TUCSON – The gap within this Territorial Cup rivalry never seems as wide as it does inside Arizona’s McKale Center, which houses one of college basketball’s best home-court atmospheres.
Arizona State has been competitive against the Wildcats in Tempe, but not here. Not recently. The Sun Devils had lost their previous six contests in McKale by 38, 24, 23, 15, 17 and 11 points. Thursday’s showdown, played amid a sea of Arizona red, followed a similar script.
In his first rivalry contest, Arizona forward Lauri Markkanen was fantastic, scoring a season-high 30 points to lead No. 16 Arizona to a 91-75 win over the Sun Devils.