Arizona Wildcats Earns Spot in Early College Basketball Rankings
Under head coach Tommy Llyod, the Arizona Wildcats men’s basketball team has consistently been one of the best in the nation. In three seasons, Lloyd has led them to an impressive record of 88-20.
Arizona has been the regular season champions in the Pac-12 twice, winning the conference tournament two times as well. In all three seasons, they have been in the NCAA Tournament as either a No. 1 or 2 seed.
Heading into the upcoming campaign, more success is expected for the program.
College basketball reporter and insider, Jon Rothstein, has listed them at No. 14 in his preseason edition of the Rothstein 45.
The roster will have to overcome some significant losses, such as starting center Oumar Ballo transferring to Indiana and Pelle Larsson entering the NBA. Keshad Johnson and Ky Boswell also moved on, with Boswell landing at Illinois as a transfer.
Some success of their own was found in the transfer portal, as Arizona landed Trey Townsend from Oakland and Tobe Awaka from Tennessee. Karter Bryant and Emmanuel Stephen should also factor into the mix off the bench.
Arguably the biggest news for the Wildcats this offseason was the return of Caleb Love. He will be taking advantage of his fifth year of eligibility for a second season in Arizona after three with the North Carolina Tar Heels.
Over at ESPN, Jeff Borzello released his way-too-early Top 25 for college basketball. He has Arizona inside the Top 10, holding down the No. 9 spot.
Borzello highlighted the most intriguing early-season games for all of the teams in his rankings. For the Wildcats, their appearance at the Battle 4 Atlantis will provide plenty of stiff competition out of the gate.
“Similarly to the Maui Invitational, we don't know the exact bracket for this tournament yet. But Arizona is one of three top-20 teams participating, along with Gonzaga and Indiana. Louisville and Providence will also be there. This is a chance for Caleb Love, Tommy Lloyd and the Wildcats to make a first-month statement,” he wrote.
Those matchups, regardless of how the bracket ultimately shakes out, will be good measuring stick games for Arizona. They will be challenged early, helping them round into shape for their first season in the Big 12.
A lot of pressure will be on Love, at least in the early going, to carry the scoring load.
Townsend should be a strong No. 2 option, but someone else will have to emerge to help replace all of the offensive production they lost this offseason.
