Less than two weeks before year five of the Tommy Lloyd era tips off in Tucson, the Arizona Wildcats finally have a full view of their upcoming schedule. While most tip times and TV networks are not yet announced, on Tuesday the Big 12 released the 2025-26 conference schedule for Arizona Men’s Basketball and the league’s 15 other programs.
Following a monster non-conference slate that features defending national champion Florida on opening night in Las Vegas, UConn in Storrs, Connecticut, Auburn at home, and UCLA and Alabama at neutral sites in Los Angeles and Birmingham respectively, Arizona faces a gauntlet of a Big 12 schedule in 2026.
Arizona opens conference play on the road at Utah on Saturday, January 3, before hosting Kansas State on Wednesday, January 7. The Wildcats then hit the road for a tilt against TCU on Saturday, January 10, before hosting ASU on Wednesday, January 14 and visiting UCF on Saturday, January 17. Arizona plays back-to-back home games against Cincinnati and West Virginia on Wednesday, January 21 and Saturday, January 24, before a two-game road trip to BYU and ASU on Monday, January 26, and Saturday, January 31. The game at BYU tips at 7:00 PM on ESPN as part of ESPN’s Big Monday.
The month of February is where things ramp up significantly for Tommy Lloyd and Arizona. The Wildcats host Oklahoma State on Saturday, February 7, before a quick turnaround where they’ll face Kansas at Allen Fieldhouse on Monday, February 9 at 7:00 PM on ESPN in their second Big Monday game of the season. Arizona then hosts Texas Tech on Saturday, February 14, and BYU on Wednesday, February 18, before visiting defending Big 12 champion and national runner up Houston on Saturday, February 21, and Baylor on Tuesday, February 24, in Waco.
Arizona rounds out the season hosting Kansas on Saturday, February 28, and Iowa State on Monday, March 2 at 7:00 PM on ESPN for its third Big Monday feature of the season, before the season-finale at Colorado on Saturday, March 7.
The Big 12 Tournament takes place from Tuesday, March 10, through Saturday, March 14, at the T-Mobile Center in Kansas City, Missouri.
The Wildcats return four veteran players, including point guard Jaden Bradley, guard Anthony Dell’Orso, forward Tobe Awaka, and center Motiejus Krivas, who missed most of the 2024-25 season with a foot injury. Arizona also boasts the second-best recruiting class in the nation, featuring five-star freshmen Koa Peat, Brayden Burries, and Dwayne Aristode, as well as Bryce James, the son of future NBA Hall of Famer, LeBron James.