Pritchard's career-high 38 points carry Oregon in win against Arizona
TUCSON, Ariz. (AP) Payton Pritchard scored a career-high 38 points, Shakur Juiston added all of Oregon's points in overtime and the 14th-ranked Ducks rallied to beat No. 24 Arizona 73-72 on Saturday night.
Pritchard had a terrific game in regulation and Juiston was the unlikely hero in overtime, scoring nine points, including a layup with 1.4 seconds left that was the winner. Arizona had one more great opportunity but Christian Koloko missed two free throws with one second left that could have tied or won the game.
Arizona led 64-58 with 3:27 left in regulation but the Wildcats went cold and Pritchard hit six straight free throws to pull the Ducks (21-7, 10-5 Pac-12) even with 15 seconds left. Arizona's Josh Green missed two free throws with 2.5 seconds remaining that would have put the Wildcats ahead.
Dylan Smith led Arizona (19-8, 9-5) with 18 points. Zeke Nnaji and Nico Mannion both scored 13. The Wildcats had a rough night at the free-throw line, making just 10 of 21 and missing the four crucial ones by Green and Koloko.
Oregon's offense revolved around the great shooting of Pritchard. He gave the Ducks a huge boost by making several difficult 3-pointers, shooting over Arizona defenders who were right in his face.
The rest of the team didn't have a particularly good night until Juiston's clutch play in the final minutes. Oregon snapped a three-game road losing streak. Juiston finished with 14 points.
Pritchard scored 20 points in the first half as Oregon pushed to a 36-33 halftime lead. He hit 7 of 11 shots - including 4 of 8 from behind the 3-point line - before the break. Nnaji had eight points and five rebounds for the Wildcats in the first half.
BIG PICTURE
Oregon: The Ducks were competitive on the road and finally broke through with a big win. Oregon's offense was stagnant outside of Pritchard and too many possessions consisted of four players watching the senior guard try to work his shot-making magic. Juiston's overtime scoring was sorely needed.
Arizona: The Wildcats are playing well at the right time of the year but this one stings. Their newfound confidence will get a big test when they head to California and face USC and UCLA next week.
UP NEXT
Oregon: Hosts Oregon State on Thursday night.
Arizona: At Southern California in Thursday night.
---
More AP college basketball: https://apnews.com/Collegebasketball and https://twitter.com/AP-Top25