Wildcats' nonconference schedule includes Tennessee rematch, trips to Maui, Las Vegas

Nicholls Colonels

Date/time/TV: Nov. 7, 7:30 p.m., Pac-12 Networks

Game location: McKale Center

School location: Thibodaux, Louisiana

Series history: UA leads 1-0

Coach: Austin Claunch (74-46 in four years at Nicholls and overall)

Last season: 21-12 overall, 11-3 (1st) in Southland

Go-to guy: G Latrell Jones (Sr., 11.9 ppg, 3.9 rpg)

Key returnees: G Pierce Spencer (Jr., 9.0 ppg, 5.4 rpg), G Caleb Huffman (Sr., 6.0 ppg), F Mekhi Collins (So., 2.3 ppg, 2.2 rpg), G Jalen White (Jr., 2.6 ppg), F Ryan Maxwell (So., 1.9 ppg, 2.6 rpg), Eduardo De Cadia (Jr., redshirted in 2021-22)

Key newcomers: G Micha Thomas (So., Indiana State transfer, 9.7 ppg, 2.4 rpg), G Lance-Amir Paul (Jr., Division II transfer), F Marek Nelson (Sr., UTRGV transfer, 10.4 ppg, 4..0 rpg), F Josh LeBlanc (Sr., UAB transfer, 4.6 ppg, 5.0 rpg, 1.1 bpg)

Upside: Turning just 33 in November, Claunch has turned the uptempo-minded Colonels into a consistent factor in the Southland Conference. They have won two straight regular-season titles, going 11-3 in league play last season despite returning just three players in 2021-22.

Downside: Four incoming transfers will have a tough task replacing all the talent Nicholls lost this time, including Southland Player of the Year Ty Gordon (20.8 ppg, 3.1 apg, 35.5% 3-point shooting). Two other starters also departed, including second-team and third-team all-conference picks.

He said it: We lost four really good guys but we have a great core coming back. We’ve won back-to-back championships but feel like we haven’t gotten the job all the way done. We want to make the NCAA Tournament and this team is very hungry to do that. — Claunch, to Blue Ribbon Yearbook

Southern Jaguars

Date/time/TV: Nov. 11, 7 p.m., Pac-12 Networks

Game location: McKale Center

School location: Baton Rouge, Louisiana

Series history: Arizona leads 1-0, having faced Southern in 2013-14 and winning 69-43 at McKale Center.

Coach: Sean Woods (49-65 in four seasons at Southern, 176-215 in 13 seasons overall).

Last season: 17-14 overall, 12-6 (3rd) in Southwestern Athletic

Go-to guy: F Tyrone Lyons (Sr., 13.7 ppg, 5.0 rpg)

Key returnees: G Brion Whitley (11.7 ppg, 2.3 rpg), G P.J. Byrd (Sr., 6.7 ppg, 2.1 rpg, 3.2 apg), G DeSean Woods (So., redshirted in 2021-22), G Dre’Shawn Allen (redshirted in 2021-22), Isaiah Rollins (Sr., 4.5 ppg, 1.3 rpg), F Terrell Williams Jr. (Jr., 9.8 ppg, 3.6 rpg), F J’Quan Ewing (So., 3.3 ppg, 2.5 rpg)

Key newcomers: F Jalen Reynolds (Jr., South Georgia Tech transfer, 11.1 ppg, 11.0 rpg), G Bryson Etienne (Sr., Texas Southern transfer, 8.8 ppg, 2.9 rpg), G Kris Gardner (Jr., juco transfer), F JaRonn Wilkens (Jr., juco transfer), F Jariyon Wilkens (Jr., juco transfer), F Festus Ndumanya (Jr., juco transfer), C Thomas Tut (freshman)

Upside: Playing Pac-12 teams as part of a new partnership with the SWAC will elevate Southern’s profile on and off the court, with Arizona scheduled to visit next season in a return game.

