It was a long time coming. Sixteen long years, made longer by the cancellation of last year’s NCAA Tournament. The Arizona Wildcats wasted no time making up for those lost years, defeating Stony Brook 79-44 in their first tournament game since 2005.
Arizona will face 11-seed BYU in the second round on Wednesday.
UA’s depth was too much for Stony Brook. Speed. Shooting. Swarming defense. It was something the Seawolves had not faced regularly this season with only one contest against a major-conference opponent.
By halftime, nine players had appeared for Arizona. Eight of them had scored.