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Las Vegas • Nick Johnson scored 16 points, Rondae Hollis-Jefferson added 12 and Arizona ran away from tired Colorado in a dominating second half to rout the Buffaloes 63-43 in the Pac-12 tournament semifinals Friday.
Unlike its last win over Colorado, Arizona (30-3) started slow, allowing the Buffaloes to keep it close at halftime.
Playing its third game in as many days, Colorado had no chance at stopping the Wildcats once they got rolling, succumbing to Arizona's defensive pressure and string of highlight-reel plays.
Arizona shot 60 percent in the second half and held Colorado (23-11) to 5-of-22 shooting in the final 20 minutes to earn a spot Saturday's championship game against UCLA or Stanford.
T.J. McConnell added 12 points, five assists and four rebounds for the Wildcats in front of a pro-Arizona crowd at MGM Grand Garden Arena that made it feel like McKale Center West.
Askia Booker had 20 points to lead Colorado, which has a two-day wait to see if the NCAA tournament selection committee deems them worthy of the bracket.
Arizona put on a show in its tournament opener, flexing its defensive muscles for everyone to see with an overwhelming quarterfinal victory over Utah.
The Wildcats held the Utes to 13 first-half points, 39 overall, 12 field goals and 25 percent shooting — all tournament records. —
Schedule
Friday
• Arizona 63,Colorado 43
• UCLA vs. Stanford, late
Championship
Saturday
• Arizona vs. UCLA-Stanford winner, 4 p.m., Fox Sports 1