Nineteen days ago, Arizona walked into Allen Fieldhouse and suffered its first loss of the season against Kansas despite ruling out freshman Darryn Peterson. Days later, Arizona lost again at home to Texas Tech despite nearly leading for almost the entire second half. Those losses caused the Wildcats to plummet in the next AP Top 25 poll.
Since then, Arizona has gotten back on track with wins over BYU, Houston and Baylor. On Saturday, No. 2 Arizona extended its winning streak to four with an 84-61 victory over No. 14 Kansas, despite a push from the Jayhawks that made it closer midway through the second half before Arizona went on a 16-0 run to put the game away.
Arizona went on a 19-0 run through the opening minutes of the game and that set the tone. All five of Arizona’s starters scored at least 10 points, including freshman Brayden Burries who recorded his third double-double of the season (20 points, 12 rebounds).
With the win, Arizona clinched at least a share of the Big 12 title and can clinch the title outright with a win over No. 4 Iowa State next week. The Wildcats are on track to become the No. 1 seed in the Big 12 Tournament in Kansas City — even if tied at the top — because of the head-to-head tiebreaker against Houston.
This marks the third consecutive season that someone other than Kansas captured the Big 12 regular-season title. During its first two seasons as a member of the Big 12, Houston went 34-4 against conference opponents and captured consecutive regular-season titles. Arizona finished tied for third last season (14-6) in its first season as a member of the Big 12 and is 14-2 (27-2 overall) this year.
Kansas (20-7, 11-5 Big 12) is ranked fifth in the Big 12 standings entering the final weekend of the regular season. The Jayhawks will need to win against Arizona State and Kansas State and need some help to finish in the top four of the standings, which means a double bye in the Big 12 Tournament.
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Arizona’s dynamic freshman duo was the key to the Big 12 title
Part of the reason Arizona has been so good this season is the dynamic duo of Koa Peat and Burries. Peat, who missed the last three games due to a lower leg injury, returned to the lineup and finished with 12 points and seven rebounds. Peat, of course, had one of the best debuts in college basketball history earlier this season against reigning champion Florida when he finished with 30 points, seven rebounds and five assists.
Peat struggled in the loss to Kansas earlier this month. He finished with six points (on 2 of 11 from the floor) and five rebounds. This weekend was a different story. Although Peat didn’t play his best against Kansas in the first meeting, Burries was the best player on the floor for the Wildcats. He scored 25 points in that game.
Over the course of the season, Burries has proven himself as a legitimate candidate for this summer’s lottery pick. His shooting (37.2% from the 3-point line) and versatility make him one of the best freshman players in the sport. What’s even more impressive is that he got off to a slow start in the first few weeks of the season.
Since then, he’s been a nail and a huge reason why Arizona is on pace to be No. 1 on Selection Sunday.
Entering the weekend, Burries was Arizona’s top scorer, followed by Jaden Bradley (13.9) and Peat (13.8). If Burries and Peat finish 1-2 in the scoring for Arizona, the Wildcats could become the fourth No. 1 seed with freshmen as their top two scorers. The last time that happened was last year, when Cooper Flagg and Kon Knueppel finished in the top two in scoring for Duke. The other times that happened? Kentucky during the 2009-10 season (John Wall and DeMarcus Cousins) and Duke during the 2018-19 campaign (Zion Williamson and RJ Barrett).
This has been one of the best freshman classes in college basketball history, and there aren’t many duos better than Peat and Burries.
Peterson remains a mystery to Kansas
One of the biggest storylines this entire season has been Peterson’s availability. After missing the first game against Arizona due to flu-like symptoms, Peterson played and had perhaps his best all-around performance in more than a month.
Entering this game, Peterson had only five total assists over his last eight games. He finished with three while recording 31 minutes. Peterson’s efficiency (8-of-21) wasn’t great, but he did manage to finish with 24 points – his most since scoring 26 against Baylor in just 23 minutes.
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In his last three games against Arizona, Houston and Cincinnati, Peterson played at least 30 minutes. That’s a notable development, as he played fewer than 25 minutes in his previous two games, including just 18 against Oklahoma State earlier this month.
The projected No. 1 overall pick in 2026 NBA draft has undeniable talent. He has taken on more of an on-ball role lately, which has done wonders for his game. The best version of Kansas will bring a heavy workload from Peterson on both ends of the floor in the coming weeks.
The Jayhawks can hope it’s not too late for all sides to get up to speed, as there is still potential for a deep run in March.
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