UCLA vs. Arizona score: Wildcats win Pac-12 Tournament title in thrilling rubber match with Bruins

Arizona stated its final case for a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament with a win over UCLA on Saturday

No. 1 seed Arizona added another banner accomplishment from a remarkable first season under coach Tommy Lloyd on Saturday night by outlasting No. 2 seed UCLA 84-76 in the Pac-12 Tournament title game. The victory settled the season series after the league's top teams split two contests in the regular season.

Up next for Arizona could be the program's first No. 1 seed for an NCAA Tournament since 2014. The Wildcats entered as a projected No. 1 seed, according to CBS Sports Bracketology Expert Jerry Palm, and only strengthened their case ahead of the NCAA Tournament Selection Show on Sunday at 6 p.m. ET on CBS. 

Bennedict Mathurin led the Wildcats with 27 points, including 18 in the second half, as Arizona roared back from a 12-point deficit early in the second half. Arizona won the Pac-12 Tournament in 2015, 2017 and 2018 under former coach Sean Miller before the program dipped in the following three seasons prior to Lloyd's arrival. The former longtime Gonzaga assistant has quickly turned the Wildcats into the nation's top offensive squads with a defense to boot. 

Arizona boasts the Pac-12 Defensive Player of the Year in Christian Koloko, but it was actually a bench player and Gonzaga transfer, Oumar Ballo, who led the Wildcats with six blocks on Saturday. His rejection of a 3-point attempt by UCLA's Jules Bernard with 27 seconds left helped seal the outcome.

The Bruins entered as a projected No. 4 seed for the Big Dance and gave Arizona all it could handle in pursuit of the program's first Pac-12 Tournament title since 2014. Bernard led UCLA with 19 points, while Jaime Jaquez Jr. added 18.

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Below is the rundown of how the Pac-12 Tournament played out, followed by scores and recaps from the action throughout the week. 

2022 Pac-12 Tournament schedule, scores

First round -- Wednesday, March 9
Game 1: No. 9 Stanford 71, No. 8 Arizona State 70 | Recap
Game 2: No. 5 Oregon 86, No. 12 Oregon State 72 | Recap
Game 3: No. 7 Washington State 66, No. 10 California 59 | Recap
Game 4: No. 6 Washington 82, No. 11 Utah 70 | Recap

Quarterfinals -- Thursday, March 10
Game 5: No. 1 Arizona 84, No. 9 Stanford 80 | Recap
Game 6: No. 4 Colorado 80, No. 5 Oregon 69 | Recap
Game 7: No. 2 UCLA 75, No. 7 Washington State 65 | Recap
Game 8: No. 3 USC 65, No. 6 Washington 61 | Recap

Semifinals -- Friday, March 11
Game 9: No. 1 Arizona 82, No. 4 Colorado 72 | Recap
Game 10: No. 2 UCLA 69, No. 3 USC 59 | Recap

Pac-12 Tournament Championship Game -- Saturday, March 12
Game 11: No. 1 Arizona 84, No. 2 UCLA 76 | Recap

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