Arizona forward Koa Peat (10) dunks during the second half in the Elite Eight of the NCAA college basketball tournament against Purdue, Saturday, March 28, 2026, in San Jose, Calif. (Photo Credits to AP Photo/Kelley L Cox)

By Michael Villanueva

SAN JOSE – The Madness of March is over, as SAP Center welcomed 4 programs to the South Bay, but only saw only one of them would come out victorious. Between the No.1 Arizona Wildcats and the No.2 Purdue Boilermakers, which both are champions to their conference. It would be the Arizona Wildcats moving on to Indianapolis with a 15 point win, and these dangerous Wildcats have now won 13 games in a row.

Arizona Wildcats went with guards Jaden Bradley, Brayden Burries, forwards Koa Peat, Ivan Kharchenkov, and center Motiejus Krivas for their Elite Eight game. The Wildcats will be hoping to make it to the Final Four for the first time since 2001 and the fifth time in program history. This is their 12th Elite Eight appearance overall and their first since 2015.

Purdue Boilermakers sent out guards Braden Smith, Fletcher Loyer, forwards Trey Kaufman-Renn, Oscar Cluff, and center C.J. Cox on the teams Elite Eight run. Purdue has a 0-9 record against No. 1 seeds overall and is seeking its first victory over one. Purdue will be trying for its fourth Final Four overall and its second in the last three seasons.

After the first 7 minutes of play, Arizona was in the lead with 5 points, 17-12. Arizona went on a 8-2 scoring run for 3 minutes. The Wildcats saw a lot of their points in the paint which was giving them early control of the game. Arizona scored 12 points in the paint to their now, 19-12 lead. It should come as no surprise that Purdue is already having issues with Arizona’s size and agility. Oscar Cluff is holding his own so far, but if the Boilermakers don’t find extra help from the players down in the block, the Wildcats will dominate inside.

4 lead changes and 6 ties already happened 15 minutes into this game. Both teams are trying to send their school to the Final Four with the finishing line being just a couple of games away. With 3 minutes left of the 1st half the score was, 30-27, Purdue leads now. After a bad shooting performance in their Sweet 16 game, Purdue has shotten the ball better. Last game int he 1st half, Boilermakers only had 3 three-pointers in the 1st half, but tonight they had 6 three-pointers already. While Arizona is seeing some struggles as they only made 1 three-pointer so far out of 6 attempts.

Halftime, Purdue is leading Arizona by 7 points, 38-31. The Big-10 champions, Purdue, hit 7 three-pointers in the 1st half that got them feeling great heading into the lockers. While the Big-12 champions, Arizona, was struggling on the field. Only making 1 three-pointer would go a long way and a reason on why they’re down at halftime. While the Wildcats are struggling from deep as they only got 1 deep ball to go in.

The Boilermakers have gone on to lose after leading at the half just twice this season: Jan. 24 against Illinois and Feb. 26 against Michigan State. So with the start of the second half, the pressure for Purdue to win the game is on. Vice versa with Arizona as they started the final half playing catch up. Which Arizona really turned up the heat on Purdue and took it to them.

Wildcats were able to knock down 3 three-pointers in the second half, which was a lot better than the just the 1 three-pointer they made in the first half. The more this game goes on, the more the talent gap between Arizona and Purdue becomes clear. Arizona is more prepared to play in transition when the game breaks down, which has happened more often in the second half. The Wildcats are on the verge of making it to their first Final Four in 25 years.

In the second half, Arizona played with an entirely different feeling of urgency. At both ends of the floor, there are differences in physicality and intensity. However, the two crucial figures: Arizona had six turnovers in the first half but zero in the second. After a 7-14 first half, Purdue is now 0-4 3PT. By the 3 minute mark, Arizona had a 15 point lead on Purdue.

Ultimately, Arizona wrote their story to the Final Four in San Jose as they would win the game against the No.2 Purdue Boilermakers, 79-64. Arizona Wildcats will head to Indianapolis, and wait on the winner of the No.1 Michigan vs No.6 Tennessee. That game will be played on Saturday, April 4th, 2026.