Ivan Kharchenkov's 20 Points, Seven Boards and Seven Assists Lift No. 12 Arizona Past Northern Arizona 90-59

TUCSON, Ariz. Ivan Kharchenkov scored 20 points with seven rebounds and seven assists, and No. 12 Arizona beat Northern Arizona 90-59 on Tuesday night at McKale Center at ALKEME Arena. The Wildcats improved to 2-1. The Lumberjacks fell to 0-3. The game tipped at 7 p.m. MST (9 p.m. ET) and was streamed on ESPN+.

Kharchenkov went 7 of 10 from the field and 6 of 9 at the free throw line in 30 minutes, with one turnover. Caleb Holt scored 17 points on 8 of 15 shooting and added five rebounds, three assists and three steals. Motiejus Krivas had 16 points and seven rebounds on 7 of 9 shooting, and Derek Dixon scored 12 points on 5 of 9 shooting, including two 3s. JJ Mandaquit came off the bench for nine points and seven assists with no turnovers in 27 minutes, going 3 of 4 from 3-point range. Cameron Holmes added six points on 3 of 4 shooting in 20 minutes.

Chris Komin led Northern Arizona with 17 points and five assists in 36 minutes. Ryan Abelman scored 14 points on 5 of 9 shooting, including 4 of 8 from 3-point range, and grabbed five rebounds. Lucas Toukam had six points and seven rebounds, and Zach Tanner added six points off the bench on two 3s. The Lumberjacks shot 41 percent from the field, 9 of 26 from 3-point range and 8 of 10 at the line.

Northern Arizona scored first. Dylan Anderson made a layup off a Komin assist 22 seconds in for a 2-0 lead, the Lumberjacks' only advantage of the night and their largest. Dixon answered with a 24-foot 3 from Kharchenkov at 18:39, and Arizona led the rest of the way. There was one lead change and no ties after the opening basket.

Kharchenkov followed with a driving layup and a 10-foot floater to make it 7-2. After Toukam finished an alley-oop dunk, Krivas scored on a driving layup and a 3-foot dunk from Kharchenkov as Arizona pushed the margin to 11-4. Holt and Dixon kept the pressure on inside, and back-to-back 3s from Mandaquit and Maksim Brnovic made it 23-9. Abelman and Tanner answered with 3s, but Arizona would not let Northern Arizona get closer than nine after the early 3-2 lead.

Holt scored on a turnaround jumper and a pullup, and Dixon's 23-foot 3 made it 35-17. Kharchenkov's two free throws at 5:22 of the first half gave Arizona its first 20-point lead at 37-17. Krivas scored inside late in the half, and Kharchenkov's layup from Dixon with 32 seconds left sent the Wildcats into the break up 46-22.

Arizona shot 62 percent from the field, going 37 of 60, and finished with 26 assists against only six turnovers. The Wildcats scored 52 points in the paint, 28 on the fast break and 21 off turnovers, and they held an 11-1 edge in steals. Northern Arizona had no fast-break points, 20 points in the paint and only three points off turnovers while committing 15 turnovers. Arizona made 8 of 25 from 3-point range and 8 of 12 free throws.

The second half never tightened. Komin scored eight straight points in one stretch, including a 24-foot 3 that made it 57-40, but the deficit stayed at 19 or more after halftime. Kharchenkov, Krivas and Holmes answered inside, and Mandaquit's 25-foot 3 stretched the lead again. Kharchenkov's driving layup and free throw at 9:06 of the second half made it 73-43, Arizona's first 30-point lead. Brnovic dunked off a Mandaquit assist at 6:24 for the largest lead of the night at 81-47.

Bryce James hit a 24-foot 3 early in the second half as Arizona rebuilt the cushion after Northern Arizona's brief push. Holt, who went 1 of 7 from 3-point range, finally hit one from 24 feet at 4:13, and he added late pullups. Ugnius Jarusevicius scored a layup with 36 seconds left for the 90-59 final. Arizona outscored Northern Arizona 44-37 in the second half after leading by 24 at the break.

Arizona entered 1-1 after an 84-75 loss to No. 22 UCLA at T-Mobile Arena, where Kharchenkov scored 38 points and grabbed 10 rebounds, and a 104-84 home win over Cal Poly in which Krivas scored a career-high 30. Tommy Lloyd's club entered the night 77-7 at home under the current coach, according to Arizona's official preview, and improved that mark to 78-7. As of Nov. 6, Arizona was the only team in the country with two different 30-point scorers this season. Holt, a freshman who was co-MVP of the McDonald's All-American game, had scored 21 points and grabbed eight rebounds against Cal Poly.

Northern Arizona entered 0-2 after a 94-65 loss at New Mexico on Saturday in Albuquerque. Komin scored 21 points with six rebounds and six assists against the Lobos and entered Tuesday averaging 22.5 points, according to NAU's official preview. Shane Burcar's club was playing the third game of a season-opening road swing.

Tuesday was the 130th meeting in the series. Arizona won 84-49 last season and has now won 36 straight since Northern Arizona's last victory in 1968, according to NAU's official preview. The Wildcats lead the all-time series 105-25.

Arizona plays at Auburn on Friday at 7 p.m. MST (9 p.m. ET). Northern Arizona plays at Kentucky on Friday at 5 p.m. ET in Lexington.

For the full numbers, see the ESPN box score (opens in a new tab) and play-by-play (opens in a new tab), plus Arizona's game preview (opens in a new tab) and Northern Arizona's preview of the Tucson trip (opens in a new tab). Official recaps had not been posted at the time this story was published.

Sources: ESPN, Arizona Athletics, Northern Arizona Athletics. More men's college basketball coverage on Undrafted.

Photo: Marison Bilagody / Arizona Athletics (file photo from Nov. 5, 2026, vs. Cal Poly)