Defense! Defense!

Arizona coach Sean Miller wants his Wildcats to play defense above all else. Well, Miller should be a happy camper as the Wildcats put on the pressure, induced 17 turnovers, and beat Arizona State in Tempe today, 71-54.

The 7th-ranked Wildcats did a little scoring as well. Mark Lyons pumped in 24 points on 8 for 15 from the field, canned all six free throw attempts and kept pace, if not outplaying,  the Sun Devils' main man Jahii Carson. The Sun Devil guard is an outspoken son of a gun and has said he's the best guard in the Pac-12. Well, he's a good one, but so is Lyons.

Lyons was all over the court once again as he led the Wildcats to their 16th win of the season and fourth win in the conference. Arizona also needed a big game from guard Nick Johnson. And they got it, as well. Johnson scored 19 points, while forward Solomon Hill was a factor as well, scoring 13 points and led the team in assists with five. Center Kaleb Tarczewski came down with eight rebounds and scored five points.

But it was the big "D" that made the difference. Arizona holds the Sun Devils to just 39 percent (18 for 46). The Wildcats came up with eight steals and committed just nine turnovers.

Way to go, Wildcats!