Downside: The Jaguars are one of the SWAC’s most consistent teams but lost five of their final six games last season, and were one of Division I’s worst defensive rebounding teams. New additions such as Ndumanya and the Wilkens twins may help address the glass.

He said it: “These guys are so hungry knowing we didn’t finish the way we wanted to. Hopefully, when we get in that situation again coming down the stretch, that patience will take over.” — Sean Woods, to Blue Ribbon Yearbook.

Utah Tech Trailblazers

Date: Nov. 17, 7 p.m., Pac-12 Networks

Game location: McKale Center

School location: St. George, Utah

Series history: UA has never played Utah Tech, which was known as Dixie State until July.

Coach: Jon Judkins (21-31 in two years at Utah Tech and overall)

Last season: 13-18 overall; 6-12 in WAC (7th) S

Go-to guy: F Dancell Leter (Sr., 10.3 ppg, 5.2 rpg)

Other key returnees: G Cameron Gooden (Sr., 11.5 ppg, 3.6 apg), F Frank Staine (Jr., 8.8 ppg, 3.7 rpg), G Isaiah Pope (Jr., 5.6 ppg, 2.8 rpg), F Jacob Nicolds (Sr., 4.4 ppg, 3.5 rpg), Trevon Allfrey (So., 4.2 ppg, 2.3 rpg)

Key newcomers: F Tanner Christensen (Jr., Idaho transfer, 8.5 ppg, 6.4 rpg), G Asjon Anderson (freshman)

Upside: The Trailblazers have a deep roster of returning players, and getting Idaho transfer Tanner Christensen bolsters the frontcourt.

Downside: Picked to finish 12th in the WAC this season, Utah Tech is still entering just its third season of Division I basketball. The Dixie State program was playing at the Division II level from 2006-07 through 2019-20 and was known as a juco powerhouse before that.

He said it: “It’s been a tough thing to do, but our community has been great, and I think the Division I thing has helped a lot. The Division II thing was probably harder going from a top juco program to a D-II that nobody knew who the schools were. It was a tough move there, but Division I is a lot better because they know who we’re playing.” — Judkins, at WAC media day.

Maui Invitational

Cincinnati Bearcats

Date/time/TV: Nov. 21, 9:30 p.m, ESPN2

Game location: Lahaina Civic Center, Lahaina, Hawaii

School location: Cincinnati

Series history: UA is 3-0 against Cincinnati, last facing the Bearcats in 1995-96 at Phoenix, where Miles Simon hit a three-quarter-court buzzer-beater for the win.

Coach: Wes Miller (18-15 in one season at Cincinnati, 203-150 in 11 seasons overall)

Last season: 18-15 overall, 7-11 American Athletic (8th)

Go-to guy: G David DeJulius (Sr., 14.5 ppg, 2.8 rpg, 2.6 apg)

Other key returnees: G Mika Adams-Woods (Jr., 8.6 ppg, 2.6 rpg, 3.1 apg), G Jeremiah Davenport (Jr., 13.4 ppg, 5.5 rpg)

New guys: G Rob Phinisee (Sr., Indiana transfer, 4.5 ppg, 2.1 rpg), F Landers Nolley (Sr., Memphis transfer, 9.8 ppg, 3.9 rpg), F Kalu Ezikpe (Sr., Old Dominion transfer 11.3 ppg, 7.1 rpg), F Daniel Skillings (four-star freshman)

Upside: The Bearcats return leading scorer DeJulius, while three veteran transfers should make them more versatile and deeper in Miller’s second season.

Downside: Cincinnati was one of the worst-shooting teams in Division I last season from both two-point (46.7% and 3-point (31.4%) range, and lost momentum toward the end, losing its last five regular-season games.

