Arizona

Arizona HS football roundup: Brophy, Horizon, Mountain Pointe post wins

Published

1 year ago

September 28, 2024

Press Room

Arizona HS football roundup: Brophy, Horizon, Mountain Pointe post wins

azcentral sports
| Arizona Republic

Here is a roundup of key high school football games covered by The Arizona Republic’s sports staff on Friday, Sept. 27, 2024.

Brophy routs Notre Dame in battle of unbeatens

By Mohana Holloway

A shutout game between two 4-0 teams saw the 6A Brophy Broncos top the 5A Notre Dame Prep Saints and further establish themselves as top contender for the Open Division playoff with a 40-0 win.

Key plays

Brophy first found the scoreboard with a rushing touchdown by quarterback Case Vanden Bosch. At 7:55, Brophy linebacker Dominic Woods earned a safety to make the score 9-0.

A 61-yard run by wide receiver Devin Fitzgerald brought the Broncos up to the 15-yard line. Vanden Bosch, behind the help from his O-line, struck again with a second rushing touchdown just before the end of the first quarter with the score 16-0 Brophy.

The second quarter started with yet another Broncos touchdown – a 35-yard run by running back Harrison Chambers. Two minutes later, Brophy running back Carlos Estrada scored again, to widen the lead to 30-0. Once again, with the help of the Broncos’ offensive line, Vanden Bosch struck once more, with a successful pass to wide receiver Fitzgerald, who ran for a 29-yard touchdown. The quarter ended Broncos 37,- Saints 0.

The Saints showed a brief sign of life two-thirds of the way through the third quarter with an interception by Dylan Lavinia. Nothing came of it, though, and a running clock commenced. Brophy scored once again, capping off the game with a 30-yard field goal by kicker Ryder Hampton.

Key players

Broncos QB Case Vanden Bosch: Accounted for five TDs total rushing and passing; Broncos WR Devin Fitzgerald: 1 TD; Broncos RB Carlos Estrada: 1 TD

Quotes:

“We have weapons on the outside… but it really comes to our offensive line though. They’re paving the way for what we really want to accomplish. Not just for the offense, but it’s for the rest of the team.” – Brophy Prep Broncos Head Coach Jason Jewell

“We have the best O-line in the state, and I can just rely on them and my receivers to make it easy for me.” – Brophy Prep Broncos Quarterback Case Vanden Bosch

“If it wasn’t for the O-line, we wouldn’t be 5-0 right now. Their ability to protect the quarterback, and influence a great run game, makes our receivers and running backs thrive.” – Brophy Prep Broncos Running Back Carlos Estrada

Next up:

Brophy (5-0) will take on Basha (4-1) on Oct. 4, in a battle of top 6A teams. Notre Dame (4-1) has a bye week then will host the Horizon Huskies (4-1) on Oct. 11.

Horizon offense rolls in win over Millennium

By Howard Schlossberg

Horizon is doing just fine, thank you.

Rebounding nicely from what could’ve been a hangover defeat, the Huskies piled up 457 yards of total offense and scored a 38-8 win Friday night over visiting Millennium, moving to 4-1 in the process.

Head coach Tyson Ditmore admitted he had a slight twinge inside over how his team might respond after last week’s difficult loss to Pinnacle, but his Huskies laid that to rest immediately and authoritatively. On their first possession, they held the ball almost six minutes and ran 15 plays before Johnny Issitt bolted over from 3 yards out and Ryker Floyd put the exclamation point on it with a 2-point conversion run.

The rout was on.

Key plays

Issitt paced the thumping, gaining 155 yards, but everyone pitched in, especially the defense. Millennium only snapped the ball on Horizon’s side of the 50 once in the first half, so dominant was the Huskies D. And that snap, early in the second quarter, resulted in a Colton Becker leaping interception of a Donovan DeLong pass into the end zone.

Two plays later, Horizon was on the board again, this time on speedy Adam Wagner’s catch and run of 80 yards of a Jase Ashley perfectly tossed easy post.

Was there anything Horizon would do wrong? Not really. It was 21-0 by halftime as Floyd added two field goals, easily hitting from 30 and 32, the latter as time expired in the second quarter.

The second half was a carbon copy, except throw in Issitt’s 56-yard dash for a score. Millennium finally scored on Isaiah Whitfield’s 59-yard dash in the closing minute against Horizon’s No. 2 defense.

