Jaden Bradley's buzzer-beater gives Arizona 82-80 win over Iowa State in Big 12 semis

Jaden Bradley hit a closely guarded 17-footer from the right corner just before time expired to give Arizona an 82-80 win over Iowa State in the semifinals of the Big 12 Tournament on Friday at T-Mobile Center.

Elevating over the spidery defense of Cyclone guard Killyan Toure, Bradley gave the Wildcats just enough to overcome 8-for-14 3-point shooting from Iowa State’s Milan Momcilovic and a game-tying 3 from Cyclones guard Tamin Lipsey with 15 seconds left.

"That's stuff you dream about in your backyard, counting down and hitting the shot," Bradley said, shaking his head.

It was the first buzzer-beating shot in Big 12 Tournament play since 2015, when Monte Morris hit one to lift Iowa State over Texas, and moved the Wildcats (31-2) into a Big 12 Tournament championship game against Houston, which defeated Kansas in Friday's second semifinal game, 69-47.

For UA, Bradley's game winner was also a complementary touch to the much-needed shooting of wing Anthony Dell'Orso, who tied his career-high of made 3-pointers with six (on nine attempts) and wound up with an Arizona-career-high 26 points in a game when Iowa State's defense packed inside.

Arizona shot 55.2% overall, with wing Ivan Kharchenkov adding another 17 points and 2 for 3 3-point shooting, even though the Wildcats received no scoring from guard Brayden Burries and just single-digit scoring nights from post players Koa Peat and Motiejus Krivas.

"It was amazing," Dell'Orso said. "You can never script a basketball game and that just felt like it was two heavyweights going at it — JB with an incredible shot and guys doing multiple things. Koa killing it in every facet of the game, Tobe (Awaka) rebounding, Ivan good passes. It just felt like everyone was contributing."

But as much as Momcilovic and Dell'Orso entertained the T-Mobile Center crown and ESPN audience the most often, all eyes were focused at the end on the point guards. 

After Lipsey hit a 3 with 15 seconds left to tie the game up at 80, Bradley came downcourt, instructed teammates, and then dribbled to the right as Toure shadowed him.

"When I looked at JB driving the ball up, he wasn't looking at me," UA coach Tommy Lloyd said. "He was waving everybody down. So I knew what we were doing.

"He kind of plays chess out there a little bit, moved the guys around where he wanted them, and he got to a spot. It's a shot we've seen him hit a lot this year."

He had hit them, and he had hit them in clutch situations, but more often earlier in the year before Burries emerged as Arizona's perimeter go-to guy. On Friday, Burries said he banged up his lower leg early in the game, and he struggled throughout, going scoreless and missing all seven shots he took.

"It happens," Burries said, adding of Bradley "he came in at a perfect time for us."

Swarmed by teammates after the shot so much that a bloody spot surfaced on the right side of his forehead, Bradley said his thoughts after hitting the shot were also about how to avoid needing such a shot in the first place.

But that wasn't easily done in a game when Momcilovic was going off in a shooting contest with Dell'Orso.

Just 1 of 5 from 3-point range in UA's 75-57 win over Iowa State at McKale Center on March 2, Momcilovic hit three 3-pointers in the final 1:23 of the first half to give Iowa State a 43-37 halftime lead after the Wildcats had fully erased an early 12-point deficit. 

Then he hit 4 of 7 3s after halftime to keep Iowa State going in what was an even tighter second half. But Dell'Orso also hit four 3s in the second half — on just four attempts.

"Delly, he's crazy, literally," Bradley said. "I'm proud of Delly. He had his ups and downs this season, but we all believe in him. His shot-making ability, his defense has gotten so much better.

"We just trusted him. We've just got so many guys that can get it going at any night, and tonight was Delly's night."

The 3-point battle reached a peak just under four minutes left, starting when Momcilovic hit a closely guarded 3 to cut UA's lead to two.

"He's a great player, crazy shooter," Bradley said. "He's like 6-7, 6-8. He can shoot right over the top of you (and you have to) pray it doesn't go in."

But 34 seconds later, Dell'Orso hit a 3 to give UA a 73-68 lead. Then 22 seconds after that, Momcilovic hit another ... and exactly another 22 seconds passed before Dell'Orso hit another 3.

Tit-tat-tit-tat.

"I'm seeing him shooting and it goes in, and I'm just like 'Oh my goodness, we've got to come down and throw another punch.'" Dell'Orso said of Momcilovic. "That's all it was. You can't dwell on it. You literally have seconds to get over it, and if you don't, you'll lose."

But then Iowa State forward Joshua Jefferson decided to join the party with a 3 of his own that cut UA's lead back to two points, 76-74, with just over two minutes left and, before long, Momcilovic was at it again.

Momcilovic hit his eighth 3-pointer with 1:17 left, cutting the Wildcats’ lead to just 78-77 before UA called a timeout, after which Bradley hit a fallaway jumper from 12 feet out to put UA ahead by three with 45 seconds before Lipsey hit his 3 with 15 seconds left.

After swinging wildly in the first half, starting when Iowa State jumped out to a 14-2 lead, the game was played tightly for most of the second half. Iowa State took a 50-42 lead two minutes into the half but Kharchenkov hit a 3-pointer to cut Iowa State’s lead to five points and UA later took a 62-60 lead when Dell’Orso hit two 3s within 30 seconds midway through the half.

Burries sat out five minutes early in the second half with a padded device on his lower left leg, but he returned with 9:06 to go and made two free throws that gave UA a 66-65 lead with 6:01 left.

Kharchenkov hit a turnaround jumper in the lane to put UA ahead by five before Momcilovic and Dell’Orso began trading three pointers and the game reached its dramatic end.

In the first half, the Wildcats fully erased their early 14-2 deficit, thanks in part to Dell’Orso's 12 first-half points, and held a 37-34 lead with 1:34 left before Momcilovic heated up.

Entering the game with the second-best 3-point percentage in the country, 49.2%, Momcilovic hit a 3 with 1:23 left in the first half, another off a turnover by Burries with 12 seconds left — and after Dell’Orso turned the ball over on a travel call with two seconds left, threw in a fallaway desperation 3 from the left wing at the buzzer.

Iowa State had jumped on Arizona right away, building its 12-point lead while the Wildcats missed their first four shots and committed four turnovers that led to four Iowa State points. Momcilovic blocked Burries on the Wildcats’ first possession and Burries was called for a travel on UA’s next possession, leading to a tip-in from Blake Buchanan.

Arizona didn’t get a field goal until Dell’Orso sank a 3-pointer with 15:02 left in the first half, and Dell’Orso hit another with 35 seconds later to pull UA within 14-8.

Highlights from Momcilovic and Dell'Orso dominated the game from there, until Bradley stepped in, just five days after he was named the Big 12 Player of the Year.

The decision of Big 12 coaches to vote for him had drawn some attention since Bradley was not among the league's top scorers, but Bradley said it didn't bother him.

"Not at all," Bradley said. "There's talented players in this league and it could have gone to anybody. I feel like my teammates put me in a great position. If we don't win a Big 12 regular season, I don't get that award."

And if Bradley doesn't hit that buzzer-beater, the Wildcats don't get a shot at winning the Big 12 Tournament.