Arizona vs. Kansas: The High-Stakes Showdown That Could Redefine the Season

But with just over a week left in the regular season, Arizona finds itself on the cusp of its first Big 12 championship. A win Saturday against No. 14 Kansas would secure at least a share of the title, with the chance to claim it outright Monday night in the home finale against No. 4 Iowa State.

“This team’s done a good job hanging with it all year, putting ourselves in position to be in position,” UA coach Tommy Lloyd said Thursday, repeating a phrase he’d first mentioned after Saturday’s win at No. 2 Houston. “Now, let’s see what happens Saturday, and see if we can inch closer to getting there.

“Obviously it’d be a great accomplishment. Regular season conference championships mean a lot to programs and to the coaches, maybe not the fanbase, because they want to get fixated on what they consider the final result. But when you do what we do, anytime you’re judged over a conference season against your competitors, if you can come out on top, that says something about your program. Obviously, we want to be a team competing for championships, and a Big 12 championship would be no different. It’d be something we’d be really proud to get done. But do it. We got to go do it.”

Here’s what to watch for when the second-ranked Wildcats (26-2, 13-2 Big 12) hosts the Jayhawks (21-7, 11-4):