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Bradley's Buzzer-Beater Lifts Arizona Past Iowa State 82-80 in Thriller
Arizona pulled off a thrilling 82-80 victory over Iowa State in the Big 12 Tournament semifinals on Friday, capping an intense back-and-forth battle with a dramatic buzzer-beater. The No. 1-seeded Wildcats trailed by as many as 12 points early—their biggest deficit all season—but rallied in the second half to advance to the conference title game. Jaden Bradley delivered the heroics, knocking down a fallaway jumper along the baseline as time expired after Iowa State's Tamin Lipsey had tied the score with a three-pointer just 15 seconds earlier. It was a gritty win for Arizona, which improved to 31-2 overall, while Iowa State dropped to 27-7.
The stats told the story of Arizona's resilience and depth in the comeback. Anthony Dell'Orso led the way with 26 points, including 6-of-9 from beyond the arc, while Ivan Kharchenkov added 17 points with five assists and three steals. Bradley chipped in 15 points and seven assists, and Tobe Awaka recorded a double-double with 10 points and 10 rebounds—his second straight. The Wildcats shot a sizzling 55.2% from the field overall (62.1% in the second half) and outscored Iowa State's bench 36-3. On the other side, Milan Momcilovic poured in 28 points for the Cyclones, including a barrage of threes, and Justin Jefferson added 21, but Iowa State couldn't hold off Arizona's late surge.
Up next for the surging Wildcats is the Big 12 Tournament championship game on Saturday afternoon against the winner of Friday night's other semifinal between Houston and Kansas. A victory there would give Arizona its first conference tournament title since joining the Big 12 and solidify its case as a top overall seed for the NCAA Tournament. Expect another tight contest, as both potential opponents bring elite defense and experience, but with the momentum from this dramatic win, the Wildcats look primed to make a run for the crown.
Wow. Just Ana amazing game.
Iowa State was elite. The Cyclones played a nearly perfect game...and it still wasn't good enough to get the W.
The Big-12 is tough. Arizona is primed for the real tourney, which may actually be significantly easier than the conference tourney.
Only a bigger platform could have made this a better game.
Jaden deferred so much last year I had doubts he could be the leader this year and man was I wrong. So low key but lethal. Glad he stuck with it.
Amazing team here. Everyone can and has stepped up. So many different options. They seem so unfazed when they go down but then just figure it out and claw their way back. Kansas loss was BS. This is a 1 loss team and, collectively, one of the best we have had. Composed, diverse, consistent even on the road, takes the big shots and gives right back.
Last year I was ambivalent about playing so hard right before the Big Dance. These kids are inspiring. They can do well on both. Take Houston down. Go get that Ship!
Iowa States defense was incredibly tough and intense all game. Somehow we shot 55% and 50% from 3... Also I think Krivas popped his vert cherry with that amazing block late in the game. Our depth was on full display and the Big 12 POTY tortured poor Toure not once but twice in the end. That's why they call him the closer!
Can't stop laughing at the "vert cherry"
Another game in the books!
On this episode of "What Reed Sees: Iowa State Big 12 Tournament Edition"
Pros
Nice to see Dell'Orso provide a spark off the bench with his 12pts starting 3-3 from the floor. Arizona would be getting their doors blown off without Dell'Orso. (++)
Arizona needs to take advantage of being in the bonus right now. They need to stay in attack mode, get to the FT line and close this gap! (++)
Cons
Iowa State has come out with a lot of intensity to jump out to that quick 6-0 lead. (-)
Peat has changed the mechanics in his shot again. He sped it up, and moved it from his right side back to in front of him. (-)
Iowa State is "Arizoning" better than Arizona right now. They are the aggressors. They are forcing Arizona to do what they want them to do. Someone on Arizona has to be the one to reel them in and settle them down. Lloyd is going to allow Toure to take the ball out of his hands? Then Burries is going to have to be the lead guard and settle this team down! (-)
Going back to the UCF game, Awaka is 2-10 from the FT line? (-)
Arizona keeps messing around and letting Momcilovic get wide open looks from deep. He is going to get hot! He is already shooting 57% (4-7) from deep thus far? Stop letting him shoot! Then you let him hit two more to end the half? A tied game and now you down 6pts! (—)
Comments
Arizona has not been able to snatch the momentum from Iowa State ever since this game started. They need to do something to silence this crowd and get their own crowd in this!
Conclusion
Iowa State controlled this game for the majority of it. Arizona was able to do enough to win. On to the Big 12 Finals!
Next Up: Houston (Big 12 Finals)
#BearDown