Teams of the Week: Raising Arizona

The land of the cactus has lacked a Final Four team it can call its own since the Cats won it all in 1997. That is now nearly 30 years ago.

A proud Arizona program known for incredibly passionate students, alums, and locals around Tucson were stuck in Elite Eight hell between 1998 - 2015. Making the long runs to get that illustrious level of March Madness six different times and then seeing the season end. One game away.

How about since 2015? Elite Eight hell morphed into Sweet 16 hell. Four appearances to that Sweet stage, yet now without a return to the Elite Eight - including three of the past four years under Tommy Lloyd.

Coach Lloyd is now in year five at Arizona. Season two as part of the vaunted top-heavy Big 12 Conference - a football-driven move to exit the Pac-12 and join the Big 12 has increased the competition for staying on top.

Competing with Kansas, Houston, Texas Tech, BYU, Iowa State, Cincinnati, etc. types has deepened the Cats program brand awareness across America's heartland.

As important as that may be, Coach Lloyd's true litmus test comes within trying to beat these programs. Houston was on the brink of a National Title last year. BYU had a loud offseason spending spree and is coming off its own Sweet 16 appearance. Texas Tech was moments away from the Final Four. Iowa State continues to find all-conference level talent and depth to back it up. Kansas is Kansas, who picked up arguably America's best freshman in Darryn Peterson.

A man from Chandler, AZ - who now calls Tucson home - Koa Peat, is making that last statement about Peterson a heavy argument.

You likely know by know who Koa Peat is. No bigger individual opening night splash was made in the country than what this 6-8, 235, pro-ready specimen delivered against the reigning national champs, Florida. A 30-point, seven rebound, three steal, five assist performance to go along with multiple highlight reel plays. Highlighted in our week one awards

Since the Florida win, Mr. Peat and the Cats have been a buzzsaw. Earning another marquee win inside the NBA's Clippers arena over UCLA en route to the 4-0 start. The November gauntlet carried forward with a road game at UConn.

Certainly, this is where reality sets in right? Who goes to Storrs and wins inside of Gampel Pavilion? A string of 36 UConn visiting opponents had fallen in there.

The main thing for Arizona was to play through its strengths and Jaden Bradley played tremendously alongside Peat. Bradley's jumper with 16 seconds to go helped seal an improbable road win over the Huskies.

Arizona became the third team since 1995-96 to win three of their first five games to start a season away from home against Top 15 opponents. The other two teams were the 2001-02 Arizona Wildcats and 2021-22 Gonzaga Bulldogs. 

UConn was missing 6-11, 265 lb. Tarris Reed in this one and Arizona capitalized with a 43-23 rebounding edge.

Coach Lloyd loaded his roster with quality international players (Motiejus Krivas, Ivan Kharchenkov, and Dwayne Aristode) who blend nicely with the ultra-athletic American players in Peat, Bradley, Brayden Burries, and Tobe Awaka.

That formula has been the precise recipe to navigate three showdowns, earn America's best early resume, and a 5-0 start to the year.

What it all means?
A true road win at UConn projects to be one of the best road wins that money can buy. It was also the only true road non-conference game on Arizona's schedule. The Cats also have the "Neutral-court" wins over UCLA and Florida. If we had to vote on seeds today, Wildcats own the no-brainer best resume in the country. Before a Big 12 road full of tests, Arizona can continue building on this with a game in Birmingham vs. Alabama next month and a game vs. San Diego State in Phoenix. Cats will also host Auburn in another high=profile matchup. Regardless, the Arizona resume money has been deposited into the quality wins away from home Bank.

DENVER

Tim Bergstraser was chasing a dream to win the Division 2 National Championship just eight months ago. Now, he's turning around the University of Denver program in a hurry.

Relief for Bergstraser is already present at Denver thanks to Carson Johnson, Shaun Wysocki, and Logan Kinsey's commitment to stay with him and make the move to D1. Johnson has been the leader, and it showed in a big way early in the season.

Up in Fort Collins, another new regime is beginning under Ali Farokhmanesh. The Rams of the Mountain West had been bulldozing through its four opponents and was one the few MWC bright spots after the first couple of league-wide disappointing weeks.

