AUBURN, Ala. (AP) — Freshman guard Caleb Holt had 24 points and nine rebounds in a return to his home state, and No. 12 Arizona took over down the stretch to turn back Auburn’s second-half rally in an 80-69 victory Friday night.

Ivan Kharchenkov added 19 points and eight rebounds, and Motiejus Krivas finished with 16 points and 12 boards for the Wildcats (3-1). Derek Dixon scored 11.

Holt, a highly touted recruit who grew up in Alabama, also made five steals.

Thomas Dowd had 15 points and nine rebounds to pace the Tigers (2-1), who erased a 14-point deficit after halftime and went ahead 61-59 with 7:12 left. But then Kharchenkov keyed a 9-0 spurt with five points and an assist, and the Wildcats never looked back again.

Auburn had won 69 straight home games against non-conference opponents.

Arizona went 18 for 22 (82%) from the free-throw line, while Auburn was 12 for 20 (60%). The Tigers also shot just 35% from the field (23 of 66), including 11 for 31 from 3-point territory (35%).

Dowd went 4 of 5 from beyond the arc, but Auburn was outrebounded 49-37.

Coming out of halftime, Arizona went on a 10-0 run in less than three minutes to turn a 36-32 lead at the break into a 14-point cushion. Holt and Krivas each converted a three-point play during the spurt.

But the Tigers drained four 3s to tie the score at 53 about 6 1/2 minutes later.

Up next

Arizona hosts No. 4 UConn on Wednesday night.

Auburn plays West Virginia on Tuesday night.