Score: Morgan State 68 | Arizona 93
Location: McKale Center, Tucson, Ariz.
Records: Morgan State 4-8 | Arizona 12-1, 1-1
The short story:  Azuolas Tubelis had 26 points and nine rebounds and No. 5 Arizona scored 48 in the paint in a 93-68 win over Morgan State on Wednesday night.

OPENING TIP

• Tubelis, a 6-foot-11 junior from Lithuania, shot 9 of 10 and also had nine rebounds and two steals.
• Redshirt junior center Oumar Ballo dropped 21 points on 8-of-8 shooting, including six boards and a block. The 7-footer also dished out five assists.
• Fifth year senior Courtney Ramey added 13 points with a game-high seven assists.
• Senior Malik Miller paced the Bears scoring 14 of his team-high 23 points in the first half and finished with four rebounds and four assists in 35 minutes.
• Senior guard Isaiah Burke also scored double figures with 22 points and connected on 6-of-12 3-pointers. Lewis Djonkam chipped in eight points with three rebounds and three steals.

THE DIFFERENCE

• Arizona used a 17-2 run punctuated by a Courtney Ramey to Oumar Ballo lob to take a 51-34 lead with 17:24 remaining in the second half. 
• Arizona shot 58-percent from the field and 32-percent from behind the arc while the Bears shot 44-percent from the field and connected on 12 of 23 (.522) 3-pointers.
• Morgan shot .750 (6-8) from the free throw line, compared to the Wildcat's .708 percent (17-24).
• Arizona finished the first half on a 7-0 run to take a 41-32 lead into the break.
• Arizona dominated the paint outrebounding the Bears 40-19.
• Morgan scored 17 points off of forcing 14 Arizona turnovers.
• Miller split a pair of free throws to give the Bears a 25-23 lead with 7:21 remaining, but the Wildcats responded by closing the first half on a 7-0 run to take a 41-32 lead into the break.

NOTABLE

• Arizona leads the series 2-0 since 1997.
• Morgan opened the game with Miller dropping in a pair of threes and Burke drained a three to give the Bears a 9-4 lead at the 17:57 mark.
• Miller, who entered the contest as the MEAC's leading rebounder (9.2 rpg), was limited to a season-low four rebounds.

UP NEXT
The Bears will continue its road trip when they return to action in Connecticut for a Friday tilt with the University of Hartford on Friday, December 30th at 6:00 p.m (EST).  The game will be streamed live on hartfordhawks.com. 


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ABOUT MORGAN
Morgan State University, founded in 1867, is a Carnegie-classified high research (R2) institution offering nearly 140 academic programs leading to degrees from the baccalaureate to the doctorate. As Maryland's Preeminent Public Urban Research University, and the only university to have its entire campus designated as a National Treasure by the National Trust for Historic Preservation, Morgan serves a multiethnic and multiracial student body and seeks to ensure that the doors of higher education are opened as wide as possible to as many as possible. For more information about Morgan State University, visit www.morgan.edu.