Arizona Wildcats men's basketball

Team history

Early years (1904−1925)

The University of Arizona fielded its first men's basketball team in 1904–05. Orin Albert Kates coached the team and drew opponents from local YMCAs. The first game Arizona played ended in a 40–32 victory over the Morenci YMCA.

In 1914, Arizona's first famous coach, James Fred "Pop" McKale was lured away from a teaching and coaching job at Tucson High School to take over as Athletic Director and coach basketball, football, baseball and track. McKale took things to a new level, posting a 9–0 record his first season as a basketball coach. Moreover, McKale elevated the program to intercollegiate play. While basketball was his least favorite of the many sports he coached while at U of A, he chalked up three undefeated seasons and a career-winning average of .803, which has never been bested by a U of A coach who has held the post for at least three years. The McKale Memorial Center, the main arena for Arizona basketball, is named in his honor.

Fred Enke (1925−61)

From 1925 to 1961, the program was under the stewardship of Fred Enke, U of A's longest-tenured coach. Coach Fred A. Enke was responsible for the early successes of Wildcat basketball. Enke amassed 509 wins in his tenure on the U of A sidelines and still ranks as the second-winningest coach in school history, winning more than 60 percent of his games. Enke also led the Cats to the first four postseason appearances (3 N.I.T. and 1 NCAA) in school history and in 1950–51 competed in both the N.I.T. and NCAA postseason tournaments. Finally, he was the first coach to lead Arizona to a national ranking. Two of his teams (1950, 1951) finished the season ranked in the top 15.

Under Enke, U of A competed in the now-defunct Border Conference. Under Enke's direction, Arizona won 12 conference championships, including a span in which the Cats won or shared seven consecutive Border Conference titles (1942–51). No Border Conference team won as many league games (231) or overall contests (398) during its membership. In 1962, Arizona joined the Western Athletic Conference as a founding member after the Border Conference disbanded.

Bruce Larson (1961−71)

Bruce Larson, a player and assistant under Enke before coaching at Eastern Arizona and Weber State, coached the Wildcats from 1961 to 1971, leading the school to a 136–148 record. Under his tenure, major planning began for a larger and more modern basketball arena (which would become McKale Center) to replace the outdated Bear Down Gymnasium. Larson would later serve as an analyst on Wildcat football and basketball telecasts during the Lute Olson (and Dick Tomey) era.

Fred Snowden (1973−1982)

In 1972, Fred Snowden was hired as the head basketball coach, making Arizona the second Division I school and the first major program to hire an African American head coach. Known as "The Fox", Snowden brought the excitement back to Wildcat basketball during his 10 years on the Arizona sideline, averaging more than 80 points per game in six of his 10 years and topping the 100-point barrier 27 times. Snowden led Arizona to the NCAA tournament twice, in 1976 and 1977, getting as far as the Elite Eight in 1976 before losing to UCLA 82–66, a game after defeating UNLV in a Sweet Sixteen matchup. During the 1976 tournament, he also logged Arizona's first and only tournament wins until Lute Olson's hiring, beating John Thompson's Georgetown team 83–76. Snowden's 1976 team also won the school's only WAC championship title on a buzzer-beater by Gilbert Myles verses New Mexico, with the help of the spectacular play of Bob Elliott, Jim Rappis, and Al Fleming. In 1978, Coach Snowden helped transition the basketball program over to the newly formed Pac-10. Snowden could not sustain success in the Pac-10, however, finishing no higher than 4th place in the conference. His 9–18 final season led U of A to look for a replacement.

Known for his high-octane offense and remembered as a trailblazer, Fred "The Fox" Snowden brought excitement to Arizona basketball during his 10-year tenure as the program's head coach. Snowden, who led the Wildcats from 1972 to 1982, was the first African-American head basketball coach at an NCAA Division I institution, amassing a 167–108 mark. The 1973 Western Athletic Conference Coach of the Year, his career winning percentage of .607 has been topped by only three U of A coaches since 1924. Nicknamed "The Fox" due to his cool demeanor, Snowden led Arizona to three postseason berths, including the 1975 National Commissioners’ Invitational Tournament and the 1976 and 1977 NCAA tournaments. His best season came in 1976, when the Wildcats went 24–9, won the Western Athletic Conference championship and advanced to the NCAA West Regional Final. The Brewton, Ala., native was the head coach who led Arizona into the Pac-10 in the 1978–79 season, guiding the program for its first four seasons in the Conference. Snowden also oversaw the transition into the McKale Center after its opening in 1973. He was inducted into the Arizona Sports Hall of Fame in 1988. Prior to his role at Arizona, Snowden was an assistant coach at Michigan. He also served on the coaching staff of his high school, Northwestern High School in Detroit, Mich., where he coached for five years after attending Wayne State University from 1954 to 1958. Snowden died in 1994 at the age of 57.

