{{pageModel.leagueAbbr}} {{pageModel.subtitle}} | Las Vegas Review-Journal
National Basketball Association
BOXSCORE | RECAP
Arizona 84, UCLA 76
When: 9:00 PM ET, Saturday, March 12, 2022
Where: T-Mobile Arena, Las Vegas, Nevada
Officials: # Tony Padilla, # Randy McCall, # Verne Harris
Attendance: 14401

Bennedict Mathurin scored 27 points and led No. 2 Arizona back from a 12-point second-half deficit to win the Pac-12 championship game with an 84-76 victory over No. 13 UCLA on Saturday night in Las Vegas.

Top-seeded Arizona (31-3) earned its first conference tournament title since 2018 and is in line to be a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2014.

Mathurin, the Pac-12 Player of the Year, scored 18 points in the second half and made 13 of 15 free-throw attempts. He also stepped up with seven assists with starting point guard Kerr Kriisa unavailable for a second consecutive game due to a sprained ankle.

Four players scored in double figures for second-seeded UCLA (25-7), led by Jules Bernard with 19 points. Jaime Jaquez Jr. had 18 points and 10 rebounds. Johnny Juzang scored 16 points and Tyger Campbell added 14.

Arizona's Dalen Terry had 15 points, seven rebounds and seven assists. Christian Koloko posted a double-double with 13 points and 10 rebounds.

UCLA led 40-35 at halftime and kept up the pressure at the start of the second half, getting a three-point play from Jaquez that started a 10-2 run that resulted in a 53-41 advantage at the 17:17 mark.

Arizona, known all season for its ability for instant offense, stormed back with a 22-5 run over the next nine minutes during which Mathurin scored eight points. The Wildcats led 63-58 with 8:17 to go.

Mathurin's two free throws made it 72-64 with 5:26 left. The teams mostly traded baskets after that, with UCLA getting within 80-76 with 52 seconds left on a layup by Cody Riley.

Mathurin, going for a fast-break dunk, was called for a charge on the next possession, but Koloko made the game's key defensive play, swatting a driving layup attempt by Juzang to preserve the four-point edge.

Mathurin then made one foul shot before Arizona came up with another key defensive play. Oumar Ballo blocked a 3-point try from Bernard to seal the victory. Ballo had six of the Wildcats' 11 blocked shots, with Koloko contributing four.

Arizona ended UCLA's five-game winning streak and won two out of three in the season series.

--Field Level Media

Top Game Performances
 
UCLA   Arizona
Jules Bernard 19 Scoring Bennedict Mathurin 27
Tyger Campbell 4 Assists Bennedict Mathurin 7
Jaime Jaquez Jr. 10 Rebounds Christian Koloko 10
Jaime Jaquez Jr. 6 Free Throws Made Bennedict Mathurin 13
Jaime Jaquez Jr. 2 Steals Justin Kier 1
Jaime Jaquez Jr. 1 Blocks Oumar Ballo 6
Team Stats Summary
 
Team Points FG% 3PM-3PA FTM-FTA Assists Rebounds Blocks Steals Turnovers
UCLA 76 42.0 5-22 13-17 9 28 3 8 7
Arizona 84 51.9 7-14 23-28 20 37 11 4 13