By Jack McCarthy
Arizona men’s basketball knocked off Utah State on Sunday, cementing its spot in the Sweet 16 for the fourth time in five years under coach Tommy Lloyd.
Lloyd has turned the program into a perennial second weekend team, but has struggled to get the Wildcats into the Elite 8, stumbling out of the Sweet 16 all three times, twice to teams seeded multiple seed lines lower than them.
Standing in their way is another team seeded lower than them: No. 4 seed Arkansas.
It’s been over a decade since Arizona made it to the Elite 8, but Lloyd and the Wildcats don’t see it as a trend.
“We want to be playing Saturday,” Lloyd said in a press conference Wednesday. “But, we’re not going to look past this opportunity or make it an end all be all.”
“I dont think the past is a predictor of the future,” Arizona forward Tobe Awaka said. “We’re just worried about what’s next up on our plate, which is Arkansas.”
SEC Player of the Year Darius Acuff Jr. has been arguably one of the most prolific players this entire season, racking up 23.3 points per game and 6.5 assists per game, good for the 7th and 13th highest marks in the country. His play earned him an AP All-American First Team selection.
Since the beginning of the SEC Tournament, which the Razorbacks won, Acuff Jr. averages 30.2 points per game, further proving that he is one of, if not the most, dangerous players remaining in the NCAA Tournament.
Acuff Jr. had 36 points, leading Arkansas to a six point win over No. 12 seed High Point, after a 24-point performance against No. 13 seed Hawaii.
“Darius is a supreme talent, and he’s a great young man,” Lloyd said. “He has the ability to get the ‘eye of the tiger.’”
On the other side stands Arizona’s Brayden Burries, another freshman phenom who has only improved as the season’s gone along. His late in the shot clock, deep three pointer against Utah State was the dagger to move the Wildcats to the Sweet 16. The battle between Acuff Jr. and Burries could be the deciding factor in the game.
“He’s really good,” Calipari said. “Scores three levels, active defensively – better defensively than I thought a freshman would be.”
A win Thursday would push the Wildcats into the Elite 8 against either No. 2 seed Purdue or No. 11 seed Texas. A loss would continue a narrative that the ‘Cats can’t make it past the Sweet 16.
