STORRS, Conn. – In the last 30 years, only three teams have started a season with at least three of their first five wins against top-15 opponents, with all of those wins coming from outside.
• 2001-02 Arizona
• Gonzaga 2020-2021
And?
These wildcats from Arizona.
Tommy Lloyd’s fourth-ranked team joined the rare list Wednesday night after maneuvering past third-ranked UConn 71-67. The Wildcats won the first game between two top-five teams at Gampel Pavilion since No. 3 Connecticut defeated No. 2 Villanova 89-75 on Feb. 26, 2006. The win was also Arizona’s first vs. in a top-five game since the 2001 Final Four against Michigan State.
No coach should ever apologize for any kind of road take against a power conference program, but it’s worth noting right away that the Wildcats were given the advantage of catching the Huskies shorthanded. In addition to having to wait a while for the collegiate debut of former five-star prospect Braylon Mullins, Dan Hurley’s team had to make do without one of the nation’s better big men, senior Tarris Reed Jr., who sat because of an ankle injury he suffered in the Huskies’ win over BYU on Saturday in Boston.
Reed, whose 20.0 points per game leads the team, is the only player to average at least 20.0 points, 8.0 rebounds and 2.0 blocks through the first two and a half weeks of the season. His scratch caught Arizona by surprise. Wildcats senior guard Jaden Bradley told me he didn’t realize they wouldn’t have to face Reed until he saw the big man not warm up before the game.
“It’s not something you should take lightly,” Bradley told his teammates. “It’s still a very good team.”
What followed was an Arizona rebounding romp, the likes of which is almost never possible against UConn.
“We know this is a game changer,” Lloyd said of Reed’s sit-out. “But if you get a good hop, run it and turn two.”
The Wildcats overpowered the Huskies, recording 43 boards to Connecticut’s 23. That prowess around the rim was crucial in earning the upset, because as good as Arizona is in so many facets, it’s not a reliable group from the perimeter. Somehow, for the second time this season, Arizona defeated a No. 3 team while hitting fewer than five three-pointers; the Wildcats also did it on opening night against Florida.
“Zona’s physicality was the factor in achieving this win and raising the team’s profile to the top of college basketball. The Wildcats held Connecticut senior forward Alex Karaban to eight points, 10.3 below his average on the night. After junior sniper Solo Ball hit some inspiring shots early, Lloyd’s crew largely muted the shooting guard’s impact in the second half.
“We got into trouble,” Hurley said. “It’s going to be a bad film session. There’s a street fight going on in the paint and you know, guys can’t watch fights. You can’t be on the outside when your friends are fighting. You’re going to be in the fight. You’re not on the edge of the fight.”
Nevertheless, the Gampel Pavilion crowd was there all evening, creating a deafening noise as UConn overcame a 13-point deficit to go up 62-60 after three minutes on a broken play by Jaylin Stewart.
“I told my guys before the game that it’s our first road test,” Bradley told CBS Sports. “California, it’s probably a divided crowd. Florida, we probably have more fans there in Vegas. This is our first away crowd. They hit one shot, it felt like they shot five.”
Bradley’s advance to make it 67-64 (after patiently working his way to the low block) with 16.3 seconds left was the latest in a growing highlight reel of clutch, heady play for one of the best guards in college basketball.
“When you have a point guard who is unselfish and also a baller, and has the cojones to make that and take it at the end of a game, that’s pretty special,” Lloyd said.
They were selling Miller Lites for $2 all night, and the lines flowed into the hall. By the end of the evening, there was talk of top-five billing.
“I’d like to see what this place is on $1 beer night,” Lloyd said afterward.
He was all smiles, and he should be. Because what Arizona has done is the most impressive thing that has happened in college during the first seventeen days of the season. It started with a striking 93-87 victory over No. 3 Florida in the opener in Las Vegas. Then, last Friday, a 69-65 come-from-behind twister over classic rival, No. 15 UCLA.
But to travel across the country and step into UConn’s home dome and control most of the game to earn a third top-15 win?
This is the No. 1 team in college basketball. Whether it concerns the best is up for debate, as college hoops has been blessed with a litany of really good teams for this 2025-2026 campaign.
However, there is no debate about the best resume. Arizona clears everything away with ease for now.
Of his many great qualities as a coach, one of Tommy Lloyd’s best is that he creates his schedules in a way that benefits Arizona while taking college basketball to the next level.
The fact that he longs for the big game has something to do with why he’s so good at winning it.
Arizona has 16 wins in away-from-home games against ranked teams since Lloyd came to Tucson in 2021. A real wow: Arizona’s win over UConn was Lloyd’s 25th against a ranked opponent, giving him the second-most wins over ranked teams in the first five seasons of a coaching career in the last 30 years. Only Tom Izzo’s 31 from the start of his tenure in 1995 has more.
Lloyd has scheduled home-and-home appointments with Duke, UConn and Auburn. Give it some time – there will be more to come in the coming years – in addition to the variety of creative battles in neutral locations that Arizona will reliably be a part of as long as Lloyd runs the show.
Even without a Final Four on his resume (yet), Lloyd has built a reputation as one of the best coaches in college basketball because he chases these types of games. He is now 7-4 in matchups where both teams are ranked in the top five. By winning two games against top-three teams with just five results in, this Arizona team tied a school record for most in a single season…and we still have just over four months to go.
“When you get opportunities like that, give yourself a chance and take advantage of it,” Lloyd told CBS Sports. “Maybe that’s the magic. That we understand the moment, but we really want to try to approach it like any other game. We’re not afraid of these things, and honestly, we’re not afraid of losing these things. You know what I mean? Because we understand that this is an essential part of this deal.”
What makes it even more impressive: Arizona starts three freshmen (Koa Peat, Brayden Burries, Ivan Kharchenkov), who are nowhere near playing at the peak of their powers. Bradley is the rock and the seven-foot leviathan Motiejus Krivas is a liability, but the roster mix here is impressive. The team averages over 25 bench points per game, making the Wildcats one of the deeper teams in the country.
But it all starts with Bradley. Arizona is the No. 1 team in college basketball — or at least it should be when the polls are refreshed next Monday — because it has an unflappable senior who, astonishingly, wasn’t even on the Big 12’s 10-man first-team roster. It was a glaring mistake, to say the least.
“I don’t think JB gets enough credit for his work and how much he’s improved,” Lloyd told CBS Sports. “And that’s not to say he wasn’t always really good, but he’s really worked on his game and sharpened his game, fixed some weaknesses and accentuated some strengths. He just has a quiet confidence and belief in himself that rubs off on his teammates. Just really special.”
This team could also be a special team, although Lloyd didn’t even flirt with letting the win inflate the team’s ego, or his own.
“Florida could have gone a different way. The UCLA game could have gone a different way, so let’s not think we’ve solved all the world’s problems,” Lloyd said. “This win here doesn’t mean we’re going to be a great team in January or February.”
But it’s a great one indication that will be Arizona. And it’s important to have Bradley as a leader. Last season, Arizona got off to a 4-5 start against tough competition before finding its groove in January. Last season’s team was given a 4 seed and lost in the Sweet 16 to the monstrous Duke team led by Cooper Flagg. This group from Arizona is better. Three wins versus likely good NCAA Tournament seeds outside your home state is as strong a predictive indicator as there is.
“It’s a long season. We told our guys to keep building,” Bradley said. “Last year I was part of the team, we didn’t have a great start to the year. That sticks in the back of my mind.”
The season is a long race and we’re not even on quarter pole yet, but for now everyone is chasing the Wildcats. No one looked stronger, and the tantalizing thing is that this team can still get a lot better between now and March.
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