Denver was 1-3 following a home loss to UTSA. The Pioneers have looked competitive each time out and there's a clear focus on incremental growth from game to game.

Consider this a growth spurt, Denver used a great end of the first half to build momentum and it positioned the Pioneers for a full-fledged upset. KenPom had this game forecasted as an 18-point CSU win, Denver didn't pay attention.

For the first time since 2013, and just the second time in program history - Denver went to Fort Collins and beat the mighty Rams, 83-81. Zane Nelson, another D2 transfer (via Missouri Western), ignited the Pioneers off the bench and led the squad with 22 points.

What it all means?
Denver was a team I studied closely this offseason, and its easy to buy in to all of the winners, led by Bergstraser, injected into this program. I thought picking them 5th in the really competitive Summit League would be on the bold side. Today, I think it would be a popular opinion. If you have a group this poised, who is to say Denver can't go to Sioux Falls this March and win that tournament? They are clearly a contender at this point, barring any personnel issues. The excitement of moving up to the WCC in a year permeates. No better path to get there, than a pitstop at March Madness on the way to their official July WCC welcome.

BUTLER

Entering the season, the Bulldog program was viewed as a team a step behind its Big East peers in terms of roster spend, overall growth and progress under Thad Matta, and a potential place that may need a shakeup come April.

HOLD THE PHONES!

These Bulldogs on the inside of the program are not listening to national opinions and we love to see that. Bulldogs went into the portal and snagged Michael Ajayi, a two-school WCC (Dominant with Pepperdine, struggled with Gonzaga) transfer who also played JUCO ball.

As we sit here on Monday, Ajayi now has six straight double-doubles. Finley Bizjack is blossoming like your favorite spring flower. Butler is your 2025 Greenbrier Tip-Off Champions.

The 25 points from Bizjack led the Bulldogs throughout an important resume win over Virginia on Sunday. An early 13-3 run got the Bulldogs out in front for a great portion of the game. Ajayi's double-double was vital and he added three blocks.

UVA gained the lead around the 16 minute mark of the second half, and that was the final time they had a lead. Butler was determined and together.

What it all means?
Butler's now demonstrated that they can win a key game away from home. This impressive win over a stacked UVA squad showcases that Butler has a high ceiling, and may be able to provide the Big East with some quality depth that the league desperately needs. The Bulldogs also knocked off South Carolina in this event, so there is a chance that they earned both a Q1 and Q2 win on back-to-back days, which certainly covers their tracks for an early 2-point loss at SMU. Butler is in the too early at-large bid talk, let's enjoy it!

SEATTLE U.

The WCC's newest member behaved like a key factor to the league's overall success path in this past weekend's stunning win at previously unbeaten Stanford, 77-69.

The Redhawks are coming off a long 13-year run in the WAC. A new level of commitment now permeates around the tight-nit Capital Hill-based University. Projected anywhere from 5th to 9th, Seattle is one of the great WCC mysteries this season.

Stanford had been cooking with gas this season behind Ebuka Okorie's phenomenal start to his career. That is until about 10 minutes remained in a game vs. the aforementioned Redhawks and the Cardinal in charge, with a 57-43 lead.

Elite defensive pressure from Seattle U., clutch perimeter shooting and a poised closing effort at the free-throw line propelled the Redhawks into road game euphoria.

What it all means?

Seattle U. is not going to be on the at-large board quite yet, however, as prefaced this is a major program stepping-stone win as Seattle U. looks to gain respect now at a higher level of college basketball budget. SU also showcased the ability to beat a talented team away from home, which sends a message to their new WCC foes.

STRONGLY CONSIDERED FOR AWARDS

NEBRASKA - Handled business at the Hall of Fame Classic in Kansas City. Nebraska weathered an initial storm from New Mexico to win comfortably. Went up against Kansas State in the Title Game, an 86-85 squeaker. Reink Mast going 8-for-10 from the line was key as the Cornhuskers survived to remain unbeaten. Sam Hoiberg's offensive rebound in the final second caused K-State to harm him. He made one free throw to break the 85-all tie, and that's all she wrote.