Athletic Director Dave Strack brought in Ben Lindsey to replace Fred Snowden in 1983, and on the surface, it seemed like a reasonable move. Lindsey had junior college expertise, having had a successful career at Grand Canyon University, where he won two national titles. What resulted, however, was nothing short of disaster. The 1983 team finished with the worst season in school history at 4–24, with only one Pac-10 win.

Lute Olson (1983−2007)

Newly hired U of A Athletic Director Cedric Dempsey fired Lindsey after only one season and hired University of Iowa coach Lute Olson as his successor. U of A needed a coach with a history of quickly turning around programs, which Olson had done previously at Iowa. "I knew we had a tremendous amount of work to do", Olson recalled in a recent interview with Tucson Lifestyle. "The program was in shambles at that point, after the terrible year before..."

Under Olson, Arizona quickly rose to national prominence. Arizona won its first Pac-10 title in 1986, only three years after his arrival. That season set up an amazing 1987–88 season, which included taking the Great Alaska Shootout championship, the Valley Bank Fiesta Bowl Classic championship and the Pac-10 championship. Under players Steve Kerr, Kenny Lofton, and Sean Elliott, Arizona spent much of the season ranked No. 1 and made their first (and Olson's second) Final Four. While Arizona lost in the Final Four round, their play put the program on the map and launched Arizona's reign as a perennial Pac-10 and NCAA tournament contender. Sean Elliott was awarded the John R. Wooden Award on the season and set the PAC-10 scoring record.

In 1997, Arizona defeated the University of Kentucky, the defending national champions, to win the NCAA national championship. Prior to winning the championship in 1997, Arizona stormed back from 10-point deficits in the Southeast Regional First round and Second Round against #13 South Alabama and #12 College of Charleston, respectively winning 65–57 and 73–69. The Southeast Regional semifinal pitted Arizona against overall #1 Kansas (34–1) which had defeated Arizona the year before in the 1996 West Regional semifinal. However, Arizona came out fast and stunned the Jayhawks 85–82, then prevailed in overtime against Providence 96–92 in the Elite Eight to clinch a berth in the Final Four. Arizona then beat #1 seed North Carolina 66–58 in the Final Four, which turned out to be Dean Smith's last game as a coach. Arizona also accomplished the unprecedented feat of beating three number one seeds in the 1997 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament. This feat has never been accomplished by another team.

The year following the Championship season, 1998, Arizona returned all 5 starters (Mike Bibby, Michael Dickerson, Miles Simon, Bennett Davison, and A. J. Bramlett) and were poised to make another run after receiving the #1 overall seed in the West, but were upset by Utah in the Elite 8.

Sean Miller (2009−2021)

After the end of the season, various coaching names were considered to succeed Lute Olson on a permanent basis. Arizona was perceived to have interest in Gonzaga's Mark Few, Pittsburgh's Jamie Dixon and then-Memphis coach John Calipari (before he accepted the vacant position at Kentucky) to take the job. Arizona even brought USC's Tim Floyd on campus for an interview and while Arizona claims no formal offer was ever presented, Floyd ultimately turned down the job publicly.

Arizona hired Sean Miller from Xavier University to fill the head coaching position. He initially turned the job down before changing his mind and accepting the job on Apr. 6, 2009 despite having never visited the Arizona campus. Miller was formally introduced as the 13th head men's basketball coach at Arizona at a press conference on April 7, 2009, at McKale Center. At the press conference, Miller acknowledged Lute Olson's impact on the Arizona program by addressing Olson personally: "One of the reasons I sit here today is because of the great legacy you built." Miller also promised U of A fans that they would enjoy the style of both offense and defense he would bring to Wildcat basketball. Miller's salary is $1.6 million per year; he will receive an additional $400,000 per season from Nike and media contracts during a five-year deal, as well as a $1 million signing bonus and other amenities such as season tickets to other Wildcat sporting events and the use of a private jet. Within three months of joining the program, Miller compiled a strong five-player recruiting class that ranked 13th nationally in 2009. After going 16–15 and missing the NCAA tournament for the first time in 25 years during Miller's initial 2009–10 campaign.

