greg bryan / arizona daily star

More Photos (2):

Related articles:

Final: Arizona 65, WSU 55Washington 75, Arizona 66At halftime: Arizona State 64, Arizona 59Final: Arizona 84, Washington 69Arizona cruises to 69-50 winFinal: Arizona 76, Washington State 64Wildcats back in right placeFinal: Arizona 76, Oregon State 63Final: Arizona 80, USC 69Foul trouble leaves Cats awash with problems

Other articles by Bruce Pascoe:

UA recruiters look down the road Freshmen mean array of options Now that's a switch Like Fogg, Williams will come in unseen Cats gain one more of USC's recruits NY duo sure they can make it here It's not Rocket science: Chase faces challenge Hill goes No. 8 to Knicks Budinger traded to Houston RocketsHill chosen No. 8 overall by Knicks

Finance and Accounting
Charles E. Gillman Company
Accounting Specialist Sales and Marketing
Everready Glass
Sales Reps Health Care
CENTRAL ARIZONA COLLEGE
DIRECTOR OF HEALTH INFORMATION MANAGEMENT Mechanical
Komatsu Equipment Co
Resident Field Mechanic Construction
West-Press
Printing Health Care
Sierra Tucson
Eating Disorders Program Coordinator Administrative & Professional
Jorgensen Brooks Group
Counselor

PULLMAN, Wash. — Jerryd Bayless was late to the party this time, but the Wildcats had no reason to complain.

With Arizona's scoring machine delivering all 20 of his points in the second half, having been held scoreless in the first half for the only time this season, the Wildcats hung on to beat 17th-ranked Washington State 65-55 Saturday night at Friel Court.

The win bolstered the UA's NCAA tournament chances, putting the Wildcats at 17-10 overall and 7-7 in the Pac-10. Washington State dropped to 21-6 and 9-6, having been swept by the Wildcats this season.

"This was huge for us," Chase Budinger said.

While Bayless had 20 points, Budinger led the Wildcats with 22 points and Jordan Hill had 13 points and nine rebounds. Jamelle Horne added a season-high 11 rebounds.

Taylor Rochestie led WSU with 14 points, while Derrick Low had 12 and Kyle Weaver added 10.

Although the Cougars never trailed by more than nine points in the second half, the Wildcats made a habit of answering every WSU run with a big shot. In particular, Bayless hit a three-pointer when WSU had cut it to 52-47, and Budinger hit one when the Cougars pulled within 55-51.

Bayless began the second half appearing determined to erase the memory of the first. Having been held to no fewer than two points in a half all season, he made a reverse layup just 15 seconds into the second half and averaged a point per minute throughout the half.

"KO really got into me at halftime," Bayless said. "I was shooting bad shots."

Arizona and WSU traded leads early in the second half before the Wildcats jumped out to a 48-37 lead midway through the second half on a dunk from Horne. Bayless also nailed a 17-footer to make it 50-41 with 7:20 left.

WSU cut UA's lead to 52-47 but Bayless hit his three-pointer to put the Wildcats back up by eight, having scored 16 points over the first 16 minutes of the second half, and Arizona hung on from there.

Arizona built an eight-point first- half lead but skidded into halftime leading just 24-23.

"In the beginning I felt good, and I was knocking down shots," Budinger said. "I gained confidence. I started out with a good start and it fired up the whole team."

Interim head coach Kevin O'Neill noted, "Chase really got us going. He really asserted himself big-time. When Chase is assertive like that it is good for the rest of us."

The Wildcats led 21-13 with 7:55 to go but went without a field goal for the next seven minutes while Washington State tied the game at 22.

Arizona took a slight lead into halftime, however, after Jordan Hill hit a shot near the basket and WSU's Kyle Weaver made just 1 of 2 free throws with seven seconds left.

Arizona built its lead by holding the Cougars to just 28 percent field goal shooting in the first half while making 42 percent from the field itself. Budinger led the way in the first half with 12 points on 5-of-8 shooting, scoring all of them within the first nine minutes of the game.

Weaver led WSU with eight points in the half while helping hold Bayless scoreless. Bayless took just three shots but had two assists.

With Jawann McClellan picking up two early fouls, O'Neill went deeper into his bench during the first half.

He played Daniel Dillon first off the bench, but also turned to Zane Johnson and Kirk Walters within the first 12 minutes of the game. Johnson responded by hitting a wide-open three pointer with 7:55 left to give UA a 21-13 lead.