Arizona men’s basketball holds off San Diego State in exhibition

Even when it doesn’t count, San Diego State always proves to be a hard out.

Arizona shook off poor shooting and plenty of defensive breakdowns to beat the Aztecs 82-67 on Friday night in an exhibition game at ALKEME Arena at McKale Center. The contest was eerily similar to the teams’ meeting last December in Phoenix, one that saw the Wildcats struggle offensively for much of the game before pulling away and winning comfortably.

The UA had six players in double figures led by Motiejus Krivas, who finished with 17 points, 15 rebounds, four blocks and two in 29 minutes. Ivan Kharchenkov had 13 points, 12 rebounds, four assists and two steals, while Caleb Holt scored 15, Derek Dixon and JJ Mandaquit went for 12 apiece and Maksim Brnovic added 10.

Brnovic, who was 4 of 6 from the field, had a particularly flashy stretch midway through the first half when he hit a 3, got a steal and then did his best Michael Jordan impression with a one-handed dunk in transition.

But he was the only Wildcat to make more than half his field goal attempts, as the UA shot 34.7 percent overall and 26.5 percent from 3. It made up for that by getting to the line 28 times, making 21, and also had a 49-38 edge in rebounding including plus-12 on the offensive glass.