Koa Peat, Motiejus Krivas and Jaden Bradley each achieved a double-double in the No. 1 Wildcats’ 99-71 victory Monday night over South Dakota State at McKale Center.
Arizona (13-0) completed its non-conference slate unbeaten ahead of Saturday’s Big 12 opener at Utah.
It is their best start since the 2013-14 team began 21-0.
“Our motivation is to come back (from Christmas break) and build back stronger,” Arizona coach Tommy Lloyd said to Brian Jeffries during the Wildcats Radio 1290-AM postgame interview. “I feel today was a good start. We’ll have a good team day tomorrow. We’re looking forward to the challenges that the Big 12 is going to present.”
South Dakota State (7-8) has a three-game losing streak heading into its Summit League schedule Thursday at home against Omaha.
Peat finished with 19 points and a career-high 14 rebounds, Krivas had 13 points, 11 rebounds and six blocked shots, and Bradley produced 13 points and 10 assists.
ARIZONA’S BEST STARTS
| Season | Start | Final | Coach | Finish |
| 2025–26 | 13–0 (Current) | TBD | Tommy Lloyd | TBD |
| 2014-15 | 12-0 | 34-4 | Sean Miller | Elite Eight |
| 2013–14 | 21–0 | 33–5 | Sean Miller | Elite Eight |
| 2012–13 | 14–0 | 27–8 | Sean Miller | Sweet 16 |
| 1987–88 | 12–0 | 35–3 | Lute Olson | Final Four |
| 1931–32 | 16–0 | 18–2 | Fred Enke | Border Conf. Champs |
Brayden Burries had 14 points and Ivan Kharchenkov 12.
Tobe Awaka also finished with 10 points and seven rebounds.
South Dakota State’s Kalen Garry had 20 points on 8-of-11 shooting from the field, including 4 of 5 from 3-point range.
Jaden Jackson finished with 18 points.
Arizona, which never trailed, built a 19-9 lead with 14:26 left in the first half after Bradley capped an 11-3 run with a 3-pointer.
The Wildcats built their largest lead of the first half, 43-25, with 5:58 remaining in the first half following an 8-2 run.
Former Wisconsin player Matthew Mors made a 3-pointer to cut the lead to 45-32 with 4:17 left, prompting Lloyd to call a timeout.
South Dakota State then missed five consecutive shots from the field and was scoreless until Jackson made a 3-pointer with 43 seconds left to cut the lead to 51-35.
“We spent a long time preparing for this team,” Krivas told ESPN-Plus after the game. “We prepare for all of the teams, and I think we just had great defensive plan. Just effort leads to being great at everything. So effort and a great defensive plan helped us.”
Arizona went from making nine of its first 11 attempts from the field to converting only one of its last nine shots.
The Wildcats shot 50 percent from the field by halftime, when they led 51-35.
Peat had 16 points and eight rebounds at that point.
A 7-0 run by Arizona increased the lead to 58-37 with 16:43 remaining.
The Jackrabbits, who made only one of their last six shots of the first half, continued to struggle from the field to start the second half.
They were 3 of 14 from the field by the time Arizona led 65-44 with 12:16 remaining.
Lloyd told Jeffries that Arizona’s defense has been stringent this season because of his team’s effort and the agility of Krivas inside.
“I think the overall effort’s been good,” Lloyd said. “I think we’re obviously a good rebounding team, which helps your defensive numbers. I think Mo’s made a bunch of progress defensively. I think we have some versatility and just good size all around.
“I’m starting to feel the effort overall is getting pretty consistent. So, exciting stuff. But you never take anything for granted. We can come out Saturday and and play poorly defensively. We’re going to continue to push the envelope in that area.”
The Wildcats, who entered the game second in the nation with a plus-14.6 average rebounding margin, beat South Dakota State 45-30 on the boards.
“Coach (Lloyd) puts a big emphasis on rebounding,” Krivas said. “I think it’s one of the key factors why we’re so good this season. It takes a lot of effort, but that effort pays back, so we just do it.”
Arizona outscored the Jackrabbits 46-26 in the paint.
The Wildcats also produced 26 assists toward their 33 made field goals and also went 24 of 31 from the free-throw line.
Anthony Dell’Orso was second on the team with five assists and had nine points.
Arizona finished shooting 53.6 percent from the field, including a 9-of-23 performance from beyond the arc.
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