Key players

Issitt was the standout, with 155 yards on 18 carries. Ashley threw for 193 more on 12 of 23, including the TD to Wagner. Jordan Partridge, had 52 yards on five carries and two receptions for 20 more. Horizon’s defense chased alternating quarterbacks for Millennium all over, recording 10 tackles for loss and limiting the Tigers to 131 total yards, 59 on Whitfield’s late TD run.

Key quotes

“I’m really pleased with how we played, how the defense played,” Ditmore said. “We need to continue to get healthy,” and clean up the 11 penalties for 105 yards. He also noted the team has a ”gauntlet” of a schedule after next week’s bye.

Up next

Horizon is at Notre Dame on Oct. 11 after next week’s bye. Millennium is home to Desert Edge next Friday.

Mountain Pointe defeats Cesar Chavez in chippy contest

By Anthony Perez

Laveen Cesar Chavez came into Friday night’s Week 5 contest looking for a signature win against a Phoenix Mountain Pointe program that’s become a rival of sorts to them. Mountain Pointe though was ready to make a statement and they certainly did, picking up 13 points off of turnovers in the first quarter en route to a comfortable 43-13 home win that proved to be a chippy, penalty-filled game.

Key plays

With Cesar Chavez moving down the field on its opening drive of the game, Mountain Pointe set the tone for the night when junior linebacker Jaylyn Colter picked off a pass around midfield, he took it back the other way for the touchdown to give his team an early 7-0 lead and the early momentum, both of which it would not give up the rest of the night.

Key players

Mountain Pointe never surrendered the lead and momentum in large part to Jamarlon “Bobo” Otis. The senior running back had an impressive game, scoring four touchdowns, including a 54-yard run early in the second quarter that gave his team a comfortable 19-0 cushion.

Cesar Chavez’ biggest attempt to get back into the game came with 8:09 left in the first half when sophomore quarterback Mason Penrod had a one-yard run into the end zone to cut the Mountain Pointe lead to 19-7.

Key quote

“We started out rocky the first couple of games but we just had to get it right to make the plays that can work for me and that’s really it.” – Bobo Otis on his progression over the first half of the season

Next up

Cesar Chavez (3-2) hosts Mesa Desert Ridge next Thursday, while Mountain Pointe (4-1) visits American Leadership Academy-Queen Creek next Friday.

Arizona College Prep downs Yuma Catholic

By Jackson Shaw

Summary

Arizona College Prep receiver Ashton Sanchez caught three touchdowns and led the Knights to a 43-29 win at home against the Yuma Catholic Shamrocks Friday.

Key Plays

On fourth down of the Knights’ opening possession, Evan Heinrich found Sanchez down the middle to put ACP up early.

Alec Grant broke free for a big gain that set the Knights up at the one-yard line, then finished off the drive with a touchdown. Knights went up 14-0 in the first. Nash Ott got things going early in the second for the Shamrocks with a 26-yard pass placed right in the arms of WR Sir Stokes in the end zone.

With three minutes to play in the half, Yuma’s Hunter Hancock returned a kickoff 99 yards for a touchdown. Then Max Sasso decided he wanted in on the fun and did the exact same thing on the very next kickoff for the Knights. 99-yard house call.

Sanchez caught his second touchdown of the night to end the half off a perfect ball from Ott. The halftime score read 36-14.

A huge connection from Ott to Sir Stokes set up the Shamrocks at the four-yard line, which Rocky Stallworth turned into a touchdown on a short pass.

But Ashton Sanchez was not done yet. He caught a short pass from Heinrich and took it 43 yards to the end zone for his third touchdown of the day.

The Shamrocks would find the end zone one last time off of a 20-yard throw to Stokes once again.

Key Players

Ashton Sanchez was huge for the ACP Knights, finding the end zone three times. Evan Heinrich connected on big throws deep all game and rushed in a touchdown to add to his two through the air.

Despite the loss, Sir Stokes caught two touchdown passes on the night for the Shamrocks, his second and third for the year.

