Bradley scores 18 points to lead No. 1-seeded Arizona past Utah State 78-66 to reach Sweet 16
Arizona guard Jaden Bradley (0) shoots around Utah State forward Garry Clark (11) during the second half of a game in the second round of the NCAA college basketball tournament Sunday, March 22, 2026, in San Diego. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)
By BERNIE WILSON Associated Press
SAN DIEGO (AP) — Jaden Bradley scored 12 of his 18 points in the second half, Motiejus Krivas had 11 points and 14 rebounds and top-seeded Arizona beat No. 9-seeded Utah State 78-66 on Sunday to advance to the Sweet 16 for the fourth time in five seasons under coach Tommy Lloyd.
The Wildcats (34-2) take an 11-game winning streak into Thursday’s game against No. 4-seeded Arkansas in the West Region in San Jose.
The Wildcats will be looking to reach the Elite Eight for the first time since doing so in both 2014 and 2015. They began their March Madness run by breezing to an opening 92-58 victory over Long Island on Friday.
Arizona, which won the Big 12 regular-season and tournament titles, led the whole way in front of a loud, red-clad contingent of fans that made it feel like a home game some 400 miles from campus.
Lloyd exhorted the crowd a few times.
“We need our fans in these environments to be proactive. We don’t need our fans to be reactive and get nervous when the game gets tight,” he said. “We know how bad our fans want it for us. So I was hoping they would come and participate. And I thought they did a really good job participating.
“And then hopefully we have even stronger contingent at San Jose. And they’re going to be there fighting and pulling us through every step of the way.”
The Aggies (29-7), who won the Mountain West regular-season and tournament championships, didn’t fold despite trailing 51-33 five minutes into the second half after giving up a 9-0 run.
The Wildcats then went cold from the field and the Aggies pulled to 58-54 on a 3-pointer by Drake Allen.
Utah State’s press and some turnovers “got us back on our heels a little bit,” Lloyd said. “I just think our guys have got to do a little bit better job of figuring. And I was kind of negotiating my timeouts in my head. How I wanted to manage it, what the point differential was. … And when you have a desperate team amping up the pressure, and the jump ball’s in their favor, and they’re aggressive, it’s hard. Our guys did a better job settling it down there the last couple minutes.”
It was 60-56 when Bradley, the Big 12 player of the year, finished a fast break with a high bank shot, was fouled and converted the three-point play for a seven-point lead.
Allen hit a 3-pointer for the Aggies before Bradley answered with a jumper and a free throw on consecutive possessions.
Bradley said he was “just trusting in my work. And I know my teammates believe in me. I’ve got great bigs that can get me open with ball screens and duck-ins and all that stuff. And my teammates give me great space. Just trusting in my work and trying to get to my spots and make plays.”
MJ Collins hit a big 3 for Utah State to pull to 70-64 but Arizona freshman Brayden Burries answered with a 3 that brought the crowd to life and started an 8-1 closing run.
Burries had 16 points and nine rebounds for Arizona, while Koa Peat had 14 points and 10 boards.
Led by the 7-foot-2 Krivas, the Wildcats outrebounded the Aggies 54-26.
Garry Clark scored 13 for Utah State, Collins had 12 and Allen 11. Mason Falslev, the Mountain West player of the year, was held to eight points.
“Hats off to coach Lloyd and the Wildcats,” Aggies coach Jerrod Calhoun said. “Obviously we didn’t like our seed. I think we played certainly better than a 9 seed and didn’t deserve that. But we didn’t pout. We didn’t sulk. We rolled up our sleeves. We had great prep. And these guys laid it all on the line. Really proud of how hard they’ve played.”
Moving on
The Aggies represented the Mountain West one final time before moving into the reconfigured Pac-12 next season.
“The history of this league is really rich,” Calhoun said. “It’s a basketball conference. It really is. The fans, the environments, it’s been a joy to coach in for two years. … But it’s an exciting time for Utah State. Change is hard. I think at first everybody was, you know, kind of bummed, but now everybody’s excited.”
Up next
The Wildcats opened as 8 1/2-point favorites against Arkansas, according to BetMGM.com.
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AP March Madness bracket: https://apnews.com/hub/ncaa-mens-bracket and coverage: https://apnews.com/hub/march-madness