Brayden Burries has had some big moments in his young college career, but Monday night in Provo might’ve been the one that officially put his name on the national radar.
The Arizona freshman didn’t just drop a career-high 29 points against No. 13 BYU - he delivered the game-sealing sequence that preserved the Wildcats’ perfect season.
With the No. 1 team in the country clinging to a one-point lead and BYU threatening to complete a furious comeback, Burries rose up and swatted away Robert Wright III’s go-ahead attempt in the final seconds. Then, with the poise of a veteran, he secured the loose ball, got fouled, and calmly knocked down two free throws to ice an 86-83 road win.
“It felt great. My teammates had my back this whole year, honestly, and that was the least I could do,” Burries said postgame. “Help my teammates, help my brothers, block the shot, get the rebound and finish with two free throws.”
That final defensive stand capped off a wild finish in what had looked like another Arizona blowout just minutes earlier. The Wildcats led by as many as 19 in the second half and still held an 11-point cushion with under 90 seconds to go.
But BYU didn’t blink. The Cougars turned up the full-court pressure, forced turnovers, drew charges, and crashed the glass like their season depended on it.
In just 45 seconds, they ripped off a 12-2 run to cut it to 84-83 - and had the ball with a chance to win it before Burries shut the door.
For Arizona, the win moves them to 21-0, matching the best start in program history. They remain one of just three unbeaten teams in the country, alongside Nebraska and Miami (Ohio), and continue to look every bit the national title contender their ranking suggests.
Even in a game that nearly slipped away, the Wildcats showed why they’re so dangerous. Burries was electric, but he wasn’t alone.
Senior point guard Jaden Bradley was sensational, scoring 26 points on an efficient 10-of-15 from the field. His ability to control tempo and attack the paint was a steadying force all night.
Arizona also had to navigate foul trouble for Koa Peat, their leading scorer and another five-star freshman. Peat played just 26 minutes and finished with 10 points, but the Wildcats didn’t miss a beat. Their depth and ball movement kept the offense humming, and their defense - up until the final minute - largely kept BYU out of rhythm.
That’s no small feat, especially against a Cougars team that’s loaded with talent. AJ Dybantsa led BYU with 24 points, but it was a grind.
Arizona made him work for everything - he shot just 6-of-24 from the field and had to rely on 11 made free throws to get to his total. Wright, the would-be hero, struggled as well, finishing with just 7 points on 3-of-16 shooting.
Richie Saunders rounded out a trio that’s going to be a tough out in the Big 12 and beyond, but Arizona’s defense held firm when it mattered most.
Still, that late collapse is something head coach Tommy Lloyd and his staff will want to address. The Wildcats had this game in hand and nearly let it slip away. But as Lloyd pointed out afterward, there’s value in surviving a close one.
“There’s going to be some games that come down to one stop,” he said. “We haven’t been in a lot of them, so it was great to experience that.”
Arizona remains the team to beat in the Big 12, sitting alone atop the standings at 8-0 in league play. And while they’ve handled the early gauntlet impressively, the schedule isn’t getting any easier.
They’ll get a bit of a breather with just two games over the next 12 days - a rivalry trip to Arizona State this Saturday, followed by a home matchup with Oklahoma State. But after that, it’s a brutal closing stretch. A Big Monday showdown at Kansas on Feb. 9 kicks off a run that includes home games against Texas Tech and BYU, road trips to Houston and Baylor, and then back-to-back home clashes with Kansas and Iowa State before finishing the regular season at Colorado.
The road ahead is daunting. But if Monday night proved anything, it’s that Arizona has the talent, the toughness, and the late-game poise to survive just about anything - even when things get wild.