In his second season as the head coach at Arizona, the Cats finished the season with 30–8, 14–4 Pac-12 play, behind the play of sophomore Pac-10 Player of the Year Derrick Williams. This was the Wildcats' first outright Pac-10 regular season title (its 12th overall), 4th 30+ win season (1st overall) and Elite Eight appearance (8th overall) since the 2004–2005 season. In addition, Miller led the Wildcats to their first unbeaten home record (17–0) in 14 years and was named Pac-10 Coach of the Year. This was the first time an Arizona coach received this honor since Lute Olson in 2003. The 17 wins without a loss at home is tied for the second-most in school history. Miller added to the season's success by guiding the Cats to their first Elite Eight appearance since the 2004–2005 Season as a 5-seed. In the second round, Arizona secured a 2-point victory over 12th seeded Memphis (coached by former Wildcat (and member of the 1997 national title team) Josh Pastner) with a blocked shot in the final seconds by Derrick Williams. Arizona followed with another close game, a controversial one-point win against 4-seed Texas. In the Sweet-16 match-up, Arizona found itself pitted against top-seeded Duke, the first time since the 2001 title game that the two schools had met. Duke extended an early lead, but 25 points from Derrick Williams kept the Cats in the game and down by 6 points at the half. In the second half, Williams' teammates picked up the slack, dominating the Blue Devils by scoring 55 second-half points and routing the defending champs 93–77. Arizona's run at the Final Four fell 2 points short, losing to 3-seed (and eventual national champion) Connecticut 65–63.

Tommy Lloyd (2021−present)

After the university decided to part ways with Sean Miller, various coaching names were considered to succeed him on a permanent basis. Three former Wildcats who played under Lute Olson – Damon Stoudamire (head coach at the University of the Pacific), Miles Simon (assistant for the Los Angeles Lakers), and Josh Pastner (head coach at Georgia Tech), as well as Arkansas' Eric Musselman, were under speculation to take the job. On April 14, 2021, it was announced that Tommy Lloyd, the longtime top assistant coach at Gonzaga under Mark Few, became the 18th head coach of Arizona men's basketball. Both Lloyd and Few have been heavily influenced by the European style of basketball (and a focus on recruiting international players), as well as the uptempo, player-focused offense as implemented at Arizona under Lute Olson. A formal press conference was held at McKale Center on April 15 to introduce Lloyd as head coach. Coach Lloyd got his first victory as a head coach versus the Wildcats' in-state rival Northern Arizona 81–52. His 29-point victory versus NAU was the second largest margin in a coach's debut in school history and largest since 1915. He won his first Pac-12 game on December 12, 2021, against Oregon State, 90–65. Coach Lloyd and Arizona lost their first game of his career and season in Knoxville, 77–73 against no. 19 Tennessee.

The Wildcats finished the regular season undefeated on their home court at McKale Center for the 2021–22 campaign, one of only five programs in the nation to do so. The Wildcats were led by sophomore guards Bennedict Mathurin, Kerr Kriisa and Dalen Terry, as well as junior center Christian Koloko and sophomore forward Ąžuolas Tubelis. Coach Lloyd and the Wildcats won their 1st regular season conference title under Lloyd and 17th overall as a program with a 91–71 road win over USC. In the season finale, Arizona defeated California 89–61, becoming the first program and coach to win 18 conference games in the Pac-12 in one season. Arizona clinched the top seed in the 2022 Pac-12 tournament; they went on to defeat No. 9 seed Stanford 84–80, No. 4 seed Colorado 82–72 and No. 2 seed (No. 16 in the AP poll) UCLA 84–76 to win their 8th overall conference tournament title and Coach Tommy Lloyd's 1st. Following the end of the Pac-12 season Lloyd was named Pac-12 Coach of the Year. Arizona finished the Pac-12 portion of the season with a 31–3 record, earning a number 2 ranking in both the AP and coaches' poll. Following the Pac-12 tournament title win, Arizona was selected as the second overall number 1 seed in the South Regional of the 2022 March Madness Tournament, where they played 16 seed Wright State in their first round matchup. Arizona reached its 20th "Sweet 16" by defeating TCU in overtime 85–80. The Wildcats' season ended with a Sweet 16 loss to Houston 72–60. Lloyd was named as a finalists for the Naismith Award. Following the end of the season Coach Lloyd won the AP Coach of the Year, NABC Coach of the Year and USBWA Coach of the Year.

