No. 11 Arizona escapes with 75-73 OT win over Santa Clara
FULLERTON – Gabe York scored seven of his 11 points in overtime, and No. 11 Arizona escaped with a 75-73 victory over winless Santa Clara on Thursday night in the opening round of the DirecTV Wooden Legacy.
Ryan Anderson led the Wildcats (5-0) with 17 points and 11 rebounds. Mark Tollefsen added 13 points before fouling out in overtime, and Kaleb Tarczewski had 12 points and eight rebounds.
Jared Brownridge scored a career-high 44 points for the Broncos (0-6), hitting seven 3-pointers and making all 15 of his free throws. He surpassed James Harden’s tournament record of 40 points set with Arizona State.
Brownridge’s seventh 3 tied the game for the last time at 73-all with 32 seconds left after the Broncos committed two straight turnovers.
York got fouled and missed the first, but made the second to put the Wildcats ahead 74-73. The Broncos inbounded on the baseline, but K.J. Feagin stepped out of bounds running up the sideline with a second left.
Anderson got fouled and made the first for a 75-73 lead before missing the second. The Broncos inbounded again on the baseline, but Brownridge’s desperation 3-pointer from midcourt missed at the buzzer.
Jarvis Pugh missed two free throws that could have won the game in regulation for Santa Clara. York’s potential winning 3-pointer missed at the buzzer for Arizona, sending it to overtime tied 65-all.
The score was even at 54 before Arizona made five free throws and Tollefsen hit two baskets in a 9-3 spurt that gave the Wildcats a 63-57 lead. Santa Clara came right back and tied it 63-all on six straight points, capped by Brownridge’s 3-pointer.
Anderson scored and got fouled, but missed the free throw. Brownridge got fouled and made both for another tie at 65. Anderson missed a jumper with 6 seconds to go.
Brownridge sparked the Broncos, scoring eight points in a 13-4 spurt that tied the game at 54. Their defense was big, too. Feagin stole the ball from Allonzo Trier and scored on a fast-break layup, and Matt Hubbard blocked a shot by Anderson.
Brownridge scored five of Santa Clara’s first seven points in the second half to pull the Broncos into a 34-all tie. Arizona responded with a 16-7 run to lead 50-41.
Santa Clara ran off 12 consecutive points, including eight by Brownridge, to cut Arizona’s lead to 32-27 late in the first half. The Wildcats struggled with turnovers the Broncos converted into transition baskets. Kadeem Allen’s bucket left Arizona ahead 34-27 at the break.
This story was originally published November 26, 2015 at 11:19 PM with the headline "No. 11 Arizona escapes with 75-73 OT win over Santa Clara."