CAL POLY - The Mustang program under Mike DeGeorge continues to ascend from the bottom of the Big West. This past week it was a major triumph on the road at Utah. The Utes are breaking a new regime with former Ute legend, Alex Jensen at the helm. This was Utah's first setback of the year. After missing a game, Hamad Mousa returned to give the Mustangs 26 points in a 92-85 victory. Cayden Ward was the big story, going for a career-high 28 and earning BW POTW honors.

MICHIGAN STATE - Any doubts about the Spartans being able to compete at the highest level were erased during the 83-66 dismantling of Kentucky last week at the Champions Classic. Jeremy Fears emerged as a consistent playmaker. He had 13 assists in this one, a career-best. Later in the week, Fears had 18 points and 11 more assists in a rout of Detroit Mercy. The Spartan handed out 25 assists overall against Kentucky on 32 made field goals, a 78.1 percent assist rate. Sparty has a tightly connected group and will take on North Carolina on Thanksgiving in its next heavyweight test.

TROY - Honorary Trojan award, for perhaps the craziest week we've witnessed in a long, long time. Despite going 1-1 in the end, the endurance and fortitude of these Trojans was on full display in both games. First, the wild win at San Diego State. A game where the Trojans outplayed SDSU for the full 40 minutes, only to be completely blindsided with a 55-foot buzzer beater, courtesy of Miles Byrd. Despite all that, Troy continued to respond and eventually won out in double overtime, 108-107. Next, it was a trip to USC. An even steeper test based on USC's roster spend at the Big Ten level. We also had Trojans vs. Trojans, which became all sorts of fun on social media, as we remembered the great Bill Walton.

This game had everything. As we went to not one, not two, but three overtimes. Ultimately, USC's Jordan Marsh hit a double-clutch hanging in the air contested triple to completely shock Troy. USC got the win. Troy got our hearts. What a week!

QUINNIPIAC - The Bobcats roared into Pittsburgh and took it to the Panthers early and often building a surprising 10-point halftime lead. Amarri Monroe, MAAC's Preseason POTY, was the best player on the floor. He ended the night with 25 points and three dimes. This QU squad went a smoking-hot 11-for-17 from downtown and were very efficient inside the arc. After being blowing out against St. John's and Yale, this should do wonders for the confidence of this group.

HONORABLE MENTION: REMAINING CONFERENCE AWARDS

ACC EXTRA: LOUISVILLE - Faced early adversity against Cincinnati in a downtown Cincy special event. Cardinals didn't seize control until well into the second half. Behind five treys from Ryan Conwell, the Cards' pulled away with a 74-64 win. Another quality resume win.

SOUTHLAND: McNEESE - Opened the Cayman Islands Classic with a key win over George Washington. Javohn Garcia was everywhere. He had six steals, and 18 points. The Cowboys have great depth, getting 47 of its 92 points from their bench in the 92-86 win.

NEC: CENTRAL CONNECTICUT - The Blue Devils own a road Big Ten win following the 67-54 undressing of Rutgers last week. Rutgers may have a long season, but that is a really impressive effort from CCSU. Jay Rodgers led the Blue Devils with nine dimes to go along with 15 points.

WAC: TARLETON - Speaking of six steals, how about Texans' Freshman Leroy Kelly? What a day he had disrupting Rice in a 90-74 convincing road win. Kelly also added 16 points and the Texans will once again be pests to go up against throughout 2025-26.

MEAC: MARYLAND-EASTERN SHORE - Two Eagle wins away from home in the same week?! You bet! UMES was really impressive in the double OT road win at Longwood, and later beat Binghamton as part of Canisius MTE. Only a three point loss to Canisius prevented a perfect 3-0 week. Cleo Hill's squad is showing a lot of promise.

ATLANTIC-10: DAYTON - We are getting to a point of questioning how good or not good Marquette is, but none of that thinking is Dayton's responsibility. The Flyers went into FiServ Forum in Milwaukee and picked up the big 77-71 OT road victory. Flyers are now 5-1 with a big event coming on Thursday, opening against undefeated Georgetown.