Season-by-season results

Under Tommy Lloyd

Rivalries

Arizona State

Since Arizona State became a university on December 5, 1958, Arizona leads ASU 84–58. Since both schools joined the Pac-10 conference in the 1978–79 season, Arizona leads ASU 70–30. Since Lute Olson took over as head coach for the 1983–84 season, Arizona leads ASU 67–20. Sean Miller took over for the 2009–2010 season Arizona and finished with a 17–7 record against ASU. Tommy Lloyd is 10–1 all time versus ASU.

The most recent matchup came in Tempe, Arizona on January 31, 2026, with Arizona winning 87–74. The largest margin of victory between the two teams occurred on February 17, 2024, with Arizona winning 105–60. Arizona leads the all-time series with 165–87.

UCLA

Since then, the two schools competed for the Pac-10 (now Pac-12) Championship every year, with the two teams winning 24 out of the 32 conference titles, and 9 of 18 conference tournament titles. Arizona clinched their first conference title in 1986, when they won on the road at UCLA in Olson's third season. The UCLA-Arizona basketball rivalry is still seen as the match up of the two premier teams in the conference. Also, the performance of the two schools influences the national opinion of the conference. California Coach Mike Montgomery stated, "If those two are not good, the conference is not perceived as being good. People don't give credit to the schools across the board in the league." Since the mid-1980s, Arizona has also had a basketball rivalry with UCLA, as the two schools competed for the Pac-10 Championship every year. Since 1985 the two teams have combined to win 26 out of the 36 conference titles. The UCLA-Arizona basketball rivalry still is seen as the match up of the two premier teams in the conference. Also, the performance of the two schools influences the national opinion of the conference.

The most recent matchup came on November 14, 2025, where Arizona beat UCLA 69–65. The Arizona Wildcats trailed the all-time series lead by UCLA with 64–51.

Notable players and coaches

The Wildcats have had 18 coaches in their 116-year history. To date, one Wildcats coach has won the National Coach of the Year award: Lute Olson twice, in 1988 and 1990. Additionally, three Wildcats coaches have been named Pac-12 Conference Coach of the Year: Lute Olson in 1986, 1988, 1989, 1993, 1994, 1998 and 2003, Sean Miller in 2011, 2014, and 2017, and Tommy Lloyd in 2022.

Wildcats inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame

Coaches

Lute Olson (2002)

Wildcats in the Olympics

Seven Arizona Wildcats men's basketball players have represented four different countries eight total times in basketball (Budinger was an Olympian in volleyball) in the Summer Olympics:

Current NBA/NBA G League coaches

Steve Kerr, head coach, Golden State Warriors

Joseph Blair, head coach, Rio Grande Valley Vipers

Quinton Crawford, assistant coach, Portland Trail Blazers

Matt Brase, assistant coach, Philadelphia 76ers

Bret Brielmaier, assistant coach, New Orleans Pelicans

Bruce Fraser, assistant coach, Golden State Warriors

Jason Terry, assistant coach, Utah Jazz

Luke Walton, assistant coach, Detroit Pistons

NCAA

Mike Bibby, head coach, Sacramento State

Josh Pastner, head coach, UNLV

Damon Stoudamire, assistant coach, LSU

14 different NBA championships have been won by 15 Wildcats players. Since the NBA draft was shortened to two rounds in 1989, 50 Arizona players have been selected. Former Wildcats have had successful NBA careers, totaling over $2.1 billion in total contracts through the 2025–2026 NBA season. Former Wildcat players have been drafted by every current NBA franchise except the New Orleans Pelicans and the Utah Jazz.

Source: Arizona 2026–27 Media Guide

A total of 33 NBA championships have been won by 15 former Wildcats, consisting of 15 different finals years (1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2003, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2020, 2022 and 2023). Seven of the last tn championship teams have had a former Wildcat as a player and/or coaching staff member on the team.

Former Wildcats have played in 24 of the last 31 finals, including 12 straight (since 2015) and have coached in seven of the last 12 finals.

Honors, awards, and accomplishments

The individual honors, awards, and accomplishments listed in the succeeding subsections are aggregated by player in the following table. Players with only all-conference honors (other than conference player of the year), lower than first-team All-America honors, or later than second-round draft positions are not included.

Source: Arizona 2025–26 Media Guide

National honors and awards (players)

Source:

Conference honors and awards (players)

All-Americans

Arizona has had 33 All-American All-Americans selections. Arizona has had seven players selected as Consensus First Team All-Americans eight times. They have also had six players selected as Consensus Second Team All-Americans. 14 Arizona players have received an AP All-America honorable mention.

