltime games with Duke, and second in as many games under coach Sean Miller, whose Wildcats ousted Duke in the 2011 NCAA Sweet Sixteen. It was also the Wildcats' fourth NIT Season Tip-Off title, and first since 1999.
Arizona held a 10-point lead entering the final four minutes and managed to hold off Duke down the stretch, keeping the large Arizona fan contingent on its feet.
The Wildcats appeared to have more fans in Madison Square Garden than Duke, with dominant cries of βU of Aβ and βAri-zon-aβ heard toward the end.
Both Gordon and Johnson had slow first halves but exploded after halftime. After 16 minutes into the second half, both had eight points each, while Gordon added four rebounds and a block. Johnsonβs second half line included two rebounds, two steals, a block, and assist and two turnovers.
Β Arizona went on a 12-3 run in the middle of the second half to take a 57-48 lead by the time Johnson hit a three-pointer with 6:21 left.
Also on the run, Tarczewski dunked and Gordon made a three-point play by driving inside and picking up a foul.
The Wildcats then extended their lead to 61-51 on dunks by Rondae Hollis-Jefferson and Gordon before Duke closed it in the final minutes.
After the first half, Duke took a 36-33 halftime lead in a game where the lead changed eight times over the first 20 minutes.
Duke took leads of up to five points but Ashley made a layup with 1:06 remaining to tie the game at 2-2. Parker then dunked on Dukeβs next possession, giving the Blue Devils a 34-32 lead.
Rondae Hollis-Jefferson cut Dukeβs lead to one when he hit 1 of 2 free throws, but T.J. McConnell missed a three-pointer and Duke's Tyler Thornton hit a jumper with six seconds left to put the Blue Devils ahead by three entering the break.
Ashley and Parker both had 11 points to lead their teams but Ashley did so on 5-for-7 shooting while Parker was 5 for 13.
A much-talked-about freshman, Parker has scored 20 or more points in all seven of Dukeβs games so far.
The gameβs other well-hyped freshman, Gordon, had two points, two assists and two rebounds in the first half while playing only 11 minutes in part because of the two fouls he picked up.
Arizona edged Duke in rebounding over the first half, 16-14, but the Wildcats had eight turnovers to Dukeβs four.
Both teams went off to a shaky start early, hitting just 2 of 6 field goals each while pulling into a 4-4 tie after the first four minutes. But the game already featured highlights: Johnson hit McConnell for a backdoor layup while Parker blocked Gordon and set up a layup by Quinn Cook on the other end.
Ashley was the early offensive standout for Arizona, making four of his first five early field goals and scoring nine points over his first 10 minutes played.
The game started almost an hour after the scheduled 4 p.m. tipoff time because the NIT third-place game between Alabama and Drexel went to triple overtime, when Drexel won 85-83.
