The Wildcats toppled Purdue on the heels of a strong second half.
In their Elite Eight matchup against Purdue, the Arizona Wildcats were on the ropes for the entire first half, going into halftime trailing 38-31.Mar 25, 2026; San Jose, CA, USA; Arizona Wildcats head coach Tommy Lloyd smiles during a practice session ahead of the west regional of the men's 2026 NCAA Tournament at SAP Center.
Mandatory Credit: Eakin Howard-Imagn Images | Eakin Howard-Imagn Imagesoutscored Purdue 48-26 in the second half to win comfortably by a score of 79-64. The win put Arizona in the Final Four for the first time since 2001, when they finished as the championship runner-up. Mar 28, 2026; San Jose, CA, USA; Arizona Wildcats head coach Tommy Lloyd cuts down the net after an Elite Eight game against the Purdue Boilermakers of the West Regional of the men's 2026 NCAA Tournament at SAP Center. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-Imagn Images | Kyle Terada-Imagn Images Their second-half comeback shows the grit and determination that they’ve shown all season, a rare feat for a team that starts three freshmen in Brayden Burries, Ivan Kharchenkov, and Koa Peat. As has been on display all season, despite their youth, the Wildcats have played with a veteran style. After their win to reach the Final Four, head coach Tommy Lloyd spoke about the trust he has in his group to overcome adversity and work through their issues when things go south. Mar 19, 2026; San Diego, CA, USA; Arizona Wildcats head coach Tommy Lloyd looks on during a practice session ahead of the first round of the men's 2026 NCAA Tournament at Viejas Arena. Mandatory Credit: Denis Poroy-Imagn Images | Denis Poroy-Imagn Images“You know, we're together every day, and so they hear me a lot,” Lloyd said. “I feel like one of those things I'm so proud of when I listen to these guys at the press conference, when they're, with no prompting, relaying the messaging that our coaching staff is trying to get them to understand. It tells me that our guys are paying attention.” Mar 25, 2026; San Jose, CA, USA; Arizona Wildcats head coach Tommy Lloyd addresses the media in a press conference during a practice session ahead of the west regional of the men's 2026 NCAA Tournament at SAP Center. Mandatory Credit: Eakin Howard-Imagn Images | Eakin Howard-Imagn Images “The most powerful thing in a team sport is a player-led program,” Lloyd added. “The coach, you have to help them navigate it, but when you can get the players to kind of own these moments, you are just so much better. You are so much better. I've done it, I don't know, probably four or five times this year. Every time it's worked." "You probably can't do it too often, but I've done it at a few timeouts. I've done it at a couple of halftimes. These guys have a way about them. There's a seriousness about them. They know how to kind of ratchet things down and tighten it up and get after people." Mar 25, 2026; San Jose, CA, USA; Arizona Wildcats head coach Tommy Lloyd talks during a practice session ahead of the west regional of the men's 2026 NCAA Tournament at SAP Center. Mandatory Credit: Eakin Howard-Imagn Images | Eakin Howard-Imagn Imageswill look to finish what they’ve started and cut the nets down for the national title for the first time since the 1997 season.Justin Backer brings a wealth of experience to his role as a college football and basketball general sports reporter On SI. Backer is a proud graduate of Florida Atlantic University with a Bachelor of Arts in Multimedia Studies, and has worked for such media companies as The Sporting News and the Palm Beach Post.
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