The following 33 McDonald's All-Americans listed below have signed with Arizona. An asterisk, "*", indicates player did not finish his college career at Arizona. A cross, "†", indicates player did not begin his college career at Arizona.

All-Conference (Pac-12 & Big 12) honors

Source:

While members of the Pac-12, Arizona had 86 All-Conference selections, which was sixth most among Pac-12 schools. They have had 91 All-Conference selections. The following is a list of Arizona Wildcats men's basketball players who were named first, second or third team All Pac-12 or Big 12:

Note

‡ indicates player was Pac-12/Big 12 Player of the Year

† indicates player was Pac-12/Big 12 Freshman of the Year

∞ indicates player was Pac-12/Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year

Note: Second team was only awarded from the '77–79' and starting again in the 2007 season.

All-Conference (Pac-12 & Big 12) freshman honors

While members of the Pac-12 Arizona had 33 All-Freshman selections (*One selection vacated due to NCAA penalty, revised total is 32), which was 2nd most among Pac-12 schools. The following is a list of Arizona Wildcats men's basketball players who were named All Conference Freshman team:

Note

‡ indicates player was Pac-12/Big 12 Freshman of the Year.

Source:

While members of the Pac-12 Arizona had 11 All-Defense selections, which was the second most among Pac-12 schools. Arizona has also had three Newcomer selections, which was tied for 8th among the Pac-12. The following is a list of Arizona Wildcats men's basketball players who were named All Conference Defense or Newcomer:

While members of the Pac-12 Arizona had 14 All-Academic, which was eighth most among Pac-12 schools. The following is a list of Arizona Wildcats men's basketball players who were named All Conference Academic team:

Postseason appearances

Arizona has appeared in 40 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournaments (36), and four National Invitation Tournaments (NIT). The Arizona Wildcats have been to four Final Fours, which is tied for 21st all time among Division I schools.

NCAA tournament

The Arizona Wildcats have been to five Final Fours, which is tied for 21st all time among Division I schools.

NCAA tournament seeding history

The NCAA began seeding the NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament with the 1979 edition. The 64-team field started in 1985, which guaranteed that a championship team had to win six games.

The Wildcats have a record of 66–39 (.629). They were NCAA National Champions in 1997, is the only team to date to beat three #1 seeds to win the national championship.

Appearances are grouped by the number of teams in the bracket. Round names are based on what round names were at the time of the tournament, not the present names. The term "Elite eight" began in 1956, "Final four" began in 1975, and "Sweet Sixteen" began in 1988.

Arizona is second No. 2 seed to ever lose a first-round game, losing 64–61 to No. 15 seed Santa Clara, led by future NBA star Steve Nash in 1993.

Sixteen to Thirty-two team tournament

Sixty-four teams

Sixty-five teams

First four era

*Following the introduction of the First Four round in 2011, the Round of 64 and Round of 32 were referred to as the Second Round and Third Round, respectively, from 2011 to 2015, then from 2016 moving forward, the Round 64 and Round of 32 will be called the First and Second rounds.

†† – As a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, the 2020 NCAA tournament was cancelled.

Record by round

NIT results

The Arizona Wildcats have appeared in the four National Invitation Tournaments (NIT). Arizona's combined record is 0–4.

Championships

Though the automatic berth in the NCAA tournament is given to the conference tournament winner, the Pac–12 declares the team with the best record in the regular season the "official" conference champion.

National championships

Regular season championships

Conference tournament championships

Invitational tournament championships

Conference tournament championship game appearances

U of A has won the Big 12 Tournament, previously won the ninth Pac-12 tournament titles, a record ten times (two appearances in 2017 and 2018 were later vacated by the NCAA, seven total), including three straight times from 1988 to 1990.

Source: 2023–24 Arizona Wildcats Media Guide

† – All NCAA tournament wins in 1999, 2008, 2017, and 2018 were vacated by the NCAA in its March 2015 report of Infractions on its athletics department by the NCAA making their official record of 53–36 (.596) due to 2017–18 NCAA men's basketball corruption scandal. The players involved in the scandal played in every game in the 2016–17 and 23 games in the 2017–18 season, resulting in a 9–8 record.

All-time statistical leaders

School records

Note

‡ indicates player was also conference record holder.

Note

‡ indicates player was also conference record holder.

Note

† indicates player was also the yearly Pac-12 leader.

Note

‡ indicates player was also single game record holder.

Home court winning streaks

^Played at Bear Down Gym

Rankings

Arizona teams have spent a total of 47 weeks ranked number 1, most recently in 2025.

