After top-ranked Arizona smoked his team Saturday before an electric crowd at McKale Center, Wisconsin coach Greg Gard credited Arizona coach Tommy Lloyd for helping make the game happen.
But those on hand might also want to tip a cap Gardβs way, too. Because the two head coaches had the sort of conversation that just doesnβt happen that often anymore in college basketball between head coaches in different power conferences.
They agreed to a typical, old-fashioned βhome-and-homeβ deal, in which two teams meet on each otherβs campus over two (or sometimes four) years.
βThis all kind of started two years ago at the Final Four and we were talking during an awards show,β Gard said after UA beat Wisconsin 98-73 on Saturday. βI said, `Hey, would you ever want to play a home-and-home? He said, `Yeah, my fans want you guys to come in because they remember some years (of Wisconsin beating UA in the NCAA Tournament).β
βSo credit to him and I guess obviously us too because a lot of coaches and programs wonβt do this. They wonβt stick their neck out and go play these type of games on an away court.β
Lloyd also managed to strike up a similar conversation with Duke coach Jon Scheyer that led to a series that began last month in Durham, North Carolina, with the Blue Devils scheduled to come to McKale Center next season.
But all of Arizonaβs other marquee nonconference games this season are of the increasingly common neutral or βsemi-neutralβ variety, including the Wildcatsβ showdown Saturday against No. 3 Purdue in Indianapolis.
Arizona already played Michigan State at Thousand Palms, California, on Thanksgiving before a crowd that was roughly 60% in favor of the Wildcats, and will face Alabama in Phoenix on Dec. 20 and No. 15 Florida Atlantic on Dec. 23 in Las Vegas.
While UAβs game on Saturday is expected to be heavily pro-Purdue, the Wildcats are likely to enjoy a quasi-homecourt atmosphere at Phoenixβs Footprint Center and Las Vegasβ T-Mobile Arena.
But neither one is likely to be as atsmopheric as McKale Center was on Saturday.
βYou bring an opponent of Wisconsinβs stature in for a nonconference game, and your crowd is going to be excited,β Lloyd said. βObviously, your crowd wishes you can play games like this every day, and maybe going into the Big 12 next year weβll play a lot of them.
βBut scheduling is a little tricky. Youβve got to do the best job you can for your program to get it well-positioned to get an at-large bid for the NCAA Tournament.β
In Arizonaβs case, for example, that meant taking on a Dec. 23 game with FAU late in the scheduling process. The game offered the chance to play a team with its core returning from the Final Four last season and also to do so in front of a national Fox audience.
But that also meant taking away a potential home date with somebody else. As it was, Arizona secured an agreement from Southern to move its game with UA from Louisiana to McKale, allowing the Wildcats to meet their minimum of 18 games at home, counting exhibitions.
While the Florida Atlantic game is a one-off, UA is scheduled to face Alabama in Birmingham, Ala., next season and tentatively face Purdue in Las Vegas. But, combined with the Wildcatsβ participation in the Battle 4 Atlantis next season, the Wildcats again are unlikely to have multiple marquee games at McKale during the nonconference season.
Arizona will, however, travel to Wisconsin and host Duke to finish up those two home-and-homes next season.
UA picks up all but one first-place vote
After clobbering No. 23 Wisconsin, Arizona picked up all but one of 63 first-place votes while staying atop the Associated Press Top 25 poll.
Houston (10-0) earned the only other first-place vote, though the Cougars fell overall from the No. 3 to the No. 4 spot.
Purdue (9-1) leapfrogged Houston, going from 4 to 3 after beating Iowa and Alabama last week entering what will now be a No. 1-vs.-No. 3 showdown on Saturday. The game is set for 2:30 p.m. and will be streamed on Peacock.
The Boilermakers had gained the No. 1 spot on Nov. 27 but lost later that week at Northwestern, opening the door for Arizona to take over. The Wildcats picked up 59 of 63 first-place votes on Dec. 4, with one going to Kansas and the other three to Houston, but gained 62 votes on Monday.
Kansas remained at No. 2 in the poll, and defending champ UConn stayed at No. 5.
Among other UA opponents this season, FAU dropped from No. 11 to No. 15, while Duke rose from No. 22 to No. 21, Wisconsin remained at No. 23 and Colorado picked up the 26th-most points in voting. Utah and Washington also received votes.
In the NCAAβs NET ratings, Arizona is No. 1, while the Wildcats are No. 2 behind Houston in Kenpom.
Da Silva earns Pac-12 honors
Coloradoβs Tristan da Silva was named Pac-12 Player of the Week after posting nearly a triple-double in the Buffaloesβ 90-63 win over then-No. 15 Miami in New York, beating out Arizonaβs Pelle Larsson and six other nominees.
Da Silva had 22 points, 10 rebounds and nine assists with only two turnovers against Miami in the Buffaloesβ only game of the week. Arizona nominated Larsson after he posted 21 points, four rebounds and four assists while going 6 for 6 from the field in the Wildcatsβ win over the Badgers.
Other top candidates included Washington center Franck Kepnang, who averaged 15.0 points and 9.0 rebounds and 4.0 blocks in Washingtonβs wins over Montana State and Gonzaga. Kepnang had five blocks in the Huskiesβ 78-73 win over the Zags on Saturday.
Washington Stateβs Myles Rice was named the Pac-12 Freshman of the Week after averaging 11 points in two Cougar wins. UA had nominated KJ Lewis.