IVY: PENN - Ethan Roberts scorched earth in both Big 5 wins last week, going for 30+ points in each game. If he's not the National Player of the Week, something is wrong with our nation. Penn overall impressed, as they beat St. Joe's in the Palestra and won at Drexel.

OVC: TENNESSEE TECH - A rough overall week for the conference, but hey TTU did win 88-84 at USC Upstate. Mekhi Cameron went for 20 points.

ASUN: FLORIDA GULF COAST - The Eagles have been flying high lately. The win at Samford last week was impressive. A 77-62 road stymie over the Bulldogs. Isaiah Malone was superb off the bench, delivering 12 points and 12 boards in limited action.

PATRIOT: COLGATE-

A major win at Siena on the halfcourt heave courtesy of Jalen Cox. Colgate also lost to Cornell in OT in another great battle. It's clear that this Colgate group is ready to return to the top of the Patriot League.

SEC: ALABMA- This is getting a bit unfair because Alabama plays big games every time they take the court. The win over Illinois was major for the resume. Now, the Tide are battling more heavyweights in the Players Era beginning with Gonzaga on Monday night.

CAA: UNC WILMINGTON - Seahawks are beginning to find their rhythm. A good road win at Radford and handling East Carolina with ease at home are both great indicators of that.

MOUNTAIN WEST: UTAH STATE - Aggies completely demolished Tulane and Davidson in the ESPN Event at Disney. Utah State is clearly NCAA Tournament-level good. MJ Collins (TR from Vanderbilt) has been a transfer portal heist. He dropped 40 on Davidson! And 21 in the win over Tulane.

HORIZON: NORTHERN KENTUCKY - Norse were the only Horizon squad to have an unbeaten week, but boy was it impressive to me. The Central Michigan program has an outstanding coaching staff from D2 (Ferris State) in place and I got a good look at them twice down at the St. Pete Showdown. NKU went to CMU and blew this team out by 24? Wow. LJ Wells did everything well for NKU, 13 points, nine rebounds, five assists, a steal, and a blocked shot.

THE AMERICAN: UAB - The Blazers did it again. Invited an undefeated team to come play at Bartow Arena, and sent them home with an L. This time it was previously 6-0 South Alabama. Jacob Meyer had 24 points and UAB successfully navigated the Richie Riley variety pack of zone defenses.

BIG SOUTH: CHARLESTON SOUTHERN - How bout the Bucs! A nice win for this program on the road at East Carolina in a buy game. Plus CSU took down IU Indy in an electric 103-91 track meet.

MISSOURI VALLEY: NORTHERN IOWA - Trey Campbell's three-point play gave Northern Iowa a sweet revenge road win at UC Irvine. The Panthers also took care of Northern Illinois earlier in the week with relative ease.

SOCON: MERCER - Quinton Perkins had 20 points and five assists in an impressive 12-point road win inside Eastern Kentucky's newly remodeled arena. A quality road win for these new-look Bears. Perkins shined at Indian Hills last year and is quickly establishing himself as a guy to watch in the SoCon.

BIG SKY: MONTANA STATE - Winners of the inaugural Battle at the Beach Tournament in Long Beach. The event was essentially was down to MSU or Long Beach State. It goes down as a true road win for the Bobcats, 78-72. Junior Jeremiah Davis dropped 15 points off the bench and added great defense, contributing three steals.

SWAC: BETHUNE-COOKMAN - The SWAC's only perfect team last week. Wildcats impressed in a 76-73 road win at Ohio U. Jakobi Heady led BCU with 20 points and added three assists.

CONFERENCE USA: SAM HOUSTON - The Bearkats had the pleasure of hosting a Wyoming team that has shown upside and promise early this season. Veljko Ilic (TR from Loyola-MD) was terrific in this contest. His 18 points, pair of steals, and all-around efficiency helped lead the Bearkats to a confidence-building 78-70 victory.

MAC: EASTERN MICHIGAN - Mohamed Habhab had a tremendous performance in the win over Oakland, 97-91. Habhab nearly triple-doubled! 24 points, 10 assists, and nine boards. Nice win for EMU, plus they earned a road win over regional foes, Detroit Mercy.

No Awards due to no D1 wins during the week: America East

Enjoy Week Four and all of the Feasting!