Arizona Men’s Basketball Faces Unseen Challenge as They Host NAU: What Could Change the Game?

A lot has happened for Arizona in the first week of the 2025-26 season.

The Wildcats knocked off defending NCAA champion Florida in Las Vegas, which bumped them up to No. 5 in the latest Associated Press poll. Over the weekend they got a commitment from 4-star guard Cameron Holmes and are among the finalists for 5-star forward Cameron Williams, and current freshman phenom Koa Peat picked up a truckload of awards after his debut week of college basketball.

The season is a marathon, not a sprint, but right now the UA is at the head of the pack.

“I like where we’re at,” UA coach Tommy Lloyd said after Friday’s win over Utah Tech in the home opener. “I like the experiences we’re having.”

Some more big experiences are right around the corner, with Arizona playing No. 15 UCLA in Los Angeles on Friday and then visiting No. 3 UConn next week. Before then, though, is one more home game against an old in-state foe the Wildcats haven’t faced in a few years.

Here’s what to watch for when Arizona hosts NAU on Tuesday night at McKale Center:

Starter is just a title

Arizona has used the same starting five in both games so far, and barring injury that might not change anytime soon. During his UA tenure, Lloyd has made very few non-injury lineup changes, with a few notable exceptions.

Last season he moved KJ Lewis to the bench after six games and started Anthony Dell’Orso, and in 2022-23 he swapped Pelle Larsson with Cedric Henderson in mid-January.

Keep that in mind when wondering why a pair of starters from last season, Dell’Orso and Tobe Awaka, aren’t part of the starting five this time around. Especially after Dell’Orso had 18 points and Awaka went for 12 points and 18 rebounds (in 19 minutes) against Utah Tech.

“It really gives our team a really unique thrust to bring two guys off the bench that are that good and have that much experience,” Lloyd said. “If we continue this thing and how it plays out, I think that’s going to be a really big advantage for us over the course of the season.”

Awaka, an honorable mention all-Big 12 choice a year ago, averaged 8.0 points and 7.8 rebounds but only played 19.5 minutes per game in 2024-25. Henri Veesaar, who came off the bench for all but five games last season, averaged more points (9.4) and minutes (20.5).

“There’s only five spots, so somebody at the end of the day has to sacrifice,” Awaka said. “We understand what Coach is trying to build, what we’re trying to do as a group. Some of us might have to sacrifice that sort of title of starter, but at the end of the day we all just want to play. I think minutes count more than (the) title (of) starter or whatever.”

Dell’Orso, the top 3-point shooter from a year ago at 41.3 percent, is 3 for 7 this season while Ivan Kharchenkov is 2 for 3 with both of his makes coming against Florida.

“Just because he’s off the bench doesn’t mean his role is going to be lessened,” Lloyd said of Dell’Orso. “I think it’s going to be more than it was last year, for sure.”

Building Mo-mentum

Speaking of Krivas, his performances so far have left a lot to be desired. He had six points, eight rebounds and three blocks against Florida but missed three of five shots, then against Utah Tech he had six points, four rebounds and two assists but didn’t score (or attempt a field goal) until the second half.

At 7-foot-2, Krivas takes up a lot of space on defense but his offensive game hasn’t come around as expected. He was averaging 7.9 points in eight games in 2024-25 before suffering a season-ending foot injury and while he looks healthy that hasn’t show up yet on the offensive end.

With freshman Sidi Gueye playing late against Utah Tech, thus burning his redshirt, continued struggles by Krivas could cut into his minutes.

Welcome back, Jacks!

Tuesday will mark the 130^th time Arizona and NAU have met in men’s basketball, with the Wildcats holding a commanding 102-27 edge including 36 consecutive wins. But it’s been almost four years since the Lumberjacks came to town, when they served as the first opponent of the Lloyd era and lost 81-52.

Annual games with NAU were supposed to be part of the next few schedules but when Lloyd’s son Liam transferred from GCU to Flagstaff for the 2022-23 season he canceled the upcoming games. Liam Lloyd was on the UA roster last season but that move didn’t get finalized until after Arizona had already put together its nonconference slate for 2024-25.

The current NAU squad, led by 7th-year coach Shane Burcar, is 1-1 after losing its opener to Drake (in Sioux Falls, S.D.) and then beating up on NCCAA school Justice at home on Friday. The Jacks’ leading scorer is 6-foot-8 sophomore forward Zack Davidson, a transfer from Montana who is averaging 25 points and 8.5 rebounds.

Arizona is projected by KenPom to win 95-66, giving NAU an 0.5 percent chance to pull off the massive upset. The Wildcats haven’t lost to a team ranked outside the top 200—NAU is No. 274—since 2019 and NAU’s last win over a power-conference team was in 2011 at ASU.