Associated Press

UT freshman point guard T.J. Ford drives to the basket against UA junior point guard Jason Gardner during Saturday's game in Austin. The Wildcats won 88-74, led by Gardner's 28 points and six assists.

Wildcats' magic season continues with win against Longhorns

AUSTIN, Texas - Three games into the season, the Arizona Wildcats are proving they're definitely a Top 25 team.

Unranked in the preseason for the first time since the 1995-96 season, the Wildcats won their third straight over a ranked opponent with an 88-74 victory over No. 23 Texas on Saturday night.

After losing four starters off last season's Final Four team, the Wildcats had already made a splash with neutral court wins over No. 2 Maryland and No. 6 Florida.

This one was even better, Wildcats coach Lute Olson said, because it came on an opponent's home floor.

"We want to find out what it is to play on the road with a crowd like this," Olson said. "I don't want them to find that out when we get to Oregon and it's in the league (Pac-10)."

Gardner, who considered turning pro after last season, provided the leadership against Texas as the Wildcats rallied from a 12-point second-half deficit.

Gardner was 10-of-10 from the foul line and scored 14 points over the final 11 minutes. He also had a team-high six assists.

Texas (0-1) got 15 points each from Brandon Mouton, Royal Ivey and Sydmill Harris. Point guard T.J. Ford had a school freshman record of 14 assists.

Texas led 43-37 at halftime, thanks in large part to Ford's ability to penetrate and pass against Arizona's zone defense. With Ford dishing the ball back out the perimeter, Texas hit eight 3-pointers in the first half.

Arizona trailed 51-39 early in the second half before Luke Walton started a 14-0 Wildcats run with a pair of free throws. Salim Stoudamire tied it at 51 with a three-pointer, Rick Anderson's short jumper put Arizona up by two, and the Wildcats never trailed again.

Stoudamire finished with 19 points, and Anderson scored 14 and grabbed nine rebounds for Arizona. The Wildcats also converted 26 of 31 free throws as a team.

"The thing that impressed me about Arizona was that Walton, Anderson and Gardner all have played in the Final Four and they played like they've been in the Final Four," Texas coach Rick Barnes said. "When they were behind, those were the guys they went to."

Texas' offense slowed dramatically when Ford twisted his ankle midway through the second half and had to leave the floor for several minutes.

Without Ford running the plays, Texas hit just two 3-pointers in the second half and shot just 28 percent from the floor over the final 20 minutes.

"He's a leader out there for them," Gardner said. "Anytime the point guard goes out of the game, it's hard."

The Longhorns also couldn't match Arizona's foul shooting. Texas was just 10-of-21 on free-throw attempts.

The game drew a Texas home-opening record crowd of 15,291 to the reconfigured Frank Erwin Center. New seating was designed to get Texas fans and students closer to the floor action and create a more intimidating environment.

The Longhorns enjoyed no such advantage however, as Arizona led for the final 14 minutes.