The backcourt buckets of Brayden Burries and Jaden Bradley came up big on Big Monday against BYU, enabling No. 1 Arizona to match its best start in program history at 21-0 overall.
The start matches that of the 2013-14 team that featured TJ McConnell, Nick Johnson, Aaron Gordon, Brandon Ashley and Kaleb Tarczewski.
The duo of Bradley and Burries combined for 55 points on 17-of-28 shooting from the field in the 86-83 victory for No. 1 Arizona (8-0 in the Big 12) against the 13th-ranked Cougars (17-3, 5-2).
Burries made 13 of his 14 free-throw attempts, including two pivotal ones with 2.1 seconds left.
A desparation 3-point attempt from beyond halfcourt by Robert Wright III was off the mark at the buzzer.
It was the first matchup for Arizona against a ranked Big 12 opponent and the Wildcats passed the test — barely — in front of a sellout crowd at the Marriott Center at Provo, Utah.
“I think our guys did a really solid job,” Arizona coach Tommy Lloyd told Brian Jeffries in the postgame interview on 1290-AM. “That middle 25 minutes of the game, really taking control and building a lead. … They (BYU) kind of switched up their plan (shooting more 3-pointers). It worked a little bit. They took some tough threes and made them.
“If they missed those, the game can get out of hand quick. But they made them, and our guys have got to hang with it.”
Arizona nearly blew a 19-point lead in the second half after BYU rallied on a 12-2 run over the last 1:01.
“It felt like everything at the end went against us … but our guys found a way,” Lloyd said in the postgame presser.
Burries finished with 26 points, increasing his team-leading total to seven games with at least 20 points.
Bradley, who averages more than 18 points a game against ranked opponents, had 26 points on 10-of-15 shooting from the field. He made 4 of 5 from the free-throw line.
Ivan Kharchenkov and Koa Peat had 10 points each and Tobe Awaka had nine points and seven rebounds.
Peat’s two missed free throws with 2:05 left followed a 3-pointer by Richie Saunders that cut the lead to 78-71 with 2:02 left.
Bradley followed with two free throws with 1:32 left.
Bradley rebounded a missed 3-pointer by BYU and was fouled with 1:19 left. He made both free throws to put Arizona ahead 82-71.
A 3-pointer by Wright, after AJ Dybantsa made one of three free-throw attempts after being fouled on a 3-point attempt, made it 82-75.
Awaka then made one of two free-throw attempts to make it 83-75.
Ivan Kharchenkov made a rebound after Keba Keita missed the free throw on an and-one attempt, but Kharchenkov lost the ball. Dybantsa was fouled on a flagrant-1 call by Burries.
Dybantsa made both free throws to cut the lead to 83-79 with 37 seconds left.
Burries made one of two free throw attempts before Kennard Davis Jr. made an alley-oop dunk with 21 seconds left that cut the lead to 84-81.
Bradley was whistled for a questionable offensive foul away from the ball before the ball could be inbounded.
Keita made a putback after missed 3-pointer by Dybantsa with 16 seconds remaining to make it 84-83.
Bradley was then tied up after an inbounds pass, resulting in a jump ball that gave BYU the possession with 12 seconds left.
Wright drove the lane but his shot was blocked by Burries, who corralled the rebound. Burries made the free throws with 2.1 seconds that solidified the win.
“My teammates have had my back this whole year, honestly, and that was the least I could do, is just help my teammates, help my brothers — block the shot, get the rebound and finish with two free throws,” Burries told ESPN of the last sequence.
Dybantsa led BYU with 24 points but was limited to 6-of-24 shooting from the field. He was 11 of 16 from the free-throw line.
BYU coach Kevin Young told reporters that Dybantsa was the first option when BYU had the ball with 12 seconds left down by one point. He mentioned Arizona did a good job of taking the first option away.
On the attempt by Wright, Young said, “I trust him in those moments.”
After Dybantsa made two free throws to put BYU ahead 26-24 with 7:05 left in the first half, Arizona went on a 12-1 run.
Burries started that stretch with a jumper in the paint and finished it with a drive to the basket, giving the Wildcats a 36-27 lead with 3:47 left in the half.
BYU made only two of its last 12 field goal attempts in the half.
Arizona made seven consecutive shots from 4:39 remaining in the half to 49 seconds left.
Burries (19 points in the first half) and Bradley (17) outscored BYU 36-31 by halftime, leading Arizona to a 44-31 lead at the break.
The backcourt duo combined to make 14 of 22 shots from the field with four assists and no turnovers in 35 combined minutes in the half.
BYU committed nine turnovers, contributing to a 13-0 margin of points off turnovers for Arizona.
The production of Bradley and Burries was essential inasmuch as Arizona’s frontcourt trio of Awaka, Motiejus Krivas and Peat encountered foul trouble in the half. Awaka had three fouls and Krivas and Peat each had two.
That trio combined for only four points and nine rebounds by the break.
BYU was held to 33% (11 of 33) at the halftime. Dybantsa had 15 points on 4-of-11 shooting from the field, 6 of 7 at the free-throw line.
The Cougars outscored Arizona 8-2 to start the second half to cut the lead to 46-39 with 18:08 left, but the Wildcats responded.
A 3-pointer by Burries sparked a 9-2 stretch to increase the lead to 55-41 with 15:56 left.
Arizona’s 9-0 run, capped by a dunk by Krivas, his first field goal of the game with 10:53 left, gave the Wildcats a 64-45 lead.
Four consecutive 3-pointers made by BYU, including two by reserve Aleksej Kostic, gave the Cougars some hope.
BYU cut the lead to 71-59 with 6:51 remaining following two free throws by Dybantsa, who drew Peat’s fourth foul on the play. They were teammates on Team USA’s gold medal-winning 19U FIBA World Cup team coached by Lloyd last summer.
Davis, who was in an 0-of-17 slump from 3-point range, made five, including one that cut the lead to 73-62 with 5:16 left.
Bradley immediately answered with a 3-pointer.
The mad finish with BYU making a wild comeback attempt followed.
Arizona next plays rival Arizona State (11-9, 2-5) in Tempe at noon on Saturday.
It will be a homecoming for Peat and an opportunity for the Wildcats to set the school record with a 22-0 start.
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