Arizona beats Purdue to make first Final Four since 2001 - ESPN

SAN 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