Jan 3, 2016; Tempe, AZ, USA; Arizona Wildcats head coach Sean Miller claps against the Arizona State Sun Devils during the second half at Wells-Fargo Arena. The Wildcats won 94-82. Mandatory Credit: Joe Camporeale-USA TODAY Sports

The Arizona Wildcats basketball team began Pac-12 conference play today in Tempe. With an extended break to allow time to get healthy, the Wildcats were ready for the mid-afternoon duel.

The news broke yesterday that Kaleb Tarczewski would be ready for action for the first time since injuring his foot early in the season. Even though he did not start, it was great to see the big man running the floor.

The starters for this game were the same as they’ve been for the majority of the season: Kadeem Allen, Gabe York, Allonzo Trier, Ryan Anderson, and Dusan Ristic. The revamped Sun Devil’s, with Duke legend Bobby Hurley now at the helm, were looking to continue their winning streak in Tempe against the Wildcats.

The Wildcats came into this game with a size advantage over the Sun Devils. With Zeus back, even with a minute restriction, solidified how much of a size advantage Arizona had. Coach Miller immediately looked to expose ASU on the block.

Dusan and Zeus owned the paint the entire night, both taking advantage when they were in the game. Dusan, who finished with 10 pts on 5/6 shooting, showed his entire arsenal throughout the game. We saw a right hook, a left hook off the spin move, and up-and-under.

Zeus, who finished with 6 pts, got on the board early off a feed from Gabe York. His presence alone was great to see as he altered shots, drew fouls and caused ASU defenders to come off their men to guard him on pick-and-rolls. Even with the two 7’0″ C’s controlling inside, ASU was able to keep it close in the first half. After Mark Tollefsen had put Arizona up by one with a 3-pointer, ASU rattled off eight straight to put them up 17-24.

After a timeout, Miller must have gotten his point across because the Wildcats went on a 14-0 to take back the lead at 33-28 with a little over 2 1/2 minutes remaining in the half. Tollefsen got a steal and set up Kadeem Allen for a nice dunk to put Arizona up 41-32 with 20 seconds left. At the half, Arizona led 41-35.

The Wildcats turned up the intensity, and the heat, in the second half. The two teams traded buckets for the first part of the second half, but the refs also began calling a closer game. Arizona State was in the bonus for the last 10 minutes of the game, making free throws important.

Gabe York, however, came alive in the second half. As you recall, ASU has beaten Arizona in Tempe the last two years. Coaches like to downplay this type of attitude, even with it being a rivalry. But Gabe knew exactly what getting the W would mean. “It’s a place the last two years we’ve lost, and that was always in the back of my mind.”

With about 11 minutes left in the game, York hit a step-back three which boosted Arizona. A couple of minutes later, he hit another three off the assist from Dusan, with both playing a nice inside-out game. And 20 seconds later, York hit a smooth three curling off a screen.

With York’s aggressiveness, and Kadeem leading the defensive intensity, Arizona flew out to a 16-point lead, 76-60, with 5:18 remaining in the game. The overall team play the Wildcats displayed the mid-point of the second half showed how dangerous Arizona can be.

Consistency has been an issue, as I have written about several times, and keeping those leads in crunch time will determine whether Arizona can repeat as Pac-12 champions.

This afternoon, the cardiac cats showed up as ASU cut the 16-point lead down to 6 points with just over 2 minutes remaining.

With the game tight, the Cats suffered a cold spell, and emotions flying, the team who could keep their cool was going to walk away with the win. What’s great about this Arizona team is the maturity shown. Sure, Zeus got a Technical foul for basically telling a ref he did not necessarily agree with a foul.

As a whole, when things got tough and elbows were flying, the Wildcats showed their resolve, kept their composure, and kept their eyes on the win.

The same could not be said for Arizona State. At the 1:14 mark, ASU coach Bobby Hurley received his first Technical foul of the game in a crucial moment for his team. If you watched the game, the fact that he didn’t receive his first Technical foul until that late in the game was amazing. He had been in the refs face and ear all day, turning red in the face, and looking like he wanted to hit someone.

But the T’s didn’t stop there for Hurley. Just 15 seconds later, Hurley received his second Technical foul for his disagreement with a foul and was tossed from the game. He made quite the scene as he left, yelling obscenities, and yelling for the crowd to stand up. This only helped the Wildcats, as Gabe York made clutch free throws during this time, and keeping the ball in the hands of Arizona.

When the dust settled, Kadeem closed out the games with two blocks, Allonzo Trier made his free throws, and the Wildcats ended the game with a 94-82 win. All is right in the world again as ASU’s winning streak in Tempe has finally ended.

The Wildcats kept their cool and flexed their muscle. The Wildcats have to play their first three Pac-12 games away from Tucson, so it was crucial to get this first big win.

Next up is another stiff test as Arizona travels to the state of California to face off against UCLA on Thursday.

Game Notes: