Arizona coach Tommy Lloyd insists he’s the wrong guy to talk about his team's program-record start to the season, and it’s hard to blame him.
Looking backward at all the good stuff, at all the accomplishments and praise, is a good way to lose focus and lose your edge when so much is still ahead.
Lloyd’s Arizona men’s basketball team not only will enter the second half of its seriously backloaded Big 12 schedule Saturday against Oklahoma State, but also in the postseason, the Wildcats will have to deal with the Final Four expectations their blazing start has created.
Arizona forward Koa Peat gives a big yell after finishing off his first of two big dunks against Arizona State in the second half of their Big 12 game, Jan. 31, 2026, in Tempe.
That’s likely why, when he was asked about Arizona setting a new program record by pushing its start to 22-0 last Saturday at ASU, Lloyd wasn’t going there.
“You guys can talk about that,” Lloyd said.
OK, we will.
In fact, here’s a look at where the Wildcats have been on top or approaching records during their historical start to the 2025-26 season.
0: Games missed by UA’s eight rotation players due to injury or other issues. While wing Ivan Kharchenkov left the Wildcats’ Nov. 29 game with Norfolk State with what appeared to be a mid-range ankle injury, Arizona didn’t play again for another week, and Kharchenkov returned in time for its Dec. 6 game against Auburn.
UA’s injury-free streak ties the Wildcats with Duke among top-rated teams, while Michigan has lost only one player for one game (guard LJ Cason). Iowa State lost guard Tamin Lipsey for three games with a groin injury, while Houston has all five starters staying healthy but not its entire rotation.
UConn, meanwhile, was without would-be starters Tarris Reed and Braylon Mullins for its Nov. 19 loss to Arizona, while overall, the Huskies have lost Reed for five games, Mullins for seven and guard Solo Ball for another.
3: Straight weeks as a unanimous No. 1 pick in the Associated Press Top 25 poll, a program record (the Wildcats had never been a unanimous No. 1 before this season).
Arizona center Motiejus Krivas (13), top, and guard Jaden Bradley (0) bat away a pass attempt by Arizona State guard Maurice Odum (5) in the first half of their Big 12 game, Jan. 31, 2026, in Tempe.
3.2: Average points per game gained defensively for Arizona when center Motiejus Krivas is on the floor, according to ESPN Analytics, making him its top-rated “stopper."
8: Straight weeks in the No. 1 spot of the AP Top 25 poll, tying the program record set in 2013-14, when the Wildcats started out 21-0. A win over Oklahoma State would all but assure UA of breaking that record on Monday, when the poll will be refreshed.
9: Quad 1 wins for Arizona, most in the country except for Duke — but the Blue Devils also have a Q1 loss to Texas Tech.
16.4: Arizona’s average victory margin in Big 12 games, first in the conference.
22: Straight UA wins to start this season, breaking the previous school-record start of 21-0 set in 2013-14 before a loss at California.
The 22-0 mark also tied the Big 12 record start set by Kansas in 1996-97 — a season that ended when the Wildcats upset the top-ranked Jayhawks in the NCAA Tournament Sweet 16.
23: Arizona wins without a loss if the Wildcats beat Oklahoma State on Saturday, which would break the program's overall consecutive wins streak set between the 1913-14 and 1916-17 seasons, when the Wildcats mostly played high schools and YMCAs from around the state.
23.2: Percent of the time Tobe Awaka rebounds Arizona's missed shots when he’s on the floor, the No. 1 offensive rebounding percentage in Division I. Due at least partly to UA's overall balance, no individual Wildcat ranks first nationally in any other major statistical category.
Arizona forward Tobe Awaka (30) snares a rebound out of the hands of Arizona State guard Noah Meeusen (15) in the second half of their Big 12 game, Jan. 31, 2026, in Tempe.
Despite averaging only 20.8 minutes a game, Awaka also has an outside shot at breaking Deandre Ayton's UA single-season record for rebounds (405). He can break it with another 190 rebounds, which would require an average of 10.6 rebounds over the maximum of 18 games UA can still play. (Awaka is averaging 9.8 rebounds so far this season.)
43.0: Average rebounds per Big 12 game for Arizona, best in the conference.
39.5: Arizona opponents’ average field goal percentage in Big 12 games, the conference’s best defensive field goal percentage.
51.0: Arizona’s average field goal percentage in Big 12 games, first in the conference.
88.3: Average Arizona points scored in Big 12 games, first in the conference.
100: Percentage of games won by Arizona, tying only Miami (Ohio). Miami is 23-0 after winning 73-71 at Buffalo on Tuesday night.
