No. 8 Arizona pulls away from Stanford, reaches Pac-12 semis
LAS VEGAS (AP) — Oumar Ballo scored 24 points and No. 8 Arizona broke away late, beating Stanford 95-84 Thursday night to reach the Pac-12 Conference Tournament semifinals.
Cedric Henderson Jr. had 23 points and Azuolas Tubelis added 20 for the Wildcats (26-6). They will play either Arizona State or Southern California on Friday night.
Tommy Lloyd won his 59th game at Arizona, the most victories in a coach’s first two seasons. Former North Carolina coach Bill Guthridge held the previous mark.
Lloyd also improved his record in Las Vegas with the Wildcats to 7-0, including 6-0 at T-Mobile Arena. They are the defending tournament champions.
Courtney Ramey had 15 points for Arizona, which used a 12-2 run to take a 92-78 lead. The Wildcats shot 64%.
Spencer Jones led Stanford (14-19) with 22 points, Brandon Angel had 19, Michael Jones scored 13 and Harrison Ingram finished with 12.
The Cardinal didn’t make it easy on Arizona, which entered the game having lost two of three and had gone 3-3 over its previous six. Plus, Stanford had won three of four entering this game and had claimed the season’s only meeting, 88-79 on Feb. 11.
Stanford threatened to sweep the season series, absorbing Arizona runs of 15-2 and 14-3 in the first half and 10-0 in the second to remain in striking distance most of the game.
THE BIG PICTURE
Stanford: Seventh-year coach Jerod Haase will find out soon if he’s coming back for an eighth year. He was given a lifeline after last season to return, but the Cardinal have taken a step back from that 16-16 record. Stanford’s only postseason appearance under Haase was the 2018 NIT.
Arizona: The Wildcats owned the inside, outscoring Stanford 54-22 from the lane. That strategy defies current wisdom that games are won and lost from the 3-point line. It’s not as if Arizona is averse to shooting the 3, but in this game, the Wildcats knew the Cardinal couldn’t match up.
UP NEXT
Stanford: The season is over.
Arizona: The Wildcats play in the semifinals Friday night.
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