Does ESPN's Bracketology have Arizona Wildcats in the NCAA Tournament?
There's still plenty of basketball left to play, but as the calendar flips to 2025 the Arizona Wildcats (7-5) are not an NCAA Tournament team.
At least according to one expert.
Tommy Lloyd's team played a brutal nonconference schedule, with games against No. 4 Duke, unbeaten No. 12 Oklahoma and No. 15 UCLA, among others. Unfortunately the Wildcats did not win any of their big nonconference games. They lost to Oklahoma by five, to West Virginia in overtime and to UCLA by three.
The good news for Arizona is the Big 12 affords multiple opportunities to pick up Quad 1 and 2 victories, which would boost the Wildcats' position in the all-important NCAA NET Rankings.
Arizona tipped off its first season in the Big 12 with an encouraging 90-81 win over TCU on Monday. And they can get right back into the NCAA tourney conversation with a road win over No. 16 Cincinnati on Saturday.
Arizona Has Strong NET Ranking
The Wildcats are currently ranked No. 23 in the NET Rankings, which historically translates to an at-large bid in the NCAA Tournament. The NCAA Tournament Selection committee uses the NET Rankings as a key component of their 68-team bracket selection and seeding process.
But ESPN's Joe Lunardi has Arizona as one of his "next four teams out" in his latest Bracketology update. The Wildcats are lumped in with fellow bubble teams Missouri, Iowa, Saint Mary's, Northwestern, BYU, Creighton and Louisville.
Arizona's next two games will go a long way in determining their NCAA Tournament trajectory: at Cincinnati and at West Virginia.
A sweep would likely put Arizona in the Top 20 of the NET Rankings and generate much-needed momentum for a talented, veteran-laden team with high expectations.
Caleb Love Comes Alive
The most encouraging sign for Lloyd and the Wildcats in the win over TCU?
Caleb Love's big game.
The fifth-year shooting guard had his best game in nearly a year, scoring 33 points, dishing out 7 assists and pulling down 7 rebounds. He was 11-of-17 from the field, 5-of-11 from the 3-point line and 6-of-6 from the free throw line.
If Love stays hot, watch out for the Wildcats.
🏀 33 Points
— NCAA March Madness (@MarchMadnessMBB) December 31, 2024
💪 7 Rebounds
🪄 7 Assists
Yeah we got vintage Caleb Love tonight 🔥 @ArizonaMBB pic.twitter.com/PECx10Nr1L