Quotes

“Our players were extremely motivated. [Yuma] got us in a close game down at their place last year, so some of our message was kind of getting revenge from last year’s game.” – ACP head coach Steve Vaught

“The mindset was honestly just to dominate. Not let their name get to us. They’re a great team, obviously, but we just wanted to play a hard game, do our thing. We worked hard in practice all week long and that translated to the game.” – ACP receiver Ashton Sanchez

Next Up

AZC Prep will travel to Vista Grandebfor a region matchup next Friday (Oct. 3). Yuma Catholic also has its first region game when they host St. Mary’s.

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Arizona

This prominent attorney collects art to celebrate his Mexican heritage

Published

8 hours ago

January 9, 2026

Press Room

This prominent attorney collects art to celebrate his Mexican heritage

Prominent Arizona attorney Jose Cardenas possesses a large private collection of Mexican and Mexican American art.
Cardenas, who rose from humble immigrant roots, amassed the collection with his late wife, Virginia, as an embrace of their shared Mexican heritage.
He frequently opens his home to visitors for tours and events, sharing stories about the artwork and his life.

Prominent Arizona attorney Jose Cardenas loves to show off his vast collection of Mexican and Mexican American art.

But he once made a fool of himself arguing with the legendary Mexican journalist Elena Poniatowska over a piece of artwork on display in his spacious 4,000-square-foot Chandler home.

Cardenas was giving Poniatowska a tour of his art collection during a reception he hosted for the writer. She was in town giving a lecture at Arizona State University.

“This is a self-portrait of Siqueiros,” Cardenas remembers telling Poniatwoska, referring to David Alfaro Siqueiros, one of Mexico’s three most famous muralists.

Poniatowska took a look at the sketch and shook her head, “No it’s not.”

The two got into a back and forth, with Cardenas continuing to insist the man depicted in the painting was Siqueiros.

“That’s what they told me when I bought it at the gallery in San Francisco,” Cardenas remembers telling the Mexican author.

Finally Cardenas backed down, thinking, “She’s getting up in years. I’m not going to embarrass her and argue with her.”

A few days later, Cardenas was flipping through TV channels. He came across a PBS documentary about the 1970 Chicano riots in East Los Angeles. The documentary highlighted a portrait Siqueiros had painted in homage to Ruben Salazar, the Los Angeles Times journalist killed by a tear gas canister fired by a Los Angeles County sheriff’s deputy during the protests.

Poniatowska was right. The figure in the painting was not Siqueiros, the Mexican muralist. It was indeed Ruben Salazar, the Los Angeles Times journalist, as painted by Siqueiros.

Cardenas tells this story when he gives tours of his art collection to visitors. They break out in laughter.

“You were mansplaining” one visitor told him. “No, I was being an idiot,” Cardenas said, “because why would you argue with her, of all people. She knew (Siqueiros). She wrote about him. She interviewed him. Not the person to say, ‘No, you are wrong.’”

Cardenas built prestigious career from humble roots

The personal art tours Cardenas hosts weekly at his home are peppered with similar stories that showcase his self-deprecating humor and highlight his enormous pride in his humble upbringing and Mexican heritage.

Cardenas comes from modest working-class Mexican immigrant roots. But he rose to become one of the most prominent and successful attorneys in Arizona. He has used his considerable wealth to amass what artists say is the largest collection of Mexican and Mexican-American artwork in the state, which he shares often with visitors during various events at his home, from personal tours to his annual post-Christmas bash.

Born in 1952, Cardenas is the son of an immigrant dad from the Mexican state of Sinaloa, and a Mexican-American mom. Cardenas grew up in Vegas Heights, a working-class Hispanic neighborhood west of Las Vegas that was still segregated. His father, Fortunato Cárdenas Sánchez, had a sixth-grade education. He worked as a foreman for construction company that laid pipelines. He was killed in a work accident when Cardenas was 15.

His mother, Gloria Frances Gómez Vigil, was born in a small town in northern Nevada to Mexican immigrant parents who eventually moved to Las Vegas. She only attended school through eighth grade.

After his father died, Cardenas, the second-oldest of four children, wanted to quit school and work to help his family with finances. But Cardenas was a good student, and his mother insisted he stay in school and encouraged him to attend college.

Cardenas became the first person in his family to graduate from high school and then college. He earned a bachelor’s degree in political science from the University of Nevada, Las Vegas and then a law degree from Stanford.

