Arizona certainly earned its No. 1 ranking with a 23-0 record and eight Quad 1 wins.

But facing Kansas in front of a deafening crowd at Allen Fieldhouse Monday night was a different beast. Despite leading by as many as 11 points in the second half, the Wildcats took their first loss of the season, falling 82-78 to the No. 9 Jayhawks.

Kansas big man Flory Bidunga and guard Melvin Council Jr. led the Jayhawks with 23 points apiece, while forward Bryson Tiller scored 18 and Jamari McDowell added 10. What made the win even more impressive was that Kansas did so without potential No. 1 NBA Draft pick Darryn Peterson, who was a late scratch due to flu-like symptoms.

Arizona coach Tommy Lloyd said Kansas is obviously better with Peterson, but he knew it’d be a dogfight no matter who suited up because Kansas has a lot of good players and a great coach. Lloyd said he found out about 10 minutes before the game that Peterson wouldn’t play, but didn’t make many adjustments to the game plan.

Lloyd highlighted two areas as the main reasons for Arizona’s first loss of the season. First, the Wildcats didn’t finish well enough at the rim, going 7-for-16 (43.7%) on layups and 26-for-57 (45.6%) on 2-point attempts –– roughly 10% worse than their season-long 2-point percentage.

Lloyd credited Bidunga for his interior defense against one of the nation’s best front courts with Koa Peat, Motiejus Krivas and Tobe Awaka.

“I wish he was guarding our guards,” Lloyd said of Bidunga. “He really impacts the game at the rim.”

The second crucial factor was the free throw shooting disparity, according to Lloyd. Across 24 games this season, Arizona averages 26.3 free throw attempts while allowing just 17.9 free throw attempts to its opponents. The Wildcats also have a 73% to 69.1% advantage in free throw percentage on the season compared to its opponents.

But on Monday, Arizona finished 8-for-14 (57.1%) at the line, while Kansas made 21-of-25 (84%) free throws. That wasn’t necessarily a critique of the officiating, rather the way his team fared against Kansas’ defense.

“If you want to win these games, you got to deliver. You got to deliver when you get the ball inside,” Lloyd said. “You got to be able to play through physical contact. You got to be able to play through what you think are fouls, and you just got to keep it moving.”

Lloyd also pointed out that Kansas weathered Arizona’s run well at the start of the second half, when the Wildcats jumped out to an 11-point lead. Kansas immediately responded with a 7-0 run of its own in just over one minute of play, putting itself right back into the game.

Lloyd then thought the Jayhawks did a good job of putting their heads down and getting to the basket, and that Bidunga made a few key hook shots in the second half along with grabbing loose balls. And in a tight, back-and-forth game, Kansas sealed it by hitting clutch free throws down the stretch.

With this win, Kansas coach Bill Self remained undefeated in Big Monday games at Allen Fieldhouse, which featured a raucous crowd. That certainly played a role in the outcome, too.

“Awesome environment, and it makes it really difficult to play,” Lloyd said. “And you guys need to know it does impact the game, and your fans deserve credit. … If a guy is [40-0] on his home court on Big Mondays, it’s probably pretty hard to win here, no matter what our record coming in is.”

Lloyd maintained a positive outlook on the season despite Monday’s loss, which could serve as a valuable learning lesson. Arizona has a home game against No. 16 Texas Tech on Saturday, and with a win, it’d make a compelling case to remain as the No. 1 team in the nation. No. 2 Michigan also has one loss, and it came at home against an unranked, 16-7 Wisconsin team.

“We knew it’s going to be a tough game, and we’re okay with it,” Lloyd said. “Like guys, I’m not mad we lost. I can’t wait to get on that plane, get back home, and I feel like our season just started.”

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