The Arizona Wildcats have a history of not schedule cupcake non-conference games. The games are usually over a few minutes into the second half, the walk-ons get more playing time than some of the players in the normal rotation and the coaching staff doesn't have much to work with the next day in practice.
That being said, this UA team needed a cupcake game. The team would be playing their third game in six days and the holidays were just a few days away. Seemingly every game this season had come down to the wire, and a blowout win to get some of those walk-ons into the game would be a nice change.
Arizona did exactly that on Thursday night, defeating the Bryant Bulldogs by a score of 100-60. Five players reached double figures in points, only one starter played more than 23 minutes and every player on the roster checked into the game. The team shot 51.5% from the field and hit 13 of 23 attempts from behind the arc.
Jesse Perry led the way with 16 points and 10 rebounds, while Solomon Hill added 13 points, seven rebounds and four assists. Brendon Lavender was unconscious from deep, hitting six threes on his way to a team-high 18 points. Kyle Fogg recorded 11, Josiah Turner scored nine and dished out nine assists, and Kevin Parrom scored 11 in his best game since returning a month ago.
For Bryant, Corey Maynard scored 22 points and sophomore wing Alex Francis contributed 17 points, although he committed eight turnovers. The Bulldogs simply were overmatched on Thursday night.
The Wildcats now head home for a few days before returning to practice on December 26. The Arizona State Sun Devils will come to the McKale Center on the 31st to kickoff conference play.