After law school, Cardenas clerked for a federal judge in San Francisco and then moved to Arizona in 1978 to work for the powerhouse law firm Lewis and Roca. Cardenas mostly handled commercial litigation but also did pro bono work on death penalty cases. In 1999, he was named managing partner, becoming one of the few Hispanic managing partners of a major law firm in the nation.

In 2009, Cardenas left Lewis and Roca to serve as chief legal adviser and senior vice president at Arizona State University, a position he held until 2022.

For nearly 20 years, Cardenas also hosted Horizonte, a public affairs show focusing on Arizona issues through a Hispanic perspective on Arizona PBS (KAET-TV Channel 8). He stepped down in 2023. Now semi-retired, the 73-year-old Cardenas continues to serve as special senior university adviser at ASU.

Cardenas and his Mexican-born wife, Virginia, were childhood sweethearts. When Virginia turned 15, Cardenas was one of the escorts in her quinceañera coming-of-age celebration. The two then began dating in ninth grade. They married when Cardenas was 19 and Virginia was 20 by one month. She worked as a counselor at Chandler High School. She died in July 2012 of kidney cancer.

Cardenas and Virginia bought their first artwork when he was still a financially struggling law student at Stanford. The two prints Cardenas purchased from a fellow student are now among the thousands of pieces of artwork that adorn his home.

Couple made frequent trips to purchase art

Cardenas said he and Virginia were introduced to the world of Mexican and Mexican American art when they moved to Arizona and met artists Zarco and Carmen Guerrero at a party. They are the founders of Xicanindio, the original name of Xico, a nonprofit organization that promotes Latino and Indigenous art and culture.

The couple became deeply involved in the organization. Virginia became the program director for several years and Cardenas served on the board of directors, including a stint as president.

Over the years, Cardenas and Virginia traveled frequently to Mexico City, Sante Fe and San Francisco to purchase paintings, crosses, ceramics, prints and pottery that cover practically every inch of Cardenas’ ranch home in Chandler.

Cardenas said he considers the collection an embrace of the Mexican heritage he and Virginia shared.

“It’s pride,” Cardenas said during an interview at his home.

“Virginia was born in Mexico. She came here when she was eight,” Cardenas said. “And I never considered myself Mexican American because when I was growing up, those terms weren’t used. So we were Mexicans.”

After Virginia died in 2012, Cardenas commissioned East L.A.-born artist George Yepes to paint a portrait of her. Yepes is best known as the artist who painted the cover of the 1988 Grammy Award-winning album by Los Lobos, “La Pistola y El Corazón.”

At first, Yepes turned down the commission after Cardenas showed her photo of Virginia, who was known for her dazzling smile.

“I can’t do it,” Cardenas recalled Yepes saying. “She’s always smiling. I don’t do smiles.”

A few weeks later, Yepes emailed Cardenas. “I think I can do it.”

The 7-foot-tall portrait Yepes painted of Virginia now hangs in Cardenas’ living room, where it dominates one of the walls. Cardenas considers it his most treasured piece, along with a portrait by a different artist of his three grown sons when they were young.

“The funny thing about this is she was pretty short, she was barely five foot tall. This painting is seven feet. And she’s sitting down. So talk about bigger-than-life-size,” Cardenas told a group of visitors during one of his tours.

Home is an art gallery, with frequent visitors

Cardenas frequently opens his home to visitors, serving as docent as he escorts visitors from room to room, telling stories along the way about various pieces of artwork.

In addition to the personal tours, Cardenas hosts an annual open house to showcase the ofrendas he creates in honor of Dia de los Muertos. At his Day of the Dead open house in November 2025, during the Trump administration’s ongoing mass deportation effort, one of the ofrendas focused on immigration. The ofrenda included photos of Cardenas’ relatives from Mexico, along with numerous quotes by Pope Francis that Cardenas printed out and framed.

“Migrants and refugees are not pawns on the chessboard of humanity,” read one quote.

“It is necessary to respond to the globalization of migration with the globalization of charity and cooperation, in such a way as to make the conditions for migrants more humane,” read another.

Cardenas also hosts an annual Los Tres Reyes Magos party every January in honor of Three Kings Day, a Christian holiday that is popular in Mexico and Latino America and marks the biblical visit of the three kings to the baby Jesus. This year’s party, attended by some of the most influential people in Arizona, will be Jan. 10.

