The Tribune

PARADISE ISLAND, Bahamas (AP) — Ben Emelogu scored 20 points and SMU upset No. 2 Arizona 66-60 in last night’s consolation round at the Battle 4 Atlantis, handing the Wildcats their second consecutive loss to an unranked opponent.

The Mustangs (5-1) blew an 11-point lead in the second half but responded with a 10-2 run to go ahead for good. SMU won despite shooting 31 per cent, though the Mustangs scored 19 points off 20 Arizona turnovers.

Shake Milton added 14 points, including four free throws in the final 70 seconds to help keep SMU in control.

And for the second straight night, the Wildcats (3-2) found themselves on the wrong side of a stunning defeat.

Arizona lost 90-84 to North Carolina State in Wednesday’s first round. This time, the Wildcats had a tougher time generating offence.

Allonzo Trier scored 22 points to lead the Wildcats, who shot 47 per cent. But SMU nearly doubled Arizona’s output on the offensive glass (20-11) and finished with 23 more shot attempts, leading to 14 second-chance points.

BIG PICTURE

Arizona: Wildcats coach Sean Miller immediately said offence wasn’t the problem after the loss to NC State, noting the Wildcats haven’t dropped many games when scoring 84 points. Rather, he was concerned about a bad defensive effort. This time, his team had some good moments — including holding SMU without a basket for eight minutes during one second-half stretch — but the Wildcats were in catch-up mode much of the night.

SMU: The Mustangs trailed much of the way against Northern Iowa in their first-round tournament game, but they played from ahead in this one. They also came up with a counterpunch, regaining the lead after Arizona erased that 11-point deficit.

UP NEXT

Arizona: The Wildcats will play No. 18 Purdue in today’s seventh-place game.

SMU: The Mustangs will play Western Kentucky in today’s fifth-place game.