He said it: “The makeup of our roster makes more sense. I’m proud of what we put together in a short time but when you look at our roster now, it is so much more dynamic and versatile. I’m excited about that.” – Miller, to Blue Ribbon Yearbook

Other Maui Invitational teams

Ohio State

Location: Columbus, Ohio

Last season: 20-12 overall, 12-8 Big Ten (tie, 4th)

Coach: Chris Holtmann (107-56 in five seasons at OSU, 221-141 in 11 seasons overall)

Go-to guy: F Justice Sueing (Sr., Cal transfer, injured most of past two seasons)

San Diego State Aztecs

Location: San Diego

Last season: 23-9 overall, 13-4 Mountain West (3rd)

Coach: Brian Dutcher (119-40 in five seasons at SDSU and overall)

Go-to guy: G Matt Bradley (Sr., 16.9 ppg, 5.4 rpg)

Arkansas Razorbacks

Location: Fayetteville, Arkansas

Last season: 28-9 overall, 13-5 SEC (4th)

Coach: Eric Musselman (73-38 in three seasons at Arkansas, 183-62 in seven seasons overall)

Go-to guy: G Nick Smith (five-star freshman)

Louisville Cardinals

Location: Louisville, Kentucky

Last season: 13-19 overall, 6-14 ACC (tie, 12th)

Coach: Kenny Payne (first year at Louisville and overall)

Go-to guy: C Sydney Curry (Sr., 7.1 ppg, 4.4 rpg)

Creighton Bluejays

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Location: Omaha, Nebraska

Last season: 23-12 overall, 12-7 Big East (4th)

Coach: Greg McDermott (276-137 in 12 seasons at Creighton, 425-268 in 21 seasons overall)

Go-to guy: G Baylor Scheierman (Sr., South Dakota State transfer, 16.2 ppg, 7.8 rpg)

Texas Tech Red Raiders

Location: Lubbock, Texas

Last season: 27-10 overall, 12-6 Big 12 (3rd)

Coach: Mark Adams (27-10 in one season at Texas Tech, 71-100 in six seasons overall)

Go-to guy: F Fardaws Aimaq (Sr., Utah Valley transfer, 18.9 ppg, 13.6 rpg)

Indiana Hoosiers

Date/time/TV: Dec. 10, 5:30 p.m., Ch. 11

Game location: MGM Grand Garden Arena, Las Vegas

School location: Bloomington, Indiana

Series history: UA and Indiana have never met.

Coach: Mike Woodson (21-14 in one year at Indiana and overall)

Last season: 21-14 overall, 9-11 in Big Ten (9th)

Go-to guy: F Trayce Jackson-Davis (Jr., 18.3 ppg, 8.1 rpg)

Other key returnees: G Xavier Johnson (Sr., 12.8 ppg, 3.8 rpg), G Tamar Bates (So., 3.9 ppg, 1.3 rpg), F Race Thompson (Sr., 11.1 ppg, 7.5 rpg), G Trey Galloway (So., 5.5 ppg, 1.7 rpg), F Jordan Geronimo (So., 4.4 ppg, 3.6 rpg)

Key newcomers: G Jalen Hood-Schifino (five-star freshman), F Malik Reneau (five-star freshman), F Kaleb Banks (four-star freshman), G CJ Gunn (four-star freshman)

Upside: Expectations are always high at Indiana but this time that’s perfectly reasonable, thanks to the return of Jackson-Davis, a national Player of the Year candidate, and arrival of a loaded freshman class.

Downside: Hoosiers relied heavily on their two-point production last season, taking just 31.1% of their shots from beyond the arc — and only hit 33.3% of those 3s. More balance is needed to get the most from Jackson-Davis and the frontcourt.

He said it: “The Big Ten is good, man. You got a lot of great coaches, a lot of great teams. Then our schedule early is very competitive. We got a lot of work to do this season. But you can’t run from it or be scared of competition. This is what college basketball is about. I came here, I signed up for this, so I’m looking to push these guys to the max and see what happens.” — Woodson, at Big Ten media day.