One of the most powerful pieces on display in his home is a painting Cardenas commissioned as a tribute to the victims of the 2022 mass school shooting in Uvalde, Texas. The shooting killed 19 students and two teachers, and injured 21 others. The artwork, which Cardenas displays in his dining room, also was painted by Yepes, the artist who painted the portrait of Virginia.

The painting depicts a woman draped in an American flag, her arms and hands outstretched in the shape of a crucifix, with swords piercing her exposed heart, while doves flutter around her head, wrapped in a crown of thorns.

‘Everything they have in the collection was for them’

One of the most striking pieces is a massive Talavera ceramic jar created by artist and restauranteur Gennaro Garcia, a native of San Luis Rio Colorado, Sonora, who now lives in Phoenix. Garcia created the piece in Puebla, Mexico, where he studied the hand-painted Mexican ceramic artform that blends Spanish and Indigenous influences.

Cardenas had the piece shipped to his home, where he had to remove the table from his kitchen to make room for the artwork, which towers over six feet in height.

Garcia said he strived for years to have his artwork included in the Cardenas’ collection.

“As an artist, you want you want to be in in collection that you admire,” Garcia said. “His collection was already so good, and I wanted to have my name associated with those other artists” and with Virginia and Jose Cardenas as collectors.

Garcia describes the collection as a love story between the couple.

“Everything they have in the collection was for them,” Garcia said. “I always remember them standing in front of the art, talking about it, and then deciding to buy it” as a couple.

Garcia said he was not aware of a larger personal collection of Mexican and Mexican American artwork in Arizona.

“It’s the biggest one. Easy,” Garcia said.

Cristina Cardenas, a Mexican-born artist based in Tucson, agreed.

“In Arizona, to tell you the truth, I haven’t met anybody else with a bigger or more rich collection” especially of Mexican-American and Arizona artists, said Cardenas, who is not related to Jose.

She has sold numerous paintings to Cardenas. The collector also has commissioned her to paint several murals at his home, including a mural of a smiling Virginia that adorns an outdoor wall in the home’s sizable patio, and a mural of Mexican artist Frida Kahlo that greets visitors to his home.

The artist said Cardenas and Virginia have supported many artists through their collecting. They have played a role in opening the door for Latino artists to sell their work to other collectors, Cardenas said, noting that she once sold a print to former Arizona governor and U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano through an introduction by Cardenas.

“It’s a commitment to represent our people, our communities, and to represent Mexico and the really highest rich cultural history that it has,” the artist said.

She noted that visitors will notice that Cardenas and Virginia have had a strong interest in collecting female figurative art. They were influential in shifting Xico artists away from depictions of low-riders and other traditional Chicano symbols toward prints and paintings that celebrate female figurative art.

Cardenas the artist, and others, often wonder what will happen to the massive collection after Cardenas is gone.

“It has to be preserved and it has to stay together. That’s my recommendation,” Cardenas the artist said.

Collection is a priceless legacy

Jose Cardenas said he isn’t sure what will become of his collection. He knows that some of the pieces will be passed down to his children and family, including the portrait of Virginia. The rest may go the Hispanic Research Center at Arizona State University, he said.

In the meantime, his collection continues to expand. He recently mounted two new pieces by renowned contemporary American artist Ayana Jackson, who reconstructs the portraiture of the 19th and early 20th centuries to, according to her bio, “assess the impact of the colonial gaze on the history of photography.”

The two pieces Cardenas acquired depict the artist suspended in midair in a battle stance while in character as Adelita, the Mexican female revolutionary soldier.

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Arizona

Multiple freeways closed as snow moves into northern Arizona

Published

20 hours ago

January 8, 2026

Press Room

Multiple freeways closed as snow moves into northern Arizona

A winter storm sweeping across the state was dumping snow and whipping up gusty winds in northern Arizona, forcing multiple highway closures and travel advisories throughout the region.

Snow moved into the high country early Jan. 8 and was expected to continue through the afternoon and evening. Flagstaff had picked up 2 to 4 inches, with snow reaching lower elevations, including Prescott and Sedona, according to the National Weather Service in Flagstaff.

“In our area we expect it to come to an end here later this afternoon and early this evening, with only an inch or two more here in the Flagstaff area,” said Brian Klimowski, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Flagstaff. “It’s going to continue this evening and overnight to our east.”

