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Inside The Wildcats

Arizona’s Bradley Says Utah State’s Defense 'Was Crazy'

Bradley led the Wildcats past the Aggies in a tough outing.
Caleb Meadows|
Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

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Arizona Wildcats

Arizona is officially in the Sweet Sixteen after a win over Utah State in the Round of 32 in the NCAA Tournament. It wasn't the Wildcats' best performance, but they still walked away with a 78-66 win over the Aggies.

The Wildcats will play Arkansas on Thursday evening in the Sweet Sixteen. The Razorbacks are on a seven-game win streak and will no doubt give the Wildcats a run for their money. It will be a showdown between two of the best coaches in the nation, Tommy Lloyd and John Calipari.

Aggies Stormed Back in Second Half

The Aggies came up short, but they did battle-test the Wildcats. After a poor first half, the Wildcats came out of the locker room blazing, with an 18-9 run in the first six minutes of the second half.

This run looked like it would lead to back-to-back blowout wins in the NCAA Tournament for the Wildcats. Aggies head coach Jerrod Calhoun made a key adjustment that caught the Wildcats off guard.

Calhoun switched to a unique matchup zone to get his Aggies back in the ball game. They forced 11 turnovers. This adjustment led the Aggies on a 16-5 run, and they cut the lead to four with six minutes left in the game.

Big 12 Player of the Year Jaden Bradley gave an insight into what made the Aggies defense so difficult for the Wildcats.

  • “Sometimes they go 2-3, man. They ice on the side, trying not to let you get middle. They press random traps, so you just don’t know what’s going on,” Bradley said. “It was crazy. I can’t even explain it, but it was fun to play against.”

Bradley Advances to Sweet Sixteen for Fourth Straight Year

The senior guard led the Wildcats in scoring with 18 points and came up big time for his squad. This is the fourth consecutive season Bradley has made the Sweet 16, and the third year in a row with the Wildcats.

He has yet to make it past the Sweet Sixteen, but the good news for him is that Lloyd has granted him one of the best rosters in the country. Bradley mentioned how he felt advancing to the Sweet 16 once again.

  • “It’s always an honor and a blessing to be playing and advancing in March, and we’re going to go up, rest up, figure out who we play, get a good scouting report and try to get the win,” Bradley said.

Bradley will look to lead his Wildcats past the Razorbacks and advance to the Elite Eight for the first time in his collegiate career.

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Caleb Meadows
CALEB MEADOWS

Caleb Meadows is a contributor to the UNC Tar Heels. He previously covered Louisville sports and WWE for FanSided. Meadows also covered local sports in Oklahoma while attending Oklahoma State, where he earned a degree in sports communications. Follow him on X, at @CalebMeadows25."