No. 1 Arizona into first Final Four since 2001

No. 1 Arizona into first Final Four since 2001

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No. 1 Arizona into first Final Four since 2001Arizona Wildcats1hKyle BonaguraIllinois' Underwood fulfills Final Four 'dream'Illinois Fighting Illini4hMyron MedcalfSources: Troy hiring NC State's Howard as coachTroy Trojans5hPete ThamelFoster, Demary rehab injuries ahead of Elite 8Duke Blue Devils7hJeff BorzelloScheyer: Feel 'empathy' for fired UNC coach DavisNorth Carolina Tar Heels6hFoster 'incredible' in return, 'willed' Duke to victoryDuke Blue Devils1dJeff BorzelloVandy extends Byington after 2 straight NCAA bidsVanderbilt Commodores5hIzzo scoffs at retirement talk after Spartans' exitMichigan State Spartans22hMen's March Madness Pain Index: Whose tournament loss hurt most?Duke Blue Devils5dKevin PulsiferThe unlikely rise of Iowa's Ben McCollum, Bennett Stirtz: Division II to Elite EightIowa Hawkeyes15hMyron MedcalfWhat's next for Iowa, Purdue after Elite Eight exits: Recruits, transfer portal, moreFlorida Gators1hJeff Borzello and Myron MedcalfMen's March Madness Pain Index: Whose tournament loss hurt most?Duke Blue Devils5dKevin PulsiferLunardi: Want Cinderella back? Set an NCAA tournament eligibility floorTexas Longhorns3dJoe LunardiTournament picks: How to bet Tennessee-Michigan on Sunday; will Duke end UConn's run?Duke Blue Devils5hMark ZinnoMen's tournament: Arizona the title favorite as Duke's odds improve to secondDuke Blue Devils2dDoug GreenbergKyle BonaguraMar 28, 2026, 11:13 PM ETCloseCovers college football.Joined ESPN in 2014.Attended Washington State University.Follow on XMultiple AuthorsEmailPrintOpen Extended ReactionsSAN JOSE, Calif. -- For the first time since 2001, the Arizona Wildcats are headed to the Final Four.

The top-seeded Wildcats punched their ticket with a 79-64 win against No. 2 Purdue, setting the school record for wins in a season (36) in the process. The previous wins record had stood since 1988, when Arizona reached the first of its four Final Fours -- including the national title in 1997 -- under legendary coach Lute Olson.

This team, under fifth-year coach Tommy Lloyd, has a chance to surpass all of them as the best in school history. The Wildcats will take a 13-game winning streak to Indianapolis, where they will play the winner of Sunday's game between Michigan and Tennessee.

Lloyd's impact at Arizona has been historic. The longtime Gonzaga assistant's 148 wins over the past five seasons are an NCAA record for most wins by a coach in their first five seasons, eclipsing the record set by Brad Stevens at Butler. He guided the Wildcats to 33 wins in his first year and had three trips to the Sweet 16 in his first four seasons. But the Final Four had remained elusive -- until Saturday.

Against a veteran Purdue team, Arizona was led by its talented freshmen. The Wildcats' three freshmen starters -- Brayden Burries (14), Ivan Kharchenkov (18) and Koa Peat (20) -- combined for 52 points and were unphased by the biggest stage of their young careers. Senior guard Jaden Bradley added 14 points.

Arizona jumped out to a 19-12 lead at the 12:37 mark of the first half and looked like it might be ready to put the Boilermakers to bed early. But even after Purdue star Trey Kaufman-Renn picked up an early second foul, Purdue started to claw its way back.

One key change came when Painter inserted sophomore big man Daniel Jacobsen into the game just as Arizona's lead stretched to seven. The 7-foot-4 Jacobsen had played just four combined minutes in the previous two games and had mostly been out of the rotation this month, but his size was needed against Arizona, and his presence helped shift the tide. But it didn't last.

Arizona needed just over five minutes in the second half to reclaim the lead and slowly pulled away.

"We had a little bad stretch at the end of the first half," Lloyd said. "These guys, winning's in their DNA. Like I always say, they're way better players than I am a coach. I'm so proud of them."

Purdue (30-9) falls short of its second Final Four in three seasons, and the loss spells the end of one of the great careers in college basketball history in Smith, who broke Bobby Hurley's career assist record earlier this season and finishes with 1,103. Smith led Purdue with 13 points but was just 4-of-15 from the field.