Texas A&M-Corpus Christi Islanders

Date/time/TV: Dec. 13, 6:30 p.m., Pac-12 Networks

Game location: McKale Center

School location: Corpus Christi, Texas

Series history: UA has never played Texas A&M Corpus Christi, which has been in Division I since 2002-03.

Coach: Steve Lutz (23-12, one year at Texas A&M Corpus Christi and overall)

Last season: 23-12 overall, 7-7 Southland (4th)

Go-to guy: F Isaac Mushila (Sr., 13.2 ppg, 9.4 rpg)

Other key returnees: G Trevian Tennyson (Sr., 12.0 ppg, 1.6 rpg), G Terrian Murdix (Sr., 9.8 ppg, 1.6 rpg), F De’Lazurus Keys (Sr., 7.8 ppg, 5.9 rpg), G Simeon Fryer (Sr., 8.5 ppg, 3.5 rpg), G Jalen Jackson (Sr., 6.6 ppg, 2.3 rpg)

Key newcomers: G Ross Williams (Sr., Division II transfer), G Jourdyn Grandberry (freshman)

Upside: All five starters are back from a team that won the Southland Confernece Tournament and appeared in the NCAA Tournament’s First Four, meshing together 10 transfers in Lutz’s first season.

Downside: Picked to finish sixth in the Southland last season, the Islanders will be everyone’s favorite this time in their conference. Expectations don’t get much higher at the low-major level.

He said it: “Everybody knows we went to the NCAA Tournament, so we’re going to get their best shot every night. If we can continue with the same mindset we had last year and keep working to make ourselves better, I think the sky is the limit for us.” — Lutz, to Blue Ribbon Yearbook.

Tennessee Volunteers

Date/time/TV: Dec. 17, 8:30 p.m., ESPN2

Game location: McKale Center

School location: Knoxville, Tennessee

Series history: Arizona is 1-4 against Tennessee after its season-opening 11-game win streak was snapped last season in a 77-73 loss in Knoxville. The Wildcats’ only win in the series came on Nov. 13, 1998, when Jason Terry poured in 26 points to lead UA to a 73-72 win in the B.C.A. Classic in Albuquerque.

Coach: Rick Barnes (150-81 in seven seasons at Tennessee, 754-395 in 35 seasons overall)

Last season: 27-8 overall; 14-4 SEC (tie, 2nd)

Go-to guy: G Santiago Vescovi (Sr., 13.3 ppg, 4.4 rpg)

Other key returnees: G Zakai Zeigler (So., 8.8 ppg, 1.9 rpg, 2.7 apg), F Josiah-Jordan James (Sr., 10.3 ppg, 6.0 rpg), C Olivier Nkamhoua (Sr., 8.6 ppg, 5.6 rpg), F Jonas Aidoo (So., 2.1 ppg, 2.2 rpg), C Uros Plavsic (Sr., 4.2 ppg, 4.0 rpg)

Key newcomers: F Julian Phillips (five-star freshman), G B.J. Edwards (four-star freshman), G Tyreke Key (Sr., Indiana State transfer, did not play last season with shoulder injury)

Upside: The Vols are aggressive, deep and talented on both ends of the court. They were ranked third in defensive efficiency last season, ending 13.5% of opponents’ possessions with a steal, the sixth-highest steal percentage in Division I.

Downside: Loaded with returning and incoming talent, the Vols should have enough to compete for an SEC title and a deep NCAA Tournament run. But they haven’t reached the Sweet 16 since 2018-19, suffering upsets in the first weekend of the last two NCAA Tournaments.

He said it: “We expect to be a good defensive team, but we think that we have more depth than we’ve had in a long time, and versatility. The question I think anybody would have with us right now is what kind of production that we can get from our post players consistently. So that’s what we’ll wait and see.” — Barnes, at SEC Media Day.

