Brayden Burries netted 13 of his game-high 22 points in the first half as No. 1 Arizona led wire-to-wire in an 88-53 Big 12 clobbering of West Virginia on Saturday in Tucson, Ariz.

The freshman guard converted 7 of 12 field-goal attempts, including 4 of 8 from 3-point range, and added a game-high seven assists with four rebounds.

The Wildcats (20-0, 7-0 Big 12) remained one of the nation’s three undefeateds as Koa Peat posted 17 points and seven rebounds. Motiejus Krivas notched 11 points and 12 rebounds for his fifth double-double while Anthony Dell’Orso had 12 points and Tobe Awaka recorded 14 boards.

After winning four of their previous five games, the Mountaineers (13-7, 4-3) trailed by 20 at the half and never gained their footing. Chance Moore led the way with 12 points while Honor Huff and Treysen Eaglestaff had 10 apiece. Amir Jenkins had eight rebounds.

A 17 1/2-point favorite, Arizona played like it from the start as Burries connected on two -pointers and dished an assist to Krivas to build a 10-2 lead at 17:34.

Burries continued his strong play and gave the Wildcats their first double-digit lead, 17-6, at 12:56 by popping two free throws. Dell’Orso, who entered the day in an 0 for 14 slump from the floor over the past three games, drilled a deep shot to make it 20-8.

Moore scored five consecutive points inside of a minute as the Mountaineers trimmed it to 25-16 at 7:26. However, Peat, Arizona’s top scorer, hit a jumper for his first points and an 11-point advantage.

Over the final 4:34 of the first half, the Wildcats outscored the visitors by a 14-7 margin. Dwayne Aristode’s steal and layup at the buzzer gave the Wildcats a 43-23 lead, their largest in a half in which they committed just one turnover.

The second half was much like the first as Burries added five more points early. Jaden Bradley increased it to a 26-point lead on his layup at 16:40.

West Virginia never brought the deficit below 21 as the nation’s top-ranked club cruised to its largest Big 12 victory margin since joining the conference last year.

–Field Level Media