Hear from Arizona basketball players ahead of Final Four
Hear from Arizona men’s basketball players Anthony Dell’Orso and Jaden Bradley ahead of the Wildcats’ Final Four matchup against Michigan.
INDIANAPOLIS – Chandler native Koa Peat has won a lot of big games.
He led Perry High School to four straight state high school championships. He’s been part of gold-medal-winning entries for Team USA. And he’s a star freshman on the No. 1 University of Arizona team, which is on the precipice of the school’s first national championship since 1997.
It should have been hard for him to come up with an answer when asked the last time he actually “lost” a big game, but he did come up with one.
He singled out Arizona’s loss to then-No. 9 Kansas at Phog Allen Fieldhouse in February. That was one of just two games the Wildcats dropped this season. It says a lot that it was the worst loss he can remember.
Peat and the Wildcats (36-2) will square off against Michigan (35-3) in the second of two NCAA semifinals on Saturday, April 4 at Lucas Oil Stadium, home of the NFL’s Indianapolis Colts. The game is scheduled to tip off at roughly 5:50 p.m. MST, and will be televised on TNT, TBS and truTV.
The first Final Four game will pit Illinois against Connecticut at 4 p.m. and will be televised on TBS and truTV. The winners will compete for the national championship on Monday, April 6.
Arizona has won 13 straight games since back-to-back losses to Kansas and Texas Tech in February. Peat has hardly looked the part of a freshman.
“They call him Mr. Arizona,” said Wildcats’ coach Tommy Lloyd, who agreed to a contract extension on the eve of the team’s semifinal showdown. “Koa is special, and I know you guys hear it, but you got to hear it again. Four state championships at the same high school. Didn’t go to a prep school. Four gold medals with USA Basketball. No one in FIBA history has ever done that. And helped lead Arizona to a Final Four.”
At 6-foot-8, 235 pounds, Peat hardly looks like a freshman physically. He doesn’t play like one either.
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Peat is averaging 14.1 points, 5.5 rebounds, and 2.7 assists. That might sound pedestrian compared to some athletes who have put up video-game-like offensive numbers. But this Arizona team is balanced offensively, with all five starters averaging double figures.
Peat has been at his best in the big moments. He was named the most outstanding player in the West Region, scoring 21 points against Arkansas in the Sweet 16 win and 20 against Purdue in the Elite Eight victory, which earned the Wildcats a berth in Indianapolis.
He came onto the scene with a bang, scoring a season-high 30 against defending national champion Florida on Nov. 3.
Message delivered.
While that game was a long time ago, it was a good indicator that the Wildcats could go the distance because they beat a team like Florida, which is similar to Michigan with size in the front court.
“We always watch our good highlights, so just seeing those (against Florida) definitely gives us confidence for sure,” Peat said.
Michigan coach Dusty May said it takes a certain kind of player to be able to compete at this level as a true freshman, and Peat fits the bill, as does Brayden Burries.
“When we were at Florida (Atlantic) we used to talk about how there are certain prerequisites to be able to play as a freshman at a Power Five level,” May said. “And one of those prerequisites was playing USA Basketball because of the amount of intensity that it takes to compete during the trials, during the practices and also the games and also the sacrifice it takes because you’re playing with 11 of the best players in our country and you have to sacrifice so much just to play.”
Genes and a competitive drive probably help too. Peat grew up in a house full of athletes as the youngest of seven siblings, all of whom played football or basketball. His brother, Andrus Peat, has been in the NFL for 10 years and currently plays for the Pittsburgh Steelers. His father, Todd, played for four teams in the NFL, most notably the Cardinals.
“It’s been a blessing to have great people like that around me, a family as I have with so many athletes who played Division I sports,” Peat said, on the eve of the national semifinal. “I would say I am the most competitive just because their competitiveness was passed down to me, seeing how good they were and what it took to compete.”
Lloyd has been impressed, although not necessarily surprised, with how Peat has performed as well as the way he has remained grounded.
“The dude, he’s amazing. His ability to perform the way he did in these moments, you know, he’s been in a lot of them,” Lloyd said. “I told our guys, don’t make too much out of this. It’s like a state championship game. You guys have all played in them. Or a gold medal game or whatever. Let’s just find a way to win the game. Don’t make it more than it is.”
