TUCSON, Ariz. — Motiejus Krivas scored 17 points, Ivan Kharchenkov added 14 and the top-ranked Arizona Wildcats pulled away late to beat Cincinnati 77-51 on Wednesday night and remain one of three unbeaten teams in the country.
Arizona (19-0, 6-0 Big 12) entered as the unanimous No. 1 team in the latest AP poll — a first in school history.
Cincinnati (10-9, 2-4) tested Arizona with an early 14-1 run to take a 20-16 lead midway through a rugged first half, but Arizona responded for a 33-27 halftime advantage. The 7-foot-2 Krivas thrived in the physical environment with 8 points, five rebounds and a block before the break.
Krivas continued his good work in the paint during the second half, scoring a handful of tough, close-range buckets to keep the Wildcats ahead.
Arizona used a 20-4 run over a nearly 10-minute stretch of the second to methodically build a 58-44 lead. The Wildcats had a 48-14 advantage on points in the paint.
Cincinnati was coming off a 79-70 win over No. 2 Iowa State on Saturday. They were trying to become the first team to knock off the No. 2 and No. 1 teams in consecutive games during the regular season since Kansas did it during the 1989-90 season, beating LSU and UNLV.
The Bearcats were led Baba Miller’s 14 points. Cincinnati couldn’t overcome a tough shooting night, finishing just 17 of 56 (30.1%) from the floor.
Cincinnati guard Jizzle James drives on Arizona guard Jaden Bradley during the first half of an NCAA college basketball game, Wednesday, Jan. 21, 2026, in Tucson, Ariz. Credit: AP/Rick Scuteri
Cincinnati guard Kerr Kriisa returned to the floor in a reserve role after missing four games with an upper body injury. The well-traveled Kriisa — now in his sixth college season — played his first three seasons for Arizona from 2020 to 2023.
The Wildcats recognized Kriisa’s return with a pregame video.
Up next
Cincinnati: At Arizona State on Saturday.
Arizona: Host West Virginia on Saturday.
#Arizona #pulls #late #top #Cincinnati #remain #unbeatens #country
