No. 1 Arizona manhandles No. 4 Arkansas in Sweet 16 to advance to first Elite 8 under Tommy Lloyd

SAN JOSE – The Wildcats didn’t just take down the Razorbacks in San Jose on Thursday, they annihilated them. In a Sweet 16 track meet between No. 1 Arizona and No. 4 Arkansas, Tommy Lloyd and his Cats jumped out to a hot start and never looked back, defeating John Calipari and the Razorbacks 109-88 to advance to the program’s first Elite 8 since 2015.

Wildcats’ historic offensive performance

Arizona made history with its offensive clinic, as six players scored 14+ points in a NCAA Tournament game for the first time ever. Brayden Burries continued his hot play in March Madness, scoring a team-high 23 points on 7-11 from the field, including 2-4 from deep, as well as 7-8 from the free throw line. Fellow freshman Koa Peat had an incredibly efficient day, scoring 21 points on 8-11 shooting. The third member of Arizona’s marquee freshmen trio, Ivan Kharchenkov, tacked on 15 more points, connecting on 4-6 field goals and 7-10 attempts from the charity stripe, while also finishing with three rebounds, five assists, and a steal.

For the veterans Jaden Bradley, Tobe Awaka, and Motiejus Krivas, the lucky number was 14 points. Bradley shot 4-8 from the field, hitting his lone 3-point attempt and knocking down 5-6 free throws, while also finishing with four rebounds and five assists. Awaka had a near-double-double as he got it done on both ends, grabbing seven rebounds, including three offensive boards, as well as a block and a steal. Krivas was an efficient 6-9 shooting, to go along with his five rebounds and two blocks.

The Wildcats won this game in the paint. Arizona finished with 60 points in the paint and added another 30 points at the foul line, shooting 30-39 on the night. Per ESPN’s Jeff Borzello, the combined 90 points in the paint and at the free throw line are the most in an NCAA Tournament game in the last 20 years. The Wildcats are also the only team since 2000 with 60 paint points and 30 made free throws in a March Madness game.

Arizona connected on 15-22 layups against Arkansas and finished with seven dunks on the night.

The UA didn’t have eye-popping second-chance numbers – eight points on six offensive rebounds – largely in part because of the efficient night shooting the basketball and ability to draw foul pressure at the rim. Arizona connected on 63.8 percent of its shots, the second-best field goal percentage this season and top against Power 4 competition.

Defense leaves room for improvement before Saturday

If there was one thing to knock from tonight’s performance, it that’s Arizona did not play the level of defense Wildcat fans have grown accustom to seeing this season. While Arizona won by 21 points, it still allowed Arkansas to score 88 points, the most points it has given up this season. The Hogs were able to work effectively inside as well, shooting 47.7 percent from the field and scoring 50 points in the paint. One key difference in shooting was from 3-point range – the Wildcats hit 5-8 (62.5 percent) of their shots from downtown, while the Razorbacks were 5-23 (21.7 percent) from distance.

Arizona’s poise under pressure

The Sweet 16 also unlocked a new side of Arizona that hasn’t been seen this season. While Tommy Lloyd’s poise and steadiness has been crucial component to this team’s success all year, the Wildcats roster showed its ability to stay cool and level-headed, even if their opponent did not. As the lead slipped out of reach in the second half, tensions rose and the game turned chippy, sparked by Arkansas. The Hogs committed two flagrant fouls and head coach John Calipari picked up a technical foul as frustration mounted for the UA from Fayetteville.

Nick Pringle committed the first flagrant, as well as his fourth personal foul, after bouncing the ball hard off the court in frustration with 8:52 left to play, before fouling out soon after with 7 minutes still to play in the game. The second came when Arkansas’ Billy Richmond III shoved Ivan Kharchenkov to the ground out of frustration, a call that resulted in an upgrade to a flagrant 2 foul and ejection of Richmond III.

It was the most aggressive a team has been with Arizona this season, but like its cool and level-headed coach, the Wildcats were able to stay poised and calm and not retaliate or respond in any way that put themselves, others, or their chances at a Final Four and National Championship in harms way.

Arizona now shifts its attention to the Elite 8. The Wildcats will face No. 2 Purdue, which defeated No. 11 Texas 79-77 with a buzzer-beater by senior Trey Kaufman-Renn, on Saturday, March 28, at 5:49 PM MST on TBS and TruTv.