Oumar Ballo scores 21 to help No. 3 Arizona rout Stanford

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Oumar Ballo had a career-high 21 points and No. 3 Arizona dominated Stanford in an 85-57 blowout Thursday night.

Bennedict Mathurin and Pelle Larsson each scored 13 for the Wildcats (15-1, 5-0 Pac-12), off to their best start since a 21-0 run to begin the 2013-14 season. They overwhelmed a Cardinal team that beat then-No. 5 USC nine days earlier.

Arizona shot 55.4% and limited Stanford to 30% shooting, the 11th time in 16 games that the Wildcats held their opponent below 40%.

Spencer Jones and Maxime Raynaud each scored nine points to lead Stanford (10-6, 3-3), which lost for the first time in eight games this season at Maples Pavilion. Arizona has won 11 in a row on Stanford’s home floor.

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Arizona center Oumar Ballo (11) is fouled by Stanford forward Brandon Angel, top, during the second half of an NCAA college basketball game in Stanford, Calif., Thursday, Jan. 20, 2022. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu)

The Cardinal couldn’t find their rhythm offensively and didn’t have an answer for Arizona’s size inside. Stanford was outscored 48-20 in the paint and never got closer than 11 points in the second half.

Ballo, a 7-foot redshirt sophomore from Mali, scored his 21 points in just 22 minutes off the bench.

"I’m really proud of him. He was great tonight," Arizona coach Tommy Lloyd said. "He was a physical force on both ends of the floor. I thought he was the game-changer tonight."

Mathurin, who entered the night second in the Pac-12 at 18 points per game, scored 13 in the first half as the Wildcats led 42-31 at the break.

Stanford appeared rattled by Arizona’s aggressive half-court defense early on.

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