Between Caleb Love’s buzzer beater in Tucson a year ago and what happened on Friday the 13th in Kansas City, Arizona and Iowa State have quickly become two of the fiercest rivals in the Big 12. The Wildcats got off to one of their worst starts of the year, but used an all-time performance off the bench and a buzzer beater at the end of regulation to book their ticket to the Big 12 Men’s Basketball Tournament Championship, as top-seeded Arizona took down 5-seed Iowa State 82-80 in the conference tournament semifinals.
Four Wildcats finished in double figures, led by senior Anthony Dell’Orso, who scored a season-high 26 points off the bench. Delly connected on 10-14 from the field, including 6-9 from 3-point range (ties his career-high). Ivan Kharchenkov was explosive in the second half, finishing with 17 points, three rebounds, five assists, a block, and three steals. He is one of only three Wildcats in the last 30 years with at least 15 points, 4 assists, and 3 steals in a conference tourney game, joining Nic Wise and Luke Walton.
Jaden Bradley finished with 15 points, including the go-ahead buzzer beater at the end of regulation to give Arizona the 82-80 victory. He also tallied two rebounds, seven assists, a block, and two steals. Tobe Awaka had his second double-double in as many games, finishing with 10 points and 10 rebounds.
Arizona used its strong offensive performance in the second half to finish with an advantage from the field, outshooting Iowa State 55.2% to 47.0%, including 14-31 (45.2%) from beyond the arc. The Cyclones had a 34-33 edge in rebounding, while the Wildcats imposed their will inside, outscoring ISU 38-26 in paint points.
Things started about as poorly as they could for Arizona. Iowa State jumped out to a 14-2 lead using a pair of triples from Milan Momcilovic and Joshua Jefferson, while the Wildcats missed their first four shots from the field. Dell’Orso provided Arizona the spark it desperately needed though, knocking down back-to-back triples to make it a 14-8 game with 14:27 to play in the first half.
Cyclones’ head coach T.J. Otzelberger successfully won a challenge at the 7:18 mark, but the score was largely back and forth up to that point after Dell’Orso’s shots from downtown. Arizona rallied to end most of the half though, using a 16-5 run that included a Tobe Awaka layup to give the Wildcats its first lead, 35-34, followed up by a layup from Koa Peat to extend the lead it to 37-34. In the final 30 seconds of the first half, Iowa State’s Momcilovic knocked down three triples, turning Arizona’s three-point lead into a six-point deficit heading into the locker room.
The Wildcats and Cyclones battled in the second half. Ivan Kharchenkov used a pair of triples to make it a 50-45 game with 17:42 to play, before a 5-0 run that included an and-one from Motiejus Krivas cut the the Iowa State lead to two, 52-50 with under 15 to play.
Then, Anthony Dell’Orso caught fire. The “Aussie Sniper”, as Tommy Lloyd has called him, knocked down back-to-back 3-pointers to give Arizona a 62-60 lead with 10:16. But neither team was able to run away, as Iowa State retook a 65-64 lead off a second-chance bucket by Blake Buchanan. Arizona reclaimed a 66-65 lead with a pair of Brayden Burries free throws, before Jaden Bradley and Ivan Kharchenkov combined to make it a five-point game.
Arizona’s Dell’Orso and Iowa State’s Milan Momcilovic and Joshua Jefferson traded triples down the stretch, with Momcilovic using his third triple in less than three minutes to make it a 78-77 game in favor of the Wildcats with 1:17 to play. Jaden Bradley knocked down a jumper to make it an 80-77 game, but Tamin Lipsey responded with a three to knot things up at 80 apiece with 15 seconds left.
Tommy Lloyd, who had one timeout remaining, elected to let Arizona play, allowing Jaden Bradley to show exactly why he’s nicknamed “The Closer” and was voted the Big 12 Player of the Year. With time expiring and terrific defense from Iowa State, Bradley buried a buzzer beater jumper in the corner to give the Wildcats an 82-80 victory and send them to the Big 12 Tournament Championship.
Arizona now has a chance to sweep the Big 12 regular season and tournament championship, something it has not done since the 2021-22 season in the Pac-12. The Wildcats will face the winner of (2) Houston/(4) Kansas on Saturday, March 14, at 3:00 PM MST on ESPN.