For the first time in his five seasons at Arizona, Tommy Lloyd was able to open the sort of Christmas presents every coach wants.
No losses before the holiday break. Five wins over ranked teams. Blowout victories over everybody else. A team without discernible chemistry or off-court issues.
Also, the No. 1 ranking in the Associated Press Top 25 poll for three weeks and running.
“It’s nice,” Lloyd said.
But it is only Christmas. Not President’s Day, not St. Patrick’s Day and certainly not Easter. The defining moments of the college basketball season don’t even start for nearly another three months.
That’s the context the UA coach offered after the Wildcats beat Bethune-Cookman 107-71 on Monday to wrap up their best-ever start (12-0) under Lloyd.
“I mean, I'm happy we're here, but we really haven't accomplished anything yet,” Lloyd said. “So let’s roll up our sleeves and be more excited about the challenges coming down the road. I'm excited about those. I'm looking forward to South Dakota State, and I'm really looking forward to playing in the Big 12.”
Still, there’s no doubt the past has set the Wildcats up for a brighter future, whatever that might be.
While the Wildcats could take some hits during their 18-game run through the Big 12, especially on the backloaded end of the schedule, they are as of now in position for a No. 1 seed and an all-California route to the Final Four, with a potential first weekend in San Diego and second weekend in San Jose.
That’s in contrast to how they stacked things against themselves last year: A 4-5 start ultimately kept them from getting better than the East Region's No. 4 seed even though they went 14-6 in the Big 12 and reached its conference tournament championship game. That path led to a Sweet 16 matchup with Duke in New Jersey and, not surprisingly, the end of their season.
Here’s a look back at how the Wildcats reached Christmas this time:
The eye-openers
When and where: Nov. 3 in Las Vegas (Florida), Nov. 14 in Los Angeles (UCLA) and Nov. 18 at UConn.
What happened: Ranked just 13th in the preseason AP Top 25 poll, the Wildcats knocked off defending national champion and third-ranked Florida 93-87 in the season opener. The game also turned out to be a coming-out party for freshman Koa Peat, who had 30 points, seven rebounds and five assists.
Arizona forward Koa Peat (10) and guard Bryce James celebrate after their team's win against Florida, Nov. 3, 2025, in Las Vegas.
After two home wins over Utah Tech and NAU, the Wildcats then edged UCLA 69-65 at Inglewood’s Intuit Dome, when it became clear that moving two returning starters to the bench might work out pretty well. Wing Anthony Dell’Orso had 20 points off the bench, while hitting two game-sealing free throws with 17 seconds left, while Tobe Awaka played extended and efficient minutes alongside Motiejus Krivas in the post when Peat ran into foul trouble.
After a brief stop at home, the Wildcats flew out to Connecticut on Nov. 17, toured the Basketball Hall of Fame in Massachusetts, then showed up in front of a rowdy crowd of 10,244 on cheap beer night in Storrs, Conn. Arizona took advantage of injuries to two UConn starters by outrebounding the Huskies 43-23 while Bradley drove in for a layup that gave UA a 67-64 lead with 16 seconds left, much like his late heroics in the Wildcats' win over UCLA. UA won 71-67.
What it meant: Beating UCLA and UConn proved the Wildcats’ win over Florida wasn’t a one-off, and Arizona moved to No. 2 behind only Purdue in the AP poll. The Wildcats were the talk of college basketball, at least until Michigan drummed three high-major teams in the Players Era Festival the next week.
He said it: "We're not going to say it doesn't change things. We know it changes things. But if you get a good hop, field it and turn two. And our guys found a way to do that. So I'm really proud of our team." — Lloyd, after the UConn game
Rising to the top
When and where: Dec. 6 at McKale Center (Auburn), Dec. 13 at Birmingham (Alabama), Dec. 20 at Phoenix (San Diego State)
What happened: The Wildcats took on two of the best teams in what was by far college basketball’s best conference last season and beat them convincingly. They had five players score in double figures during a 97-68 win over Auburn, while wing Ivan Kharchenkov also helped limit leading Auburn scorer Keyshawn Hall to 13 points on 3-for-11 shooting despite having spent most of the previous week rehabbing an ankle sprain.
Arizona’s Dwayne Aristode (2), Brayden Burries (5), Ivan Kharchenkov (8) and Koa Peat (10) celebrate after taking down Auburn 97-68 at McKale Center, Dec. 6, 2025.
A week later, Arizona played before a predominantly pro-Alabama crowd in downtown Birmingham, but only “U of A” chants were audible by the end: Arizona beat Alabama 96-75 in part by out-rebounding the Crimson Tide 52-32, while freshman guard Brayden Burries scored 20 of his 28 points in the second half.
