Updated NCAA Tournament Bracketology predictions: Arizona Wildcats have puzzling seed
Tommy Lloyd's team is in a great position.
After a tough nonconference schedule that resulted in five losses, the Arizona Wildcats can still earn a high seed in the 2025 NCAA Tournament. Why? Because they now play in the Big 12.
Arizona (8-5, 2-0) will have at least 11 opportunities to win a Quad 1 game the rest of the season. The Big 12 currently has seven teams in the top 30 of the NCAA's NET Rankings, and nine in the top 50: No. 4 Houston, No. 5 Iowa State, No. 10 Kansas, No. 16 Arizona, No. 21 Texas Tech, No. 24 Baylor, No. 25 West Virginia, No. 32 Cincinnati and No. 47 BYU.
If the Wildcats were still in the Pac-12, the opportunities would be few and far between. Arizona is the highest-ranked former Pac-12 team at No. 16, two spots ahead of No. 18 UCLA. No. 20 Oregon is the only other former Pac-12 team in the top 60 of the NET Rankings.
Arizona's NCAA Tournament Prediction
In the latest 2025 NCAA Tournament Bracketology predictions from ESPN's Joe Lunard, Arizona is back in the field of 68.
The Wildcats are listed among the "last four in" and are currently projected as a No. 11 seed in the West. Lunardi has them slotted for a FIrst Four matchup against No. 11 Texas to get into the 64-team bracket. The winner of that game would play No. 6 Pittsburgh in the first round in Seattle.
It's a puzzling seed for the Wildcats considering their No. 16 ranking in the NET. That typically correlates to a No. 6 or No. 7 seed in the NCAA Tournament.
The biggest issue for the Wildcats right now is they only have one Quad 1 victory — Saturday's upset of Cincinnati. With at least 11 opportunities remaining, they have a chance to accumulate at least six Quad 1 wins, which would translate to a No. 5 seed or better.
A Quad 1 game is a home matchup against a top 30 team in the NET, or a road game against a top 50 team in the NET.
