Arizona’s Lloyd Explains Adjustments After Peterson’s Pregame Exit
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The Arizona Wildcats saw their undefeated streak to begin the season come to an end on Monday, falling 82-78 to a Kansas team that was playing without Darryn Peterson.
The Wildcats were stunned at Allen Fieldhouse by #9 Kansas, earning their first loss of the season. Despite a 25-point effort from Brayden Burries, and a 14-point, 15-rebound, 6-block performance from Motiejus Krivas, the Wildcats blew what was once an 11-point lead in the second-half to suffer a tough loss on the road.
Added wrinkle to loss
What makes the loss even more stunning, is the fact that Kansas star Darryn Peterson — a projected top 3 pick in the NBA Draft — did not play in the game due to an illness. Peterson is averaging 20.5 points per game this season, shooting 49 percent from the floor, and 42 percent from three-point range.
Wildcats head coach Tommy Lloyd emphasized that the spotlight shouldn’t be solely on Peterson, but on the fact that Kansas is still a good team even with, or without the future lottery pick.
Not about one player
“Kansas is a hell of a team,” Lloyd said. “Let’s not make this about Darryn Peterson. He didn’t play because he was sick, they beat the number one team in the country at home tonight. They did a hell of a job, and their coach did a hell of a job. That should be the story.”
Despite Peterson’s absence, the Jayhawks got big games out of Melvin Council Jr., Bryson Tiller, and Flory Bidunga to help take down the unanimous #1 team in the land. As for Arizona, they just learned a major lesson at a pivotal point in the season.
The game was the first of a gauntlet stretch for the Wildcats. Their remaining schedule from this point on is as follows: Home vs. #16 Texas Tech, Home vs. #22 BYU, Away vs. #3 Houston, Away vs. Baylor, Home vs. #9 Kansas, Home vs. #5 Iowa State, and Away vs. Colorado. Arizona has put up a strong resume this season, with many quality wins, but they’ll need to bear down heading through the final month of the season.
The Wildcats will look to get back on track after finally being knocked off this season. With the schedule not getting any easier, Arizona will look to wipe the slate clean, and finish the season strong heading into Selection Sunday next month, where they figure to be a 1 seed if they can keep up the pace.
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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.