Las Vegas– Arizona New koa peat Before making his college debut on Monday, he had a chip on his shoulder.
Feeling a little overlooked in Switzerland while playing for the USA under-19 team, the three-time Arizona Gatorade Player of the Year said he wanted to remind people that he was one of the best incoming freshmen despite not playing in the McDonald’s All-American Game or the Nike Hoop Summit.
“I feel like I’ve been forgotten,” Pete said during an earlier interview with Hoops HQ. “I’m just trying to remind people and show them what I am.”
And that’s exactly what they did on Monday, announcing their presence in college basketball with authority during No. 13 Arizona win 93-87 Third place and over the reigning champions Florida at the Hall of Fame Series inside a packed T-Mobile Arena.
“It was a great party for them,” Arizona coach Tommy Lloyd said. “Everyone knows about him, but no one has really studied him or watched him, and he’s a special player.”
The 18-year-old challenged his freshman status in his nationally televised collegiate debut, leading all scorers with 30 points and adding 7 rebounds and 5 assists. He became the second Big 12 freshman to debut with 30 or more points kansas stateMichael Beasley, who scored 32 runs in his debut match in 2007.
jaden bradley It was also impressive, scoring 27 points, including 11 of Arizona’s final 18 points, helping seal the win. He added five assists, making him and Peat the second pair of Arizona teammates in the last 30 seasons to each have at least 25 points and five assists in the same game. They join Chase Budinger and Nick Wise, who did the same against stanford On 7 March 2009.
Pete is part of a family that has produced seven Division I athletes. He is the son of Todd Peat, who was a guard in the NFL for nine seasons, and his brother, Andrus, a three-time Pro Bowl selection who spent most of his time in the NFL. New Orleans Saints and now with pittsburgh steelers,
Koa Pete’s athleticism was on full display late in the second half, with the score tied at 70-all when he delivered back-to-back emphatic dunks, sending the crowd of 16,704 into a frenzy and giving Arizona a 74–70 lead. They gave the Wildcats a 23–17 run at the end of the game to provide the margin.
Pete said spending his summer playing for Lloyd while representing Team USA with the gold medal-winning under-19 World Cup team in Switzerland helped him prepare for his first season at the collegiate level.
Pete, who was the national team’s third-leading scorer and leading rebounder, said, “They ran some of the same sets in the United States, so coming to U of A in the fall, it was very easy for them to adapt.” “I think what really helped me [tonight] There were just rituals. We worked really hard all week to get to this game. And I’m grateful to the coaches and teammates who put me in a position to be good, especially [Bradley]He makes my game so much easier…He’s one of the best point guards in the country, if not the best point guard in the country.”
thomas hoff ahead of Florida with 27 points, xavien lee scored 14 runs, and alex condon And Micah Handlogten Each had 11.
Ivan KharchenkovJoe recovered from an injury at the end of the first half that sent him to the locker room, finishing with 12 points for the Wildcats.
Arizona shot 49.2% from the field (30 of 61), while Florida’s poor shooting in the second half (14 of 38, 36.8%) sealed its fate in becoming the first defending champion to lose its season opener. Syracuse In 2003-04.
The Gators started the game strong and expanded their lead to 12 points after hitting 11 of their first 16 shots. But the Wildcats pressed on defense and held Florida to 5 of 16 shots for the rest of the half, while hitting 11 of 18 shots and a 32–16 lead.
ESPN Research and the Associated Press contributed to this report.
