No. 13 Arizona upset by last-place Cal on Senior Day

Photo by Jacob Snow/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images

The Wildcats trailed by as many as 14

Adia Barnes wasn’t worried about her team having a letdown following Friday’s historic win over No. 4 Stanford.

“We’re a little bit more mature than that right now,” she said.

Not quite.

Bogged down by a sluggish first half, No. 13 Arizona was upset by Cal 55-54 on Sunday to close out the regular season.

The Wildcats (23-6, 12-6) missed 14 of their first 15 shots and committed 11 turnovers in the first half, falling behind by 14 in the second quarter.

Arizona finally found their footing late in the period, using a 12-2 run, capped by a Dominique McBryde 3 at the buzzer, to pull within 30-26 at the break. They then made their first six shots of the third quarter to take a five-point lead early in the third.

But the last-place Bears (11-18, 2-16) hung around, and the teams traded the lead six times in the fourth quarter alone.

Aari McDonald drew a foul in the lane and made two free throws to give Arizona a one-point lead with 25 seconds left.

Cal’s CJ West missed two free throws on the other end, but Jaelyn Brown battled for the board and laid in the go-ahead basket with 14.3 seconds left.

McDonald hoisted a 3 from the wing on Arizona’s ensuing possession but it bounced off the back rim, spoiling the postgame ceremonies that commemorated her and the team’s three other seniors.

“My heart is broken because we didn’t find a way to step up for the seniors,” Barnes told the crowd afterward.

Arizona held Cal to 30 percent shooting but was outrebounded 42-34 and committed 15 turnovers, including 11 in a costly first half.

McDonald led the Wildcats with 17 points and Cate Reese finished with 14 points and 10 rebounds, a huge response from Friday when she was held scoreless for the first time in her career.

McBryde had 12 in her final regular-season home game, but watched the final moments from the bench after fouling out with 16 seconds left.

Arizona returns to action Friday in Las Vegas in the Pac-12 Tournament quarterfinals. The Wildcats clinched a first-round bye with a top-four finish in the conference.

Sunday’s loss could make the Wildcats a not-so-sure thing to host the first two rounds of the NCAA Tournament if they go winless in Las Vegas.

This story will be updated.

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