Montana State Bobcats

Date/time/TV: Dec. 20, 6:30 p.m., Pac-12 Networks

Game location: McKale Center

School location: Bozeman, Montana

Series history: UA has split its two all-time games against Montana State, both on neutral courts. Montana State won 39-32 in Oklahoma City during the 1939-40 season, while Arizona won 64-59 in 1981-82 at Minneapolis.

Coach: Danny Sprinkle (56-33 in three seasons at Montana State and overall)

Last season: 27-8 overall, 16-4 Big Sky (1st)

Go-to guy: F Jubrile Belo (Sr., 12.8 ppg, 6.7 rpg)

Other key returnees: G Tyler Patterson (So., 7.1 ppg, 1.3 rpg), G RaeQuan Battle (Jr., 8.5 ppg, 2.4 rpg), F Great Osabor (So., 6.0 ppg, 4.2 rpg), G Nick Gazelas (Jr., 5.3 ppg, 0.5 rpg), F Patrick McMahon (So., 2.0 ppg, 0.9 rpg)

Key newcomers: G Darius Brown II (Jr., CSUN transfer, 5.6 ppg, 3.1 rpg), G Robert Ford (Jr., Idaho State transfer, 10.9 ppg, 4.6 rpg), G Caleb Fuller (Sr., UC Davis transfer, 12.1 ppg, 5.5 rpg), G Jed Miller (freshman), F Luca Colceag (freshman)

Upside: Bobcats return 24-year-old British big man Jubrile Belo, the Big Sky’s player and defender of the year last season, from a team that won the Big Sky regular-season and tournament titles while reaching the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 1996. Belo and the 245-pound Great Osabor make a difficult pair to deal with inside.

Downside: Montana State lost three starters off that tournament team, including versatile scorer and defender Amin Adamu, while point guards Ford and Brown are both coming off injury plagued seasons.

He said it: “Our motto this year is ‘no one cares.’ We don’t even talk about last year — in fact, last year put a bigger target on us. We have to be better, cleaner with our execution and tougher than we were last year. That’s all a work in progress. But a lot of these guys weren’t part of our team last year, so they have something to prove too.” — Sprinkle, to MSU’s website

Morgan State Bears

Date/time/TV: Dec. 22, 6 p.m., Pac-12 Networks

Game location: McKale Center

School location: Baltimore

Series history: Arizona has only faced Morgan State once before, when the defending national champion Wildcats trounced the Bears 115-53 on Nov. 20, 1997 at McKale Center.

Coach: Kevin Broadus (42-39 in three seasons at Morgan State, 79-64 in five seasons overall)

Last season: 13-15 overall, 7-6 MEAC (4th)

Go-to guy: G De’Torrion Ware (Sr., 10.6 ppg, 4.8 rpg).

Other key returnees: G Malik Miller (Sr., 12.8 ppg, 8.8 rpg), G Isaiah Burke (Sr., 8.6 ppg, 1.7 rpg), F Ty Horner (3.9 ppg, 1.4 rpg), G Will Thomas (Jr., 2.9 ppg, 1.8 rpg)

Key newcomers: F Khalil Turner (Jr., juco transfer), G Kevon Wiggins (Jr., juco transfer), G Rob Lawson (freshman), F Daiquan Copeland (Jr., juco transfer), F David McCullough (Jr., Bowie State transfer, 13.0 ppg, 4.3 rpg), C Lewis Njonkam (Sr., Radford transfer, 4.9 ppg, 2.1 rpg)

Upside: Ware and Miller could make up the best backcourt in the MEAC, while the Bears should be bigger and more athletic overall.

Downside: The Bears were one of the least efficient offensive teams in the country last season, averaging just 94.4 points per 100 possessions, while hitting only 30.0% from 3-point range. They lost four starters from that team, though maybe starting over will help chemistry.

He said it: “Inconsistent is a really good way to put (last season)… Who we were as people — some of the coaches and some of the players — helped us get to being in the state that we were. We got some new blood in, and I think we’re going on an upward spiral now.” – Broadus, to Blue Ribbon Yearbook.