Snow levels dropped as a cold front moved into the region, falling from about 6,000 feet at sunrise to as low as 4,000 feet by late evening. Forecasters say heavier snow was likely this afternoon and evening as the system moves through.

“Roads are bad right now,” Klimowski said. “The highways will be very slick, and we expect conditions will remain in a deteriorated state here this afternoon to this evening, especially along and east of the I-17 corridor.”

Which highways are closed in northern Arizona?

Several major highways across the high country were closed on Jan. 8 due to winter weather and related crashes, according to the Arizona Department of Transportation.

As of the afternoon, the following closures were in place:

Interstate 40 eastbound at US 93 (milepost 72)
Interstate 40 eastbound at State Route 89 in Ash Fork (milepost 146)
Northbound Interstate 17 at State Route 169 (milepost 278)
State Route 64 (both directions) between mileposts 244-264

ADOT said there is no estimated reopening time for any of these highways.

Drivers can check the latest road closures and travel conditions through ADOT’s AZ511 system, with an online interactive map and mobile app. Information is available at AZ511.gov or by calling 511 from within Arizona.

Snow, wind and cold persist

Flagstaff could see snow totals around 2 to 5 inches, with more at the higher elevations. Snow will continue across eastern Arizona into the evening Jan. 8 and early on Jan. 9, including parts of Black Mesa, the Chinle Valley and the Chuska Mountains.

Gusty winds could reduce visibility, especially in areas with blowing snow. Winds will shift northerly overnight, summoning colder air as the system departs.

“It’s going to dry out,” Klimowski said. “It’s going to be cold and blustery tomorrow and then a slow warming trend through much of next week.”

Lows on Jan. 9 will be 10 to 15 degrees below normal, with wind chills near zero in the High Country. While snow will cease by Jan. 9, slick roads and hazardous conditions could remain,

“Be careful if you’re traveling tonight,” Klimowski said. “It’s going to be slick out there.”

Why does it snow so much in Flagstaff? Here’s what to know

Flagstaff may be in a state known for its scorching summers and years-long droughts, but it is one of the snowiest cities in the United States.

Hayleigh Evans writes about extreme weather and related topics for The Arizona Republic and azcentral.com. Email her with story tips at hayleigh.evans@arizonarepublic.com.

(This story has been updated to add a new video).

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Arizona

Arizona, career nights from Burries, Krivas beat K-State

Published

1 day ago

January 8, 2026

Press Room

Arizona, career nights from Burries, Krivas beat K-State

TUCSON, Ariz. (AP) — Brayden Burries scored 28 points, Motiejus Krivas added a career-high 25 and No. 1 Arizona remained unbeaten with a 101-76 win over Kansas State on Wednesday night.

Arizona (15-0, 2-0 Big 12) is off to its best start since winning the first 21 games of the 2013-14 season. Arizona won by at least 18 points for the 10th consecutive game, matching a mark Michigan had earlier this season that tied for the longest such run since 2003-04.

Burries had his fifth 20-point game and matched his career high by going 12 for 16 from the field while adding nine rebounds. It was his 10th straight game in double figures, including at least 20 points in five of those, after just one over his first five.

Krivas was 7 of 10, making 11 of 13 free throws, and had 12 rebounds.

Koa Peat had 15 points and 10 rebounds and Tobe Awaka added nine and 11 as Arizona outrebounded Kansas State 55-32. Arizona shot 49.3% from the field but was just 3 of 16 from 3-point range.

Kansas State (9-6, 0-2) went 8 for 36 from deep and shot 33.8% overall. PJ Haggerty led the way with 19 points on 8-of-20 shooting, while Nate Johnson added 15 and Dorin Buca 12.

Down 15 at the half, Kansas State pulled within 58-49 with 16:09 left on a 3-pointer by Johnson. Arizona responded with a 6-0 run and kept the margin at least 12 the rest of the way. Back-to-back dunks by Burries and Peat and a corner 3-pointer by Jaden Bradley keyed a 13-0 run to put Arizona ahead 92-65 with 3:31 remaining.

It built a 10-point lead less than six minutes into the game and upped it to 20 with 2:52 left in the first half. Burries had 16 before halftime.

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