The Associated Press began its basketball poll on January 20, 1949. The following is a summary of those annual polls. Starting in the 1961–62 season, AP provided a preseason (PS) poll. AP did a post-tournament poll in 1953, 1954, 1974 and 1975. The following table summarizes Arizona history in the AP Poll: The Wildcats longest streak of weeks ranked inside the AP Top 25 poll is 141 weeks, starting with the 1988 pre-season poll and ended with the March 13, 1995 poll. The 141 weeks is 12th most all-time. Arizona was ranked in 324 out of 326 polls from 1988 until 2005, which is more than any school during the same time frame.

Ranked in 40 out of 75 seasons (53%)

Record vs. Big 12 opponents

The Arizona Wildcats lead the all-time series regardless of conference affiliation vs. eight other Big 12 opponents, trailing only Houston, Kansas, Kansas State and Texas Tech.

Total (342–226, .602)

Note all-time series includes non-conference matchups.

The Arizona Wildcats lead the all-time series regardless of conference affiliation vs. ten other Pac-12 opponents, trailing only UCLA.

Total (768–421, .646)

Note all-time series includes non-conference matchups and Pac-12 Tournament.

Conference records

Note:† 30 Pac-12 wins vacated due to NCAA infractions. Pac-12 record is 173–69 (.715).

Game day traditions

Arizona's home games include many traditions involving The Pride of Arizona pep band and the Zona Zoo.

Before every game, the band splits into four sections in the four sides of McKale Center. They play Bear Down Arizona in sequence before the band runs back to the student section in the north stands and plays all of Bear Down. The band also yells "Hi fans!" to the fans, who respond by yelling "Hi band!" and "Hi Tommy!" to head coach Tommy Lloyd, who responds by waving to the band.

While the opposing team's players are being introduced, the student section turns their backs to the court. As each player's name is announced, they will yell "Sucks!" In the interest of sportsmanship, though, the Athletic Department is attempting to phase this tradition out.

At the start of each half, the entire crowd will stand until the other team scores a point. The fans will also clap rhythmically with the band as it plays a four-note refrain repeatedly until the ball is tipped or inbounded.

When an opposing player fouls an Arizona player, the band and students chant, while pointing at the opposing player, "You! You! You! You! You! You! You! You! You! On you, that's who!" If the foul occurs during a shot and the player makes the shot, the chant is instead "Hey! Hey! Hey! Hey! No no no no! No no no no! No no no no! No no no no! Don't touch me!"

If an opposing player accrues four fouls during the game, they will chant "Four!" four times while waving four fingers. If a player fouls out, the band plays the beat from "Another One Bites the Dust", concluding with the band and students yelling "Hey! We're gonna get you too!"

When opposing players are attempting foul shots, besides attempting to distract the player, the band and students have several chants, but the only constant one is yelled if the player misses their first shot of a two-shot foul, in which case they yell "Nice shot, buddy!"

If Arizona is beating an opponent by a comfortable margin late in the game, the band and students will chant "Go start the bus!" repeatedly. If an opponent makes a big play, they will chant "It just doesn't matter!"

Facilities

Beardown Gym

Prior to playing its games at the McKale Center, Arizona played games at Bear Down Gym from 1927 until 1973. Arizona won its inaugural game against Arizona State, then known as Tempe State Teachers College, by a score of 29–18.

McKale Center

Arizona currently plays its home games at McKale Center, a 14,688-seat multi-purpose arena in Tucson, that opened in 1973. The McKale Center is the fifth different home site in program history.

At McKale Center, Arizona enjoys one of the nation's best home court advantages. The Wildcats have compiled a 651–121 (an .847 winning percentage) record since moving to the McKale Center permanently. Through the 2023–24 season, McKale Center has hosted 10,154,639 fans for Arizona home games and the Wildcats have averaged 13,035 fans (better than 95% capacity) per game during that time. The 2014–2015 season marked the highest average attendance in McKale Center history with an average 14,591 (100% capacity) Wildcats fans at each home game.

Radio network affiliates

The current flagship radio station for men's basketball is Tucson sports radio station KCUB, branded as "Wildcats Radio 1290". From 1983 until 2004, the flagship station was news/talk radio station KNST. The primary play-by-play voice of Wildcat football, baseball and men's basketball, since 1987, is Brian Jeffries (after starting out as the color commentator for former CBS Sports announcer Ray Scott, who called Wildcats games from 1984 through the spring of 1987).

The Phoenix radio affiliate for Arizona Wildcats football and men's basketball is KGME, branded as "Fox Sports 910."