A week after that, Arizona tossed aside the biggest remaining threat in its nonconference schedule. The Wildcats struggled against San Diego State for the first half, taking a 28-27 lead only after SDSU coach Brian Dutcher was called for a technical foul and Dell’Orso hit a late 3-pointer. But they won 68-45 in large part because they dominated the glass again, outrebounding the Aztecs 52-28 with Awaka collecting 15 rebounds in just 22 minutes off the bench and Krivas adding another 13.
What it meant: The Wildcats took over the No. 1 spot after the Auburn game, since Purdue lost to Iowa State, while demonstrating an increasingly balanced offensive attack.
While Peat and Kharchenkov both stood out against Florida and Auburn, the Alabama game was a breakthrough game of sorts for Burries, who struggled in the Florida, UCLA and UConn games.
Arizona also proved it can win in many different ways, beating SDSU despite shooting a season-low 37.9% from the field because it held the Aztecs to just 26.3% shooting and outrebounded them by 24.
He said it: “I think there's a pretty wide margin between Michigan and Arizona, and the rest of college basketball. I think those are the two biggest teams in college basketball. I mean, they've got freshmen that look like juniors and football players out there. They've got grown-ass men out there.” — Auburn coach Steven Pearl, whose Tigers also lost 102-72 to Michigan on Nov. 25 in the Players Era Festival
No letdowns allowed
When and where: Nov. 7 (Utah Tech), Nov. 11 (NAU), Nov. 24 (Denver), Nov. 29 (Norfolk State), Dec. 16 (Abilene Christian), Dec. 22 (Bethune-Cookman), all at McKale
What happened: Instead of playing a major multi-team event, the Wildcats created their own, inviting Denver and Norfolk State to town over Thanksgiving week and folding them into their six home games against mid- or low-major opponents.
None of them were a problem for the Wildcats. They dominated even in potential letdown situations after big wins, only struggling slightly against Bethune-Cookman two days after beating San Diego State, while often emptying their bench and spreading the ball everywhere.
The Wildcats had three players score 18 points against Utah Tech — Burries, Peat and Dell’Orso — while five players scored in double figures against NAU, Denver and Norfolk State. Six players scored in double figures against Abilene Christian — with Bradley making all 10 of his at the free-throw line — while seven did so against Bethune-Cookman.
What it meant: While Lloyd has stuck firmly to an eight-player rotation all season so far, avoiding the uncertainty in his rotation that helped lead to UA’s 4-5 start last season, the easy home games allowed Lloyd to give extended auditions to forward Sidi Gueye and guard Evan Nelson. Gueye, a freshman from Senegal, and Nelson, a graduate transfer from Harvard who grew up in Tucson, are two players outside of the rotation who might become more necessary ahead if injuries or foul trouble limit the Wildcats significantly.
Arizona forward Sidi Gueye (15) looks to shoot the ball over an Abilene Christian defender at McKale Center, Dec. 16, 2025.
He said it: “Sidi has gotten off to a slower start here for a variety of reasons, but Sidi is really talented, he's a great kid, and he can catch up fast, so I want to get him in catch-up mode right now — physically, with his strength, his conditioning, his IQ and understanding of what we're trying to do.” — Lloyd, after the Abilene Christian game
A brief rest (maybe)
When and where: Dec. 23-26, at locations mostly not named McKale Center.
What’s happening: The Wildcats are taking only three full days off for Christmas, then returning late Friday to begin preparations for their final nonconference game against South Dakota State on Dec. 29 before beginning Big 12 play on Jan. 3 at Utah.
What it means: Even though Lloyd said he “100%” told his guys to relax and enjoy family over the short break, he might not be able to completely pry the basketballs out of their hands. Even Kharchenkov, whose parents are visiting from Germany, said with a grin that he might show them around the area but that it depended on whether “I want to be around McKale Center or not.”
Arizona Wildcats forward Ivan Kharchenkov (8) dives on the floor to save the ball from going out of bounds in the second half during a game at McKale Center on Dec. 22, 2025. Arizona won 107-71.
He said it: “Our guys are hoopers. So I told them, if they want to get in the gym and shoot by themselves — key word is ‘by themselves' — I'm OK with it. But they don't need to be going to playing with their high school team. They don't need to be playing one-on-one with their brother. We don't need any mishaps that way. We have a good thing going. Let's stay healthy and keep it going.” — Lloyd, after UA's win over Bethune-Cookman
