TUCSON, Ariz. -- Two games in and Arizona freshman Lauri Markkanen is already drawing high praise from his coach.Lauris one of the best players in college basketball, Sean Miller said. He is. Hes a monster.The 18-year-old 7-footer from Finland scored 26 points and the 10th-ranked Wildcats held off a furious second-half rally by Cal State Bakersfield for a 78-66 victory on Tuesday night.Jaylin Airington scored 31 for the Roadrunners (1-1) and led a 17-0 run that cut Arizonas lead to four with 9:04 to play. But Markkanen sank a 3-pointer, converted a three-point play and made a short jumper to lead the Wildcats out of trouble.Markkanen is accustomed to such moments.I am used to it, he said. Pretty much my whole life, in big moments, I have the ball in my hands.The already short-handed Wildcats (2-0) were without starting senior guard Kadeem Allen, who sprained a knee in Arizonas 65-63 victory over Michigan State last Friday in Honolulu.Rawle Alkins was 4 for 6 on 3-pointers and scored 15 for the Wildcats and Kobi Simmons added 13. Both also are freshmen.Dedrick Basile added 14 for BakersfieldHaving the opportunity to play a top 10 team is going to give us an opportunity to have some confidence coming out of this game, Roadrunners coach Rod Barnes said.Airington was 10 for 25 from the field, and Miller said its hard to get 25 shots in a college game. It wasnt enough.It was a good individual effort, Airington said, but I wanted to win more than anything.Arizona was up 44-26 at the half and was cruising along when a tip-in by yet another freshman, Keanu Pinder, gave the Wildcats a 53-32 lead with 14:45 to play. Arizona didnt score for the next 6:46.The McKale Center crowd fell into an uncomfortable silence when Damine Durhams basket cut the lead to 53-49 with 9:04 to play.A ruckus under the Arizona basket finally woke the Wildcats up.Chance Comanche went up for a layup and was hit hard by a pair of Bakersfield defenders. Some shoving occurred with Comanche lying on the court and officials called time out to review the incident on video.Taze Moore was called for a flagrant foul one and Comanche ended the long drought by making one of two free throws with 7:59 left. Arizona got the ball out of bounds on the play and Markkanen sank his only 3 of the night to boost the lead to 57-49.Playing small forward on Arizonas big front line, he drove hard down the lane, was fouled and converted a three-point play with 5:51 left and made a short jumper with 5:17 to go, giving the Wildcats a 64-54 lead and they held on from there.Lauris strong, Miller said. Hes not skinny, hes not thin. Hes 18 years old buy physically he can take a pounding and I think that really shows. He doesnt appear to be 7 foot because hes not a rail-thin 7-footer.His pull-ups that he made tonight, watching him go to the free throw line under pressure, hes a special, special player.Hes also a great team player and a good student.I dont think hes got a B at Arizona, Miller said. And practice-wise hes consumed with becoming a great player. Hes one of our teams hardest workers. ... Im so glad we have him.BIG PICTURECal State Bakersfield: The Roadrunners were not cowed by the atmosphere and look like WAC contenders.Arizona: After the opener against a big name school, the young Wildcats fell into a lull with a big lead. That might not have happened if Allen had been available.PLAYER SHORTAGEThe absence of Allen left Arizona with only seven scholarship players with a particular shortage at guard. It got even worse when Jackson-Cartwright got into foul trouble.UP NEXTCal State Bakersfield: returns home to face UC Santa Barbara Saturday night.Arizona: Plays the second of three straight home nonconference game against teams from lesser conferences, facing Sacred Heart on Friday night. Cheap Pacers Jerseys Authentic . Philadelphia is 2-0 against the Senators this season and scored five goals in each victory. The Flyers recorded a 5-0 win in Ottawa on Nov. 12 and then earned a 5-2 home decision on Nov. 19. The Flyers have claimed three straight and four of the last five encounters with the Sens overall and Philly has won two in a row and three of its past four tests in Canadas capital city. Cheap NBA Jerseys .H. -- Matt Kenseth made it 2 for 2 in the Chase, holding off teammate Kyle Busch to win Sunday at New Hampshire Motor Speedway. http://www.cheappacersjerseys.com/ . It might not have mattered. While the Dodgers are preparing for the playoffs, the Padres showed their future has promise behind two rookies. Wholesale Pacers Jerseys . Takahashi, who had a 10-point lead after the short program, received 268.31 points after the free skate to finish 15 points ahead of second-place Nobunari Oda. Aaron Holiday Jersey . -- In a span of seven Washington Redskins offensive plays, Justin Tuck sacked Robert Griffin III four times. PHOENIX -- Pardon the Milwaukee Brewers if they believe Yasmany Tomas next trip will include a ticker-tape parade or a stop in Cooperstown.Tomas continued to make the Brewers his personal cerveceros in Arizonas 2-1, 11-inning victory at Chase Field on Friday, hitting a pair of bases-empty homers that allowed the Diamondbacks to take the game that far.Tomas pulled a changeup for a homer in the second inning and hit a fastball over the fence in right field for his second multiple-homer game against the Brewers in five games this season.He leads the major leagues with six multiple-homer games (Baltimores Mark Trumbo, a former Diamondback, has five) and he is 8-for-21 with two doubles, four homers and 10 RBI in the season series that will continue with the second game of a three-game set in Chase Field on Saturday.Big things were expected when Tomas signed a six-year, $68.5 million contract before the 2015 season, and he appears to be turning the corner at the plate.We believe he is starting to figure it out, Arizona manager Chip Hale said.Tomas, 24, hit .273 with nine homers and 43 RBI in his rookie season, and he was mostly a platoon player the final six weeks of the season.Im working really hard to have good pitch selection, Tomas said through interpreter Ariel Prieto.Arizona will start left-hander Patrick Corbin (4-10) against Matt Garza (2-4) in the first of the D-backs two chances to win their fourth home series of the season. They are 18-38 at home.Corbin and Garza faced each other July 26, but never had a decision when the Brewers pulled out a 7-4 victory with three runs in the eighth inning. Both have haad success in the matchup.dddddddddddd Corbin is 2-2 with a 2.88 ERA in nine appearances against Milwaukee and Garza is 5-2 with a 2.88 ERA in nine appearances against Arizona.The D-backs are 18-38 at home and the Brewers are 18-34 on the road this season, winning two of their 17 series. They have lost 11 and split four.Like Tomas, Milwaukee outfielder Hernan Perez continued to swing the bat well against Arizona. Perez singled and scored and is 6-for-18 with a homer, two RBI and three stolen bases in five games against the Diamondbacks.Milwaukee shortstop Orlando Arcia, considered one of the top prospects in the game when he was promoted from Triple-A Colorado Springs on Tuesday, had his first hit Friday, an RBI single on a high changeup that drove in Perez to tie the game at 1 in the fourth inning.Arcia has started all three games since his addition, and that is likely to continue as the Brewers expose him to the highest level. Arcia committed a fielding error with runners on first and second and one out in the 11th inning Friday, when he took a ball behind second base and attempted to flip back to the bag instead of throwing to first base for the out. Welington Castillo walked one batter later to force in the winning run.Hes certainly going to be our primary shortstop, Brewers manager Craig Counsell said. Were looking forward to seeing him play. Hes ready for the big leagues. There is a learning curve. He will at times feel like he is seeing things that he has never seen before. ' ' '