MENS BASKETBALL
Washington State 73, Arizona 70
BY JOSH WRIGHT
ASSOCIATED PRESS
PULLMAN, Wash. - Isaac Jones had 24 points and 13 rebounds and Washington State upset No. 8 Arizona 73-70.
After a 26-point outing in a victory at Southern California on Wednesday night, Jones was magnificent again. He got a short jumper to fall with 1:11 left to put the Cougars (12-5, 3-3 Pac-12) up by four and grabbed the game-ending rebound after Caleb Love’s 3-point attempt fell short.
It was the second straight season the Cougars have beaten Arizona (12-4, 3-2) with the Wildcats ranked in the top 10. Washington State won 74-61 in Tucson last season when Arizona was No. 5. The last time the Cougars beat a top-10 team at home was Jan. 16, 2020, against then-No. 8 Oregon.
Love led Arizona with 28 points on 10-of-25 shooting. Oumar Ballo had 11 points and 14 rebounds.
Arizona’s Keshad Johnson banked in a 3-pointer with 16 seconds left to cut Washington State’s lead to 71-70. Myles Rice, who finished with 18 points, then made two free throws with 11.9 seconds left, and Love’s 3-pointer was off the mark to end the Wildcats’ comeback hopes.
Washington State led for most of the game and all the second half until Love’s 3-pointer – his fourth of the game – put Arizona up 57-55 with five minutes left. A few minutes later, Rice responded with a 3-pointer of his own from the top of the key to give the Cougars a 62-59 lead.
The Cougars stymied Arizona, the No. 1 scoring team in the nation, for much of the afternoon. They blocked eight shots and held the Wildcats to 34.7% shooting in their second upset over Arizona in the last two seasons.
BIG PICTURE
Arizona: In their first road game since a 100-82 loss at Stanford two weeks ago, the Wildcats looked vulnerable again away from the McKale Center.
Washington State: The Cougars got off to a slow start in Pac-12 play, but they showed Saturday they are going to be a tough out – especially at Beasley Coliseum – as the conference season progresses.
Washington State athletics press release
January 13, 2024
