Arizona tops Purdue to punch 1st Final Four ticket in 25 years

SAN JOSE, Calif. (AP) — Arizona is headed back to the Final Four for the first time in 25 years after the top-seeded Wildcats got 20 points from freshman Koa Peat to beat Purdue 79-64 in the NCAA Tournament’s West Region final on Saturday night.

After years of disappointment in March, coach Tommy Lloyd has gotten Arizona (36-2) back to being a championship contender thanks to a talented freshman class led by Peat to go along with veterans like Big 12 Player of the Year Jaden Bradley.

“Just being a kid from Arizona, to take this team to a Final Four, man, it’s a blessing,” said Peat, who was named the region’s Most Outstanding Player. “I’m proud of these guys. We worked for this. We’re not done yet.”

The Wildcats showed they can win in almost any style. They used a nearly flawless performance on offense to beat Arkansas in the Sweet 16 and then shut down one of the nation’s most efficient offenses against second-seeded Purdue (30-9).

Arizona frustrated the NCAA record-holder in assists, Braden Smith, and prevented his fellow four-year seniors Trey Kaufman-Renn and Fletcher Loyer from getting into a rhythm. Purdue was held to its second-lowest point total of the season and shot just 38% from the field.

Arizona used an 16-3 run early in the second half to erase a seven-point halftime deficit and take a six-point lead on a 3-pointer from Anthony Dell’Orso. The Wildcats stayed in control from there. Brayden Burries hit a 3-pointer, and after a turnover by Smith, Ivan Kharchenkov made a layup for an 11-point lead.

Peat put the exclamation point on the win with dunk that made it 68-55 with less than six minutes remaining, sending the Wildcats to Indianapolis next week on a 13-game winning streak.

“We had a little bad stretch at the end of the first half,” Lloyd said. “These guys, winning’s in their DNA. Like I always say, they’re way better players than I am a coach. I’m so proud of them.”

The trip to the Final Four is a long-awaited one for the Wildcats, who last made it to that stage in 2001 when they lost the title game to Duke under Lute Olson. They had lost five straight times in the Elite Eight since — tied for the second-longest skid ever in that round — under the three coaches who followed Olson after he retired in 2007.

Lloyd replaced Sean Miller in 2021, and this year’s Wildcats have set the school’s single-season record for wins en route to the Final Four.

“There’s a good-looking guy with white hair looking down at us right now that’s happy,” Lloyd said.

Kharchenkov scored 18 points for Arizona, while Bradley and Burries each scored 14.

Purdue withstood an early push from Arizona and quieted the large contingent of Wildcats fans with a strong finish to the first half. Smith returned from a rare five-minute stint on the bench to hit his third 3-pointer of the half. He set up C.J. Cox for a 3 and then drew an offensive foul before firing up the Boilermakers fans. Purdue led 38-31 to match Arizona’s largest halftime deficit of the season.

But the Boilermakers wilted in the second half as the senior trio that began their careers losing in the opening round as a No. 1 seed to Fairleigh Dickinson in 2023 and lost the title game the following year to UConn couldn’t get back to the Final Four.

Smith scored 13 points, Kaufman-Renn had 10 and Loyer just eight. The three combined to shoot 12 for 38 from the field.

Up next

Arizona will take on the winner of Sunday’s game between Michigan and Tennessee in the national semifinals Saturday.

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AP March Madness bracket: https://apnews.com/hub/ncaa-mens-bracket and coverage: https://apnews.com/hub/march-madness