TUCSON, Ariz. – Northern Arizona's tough non-conference schedule continued tonight, as it fell to No. 12/13 Arizona at the McKale Center. The Wildcats, who have the longest home win streak in the nation at 45 games, used a second half surge to prevail over the Lumberjacks.

"I thought our guys competed hard," said head coach Jack Murphy. "We had a chance late in the first half to bring it to single digits. We also had too many guys in foul trouble in the half. In the second they came out and their upperclassmen played really well to lead them. It's a really tough outcome when you look at the scoreboard, but I am happy that we never gave up."

Junior guard Kris Yanku led the Lumberjacks with 12 points and three assists in 32 minutes of play; the most minutes by any player that got in the game.

The Top 25 program shot over 50 percent from the floor in the game, but it was ultimately the Lumberjacks' poor shooting performance from the floor that also contributed to the loss tonight. Shooting 21.8 percent from the floor troubled NAU's game plan and when that's mixed with 14 turnovers it's hard to dig yourself out of a hole.

Arizona (10-1) found out early that getting to the free throw line was going to be an asset for them tonight versus the Lumberjacks. The Wildcats made two trips in the first-five minutes, attempting a total of 14 free throws in the first half. UA's trips to the charity stripe were mostly due in part to the fouls that were assessed to NAU early and heavy. By the time halftime came around, NAU had two players with two fouls each and another pair of players with three apiece making it hard for the Lumberjack big men to get into a rhythm.  

NAU (2-7) held the Wildcats to under 30 percent shooting for a majority of the first half and its defense kept the game very close for the initial 14 minutes of play. The Lumberjack defense was quite impressive to start the game as the Wildcats made just two of their first-nine shots to shoot 22 percent from the floor. With time winding down, UA used the paint to its advantage and a made three-pointer with less than one minute to go resulting in a 40-24 halftime lead for the home team.

The Wildcats started the second half on an 11-0 run before Yanku snapped the Wildcats' run with a floater in the paint. The second half was not friendly to the Lumberjacks as the ball dropped in the hoop just five times from the floor.

UA shot 57.6 percent from the floor and had four players finish in double figures. Ryan Andersen posted a double-double of 18 points and 12 rebounds to lead the Wildcats to victory.

The Lumberjacks will play on the road at Little Rock this Sunday, followed by a game at Tulsa on Tuesday to close out their non-conference slate. NAU begins Big Sky play on Dec. 31 when it hosts Montana at the Walkup Skydome.

Notes: NAU and Arizona met tonight at the McKale Center for the first time since 2013…The Wildcats' win keeps their record in tack with the longest active home win streak in the NCAA at 45 games…NAU head coach Jack Murphy was a member of the Wildcat staff from 1998 to 2006…The Lumberjacks shot 25 percent from the floor in the first half, while the Wildcats shot 43.8 percent…The last time NAU failed to score 40 points was in a 40-36 loss to North Carolina Central in 2014.