TUCSON, Arizona — The Wildcats and Bruins tip off Monday, Nov. 2, at approximately 8 p.m. MT (10 p.m. ET) at T-Mobile Arena as part of the Hall of Fame Series.
Arizona enters as a roughly 4.5-point favorite after a dominant 36-3 campaign last season that included a Final Four run.
Under coach Tommy Lloyd, the Wildcats return key pieces in 7-foot-2 center Motiejus Krivas (who averaged double-digit points and rebounds with strong shot-blocking) and forward Ivan Kharchenkov, but lost a large share of their scoring. The backcourt features highly regarded freshman Caleb Holt alongside transfer Derek Dixon, with questions remaining about who will run the offense.
UCLA, coached by Mick Cronin, went 24-12 a year ago and brings back a higher percentage of its production, including Xavier Booker, Eric Dailey Jr., and Trent Perry. The Bruins added Texas Tech transfer Jaylen Petty and highly touted 17-year-old Serbian freshman Nikola Kusturica. Like Arizona, they are integrating new pieces, particularly in the backcourt.
This marks the continuation of a neutral-site series between the former Pac-12 rivals after conference realignment. Arizona won the most recent meeting last season. Frontcourt matchups, perimeter shooting, and how quickly each team’s new guards settle in figure to be key factors in what should be a competitive, physical opener.
