PHNX Daily: Wildcats Make Program History

👋 GOOD MORNING – Man, what a win for Curt Cignetti and Indiana last night.

While our beloved NCAA programs certainly aren’t seeing that level of success on the football field, there’s some (cautious) optimism that a certain basketball team down in Tucson may have what it takes to go the distance this year.

Time to take a look at a Wildcats program milestone. It’s almost enough to soften the blow of losing out on Robert Saleh…

Here we go!

— Alex D’Agostino, PHNX Sports Daily Editor

Wildcats Earn First-Ever Unanimous No. 1

Tommy Lloyd’s Arizona Wildcats men’s hoops have been thriving all season. At 18-0, they’ve been the No. 1 team in the country for well over a month, and haven’t given the voters any reason to change that, although there were some puzzling first-place votes for Michigan (and Iowa State?) littering recent ballots.

But this week’s AP poll was a bit different. For the first time in the history of Arizona’s storied basketball program, the Wildcats earned a unanimous No. 1 ranking. Arizona was awarded all 61 first-place votes, with UConn and Michigan coming in behind them at No. 2 and No. 3.

I can already hear some Tempe residents loudly rolling their eyes. Yes, rankings mean very little, especially in January. That is a fair and valid point. I think even many Wildcat fans would take this honor with a bit of a grain of salt, given the number of times they’ve been let down come March.

But it’s still a testament to how much different this team looks, at least for the time being. Koa Peat has been as-advertised, leading Arizona in scoring with 14.7 points per game. Ivan Karchenkov has been a revelation defensively. Mo Krivas is justifying the belief Lloyd and the coaching staff have in him.

And that’s just scratching the surface. Jaden Bradley (AKA The Closer) has been clutch, Brayden Burries has figured it out offensively, and Tobe Awaka is casually averaging nearly 10 rebounds per game off the bench. It’s a very deep team that feels only truly vulnerable to injuries (knock on wood) as the season wears on.

Arizona carved its way through a true gauntlet of a non-conference schedule, then promptly began beating up teams to open Big 12 play.

It’s actually pretty ironic that the most nerve-wracking game of the Wildcats’ season came against Bobby Hurley and the Sun Devils at home. I guess it just goes to show anything can happen in a rivalry game.

The Wildcats extended their win streak to 18 on Saturday with another relatively-close win over an underrated UCF team. It’s also a bit of a compliment to call a seven-point win “close,” but when they’d been winning by 15-20 per game, single-digits is a bit of a shock.

With all that said, the Big 12 is not an easy place to live. The Wildcats’ conference schedule gets tougher as the season wears on. After a matchup with Cincinnati on Wednesday, they’ll get No. 13 BYU a few days later (and again in a month).

From here until March, Arizona will face the likes of No. 12 Texas Tech, No. 19 Kansas (twice), No. 6 Houston (who just took down ASU 103-73) and Iowa State. Good luck getting out of there unscathed, even with the No. 1 team in the country.

That’s what makes this conference great — the competition should, in theory, help the Wildcats prepare more fully for tournament play. Nothing is ever quite predictable in Big 12 hoops, but you know it’ll be a good show, at least.

Quick Hits

Saleh Sweepstakes: Well, the Cardinals lost out on Robert Saleh, despite having an interview set with him for today. As it turns out, his interview with the Titans went a little too well, and he’s set to become the next head coach in Tennessee. It’s not the end of the world, by any means; there are some other candidates worth taking note of, but it’s certainly a disappointment.

Things are starting to get intense here. Packers DC Jeff Hafley was just hired as the next head coach of the Miami Dolphins, which takes him off Arizona’s board, despite the Cardinals having a request in for a second interview.

Oh, and Sean McDermott was just let go by the Bills. McDermott is absolutely another name worth checking on, but the downside is it opens up a very appealing opening in Buffalo for some of the remaining HC candidates. Buckle up.

If you’re looking to keep a close eye on every name, interview request and rumor, follow along with PHNX Cardinals’ coaching tracker at the link below — updated daily by yours truly.

Arizona Cardinals 2026 Coaching Search Tracker

Net Gain: Despite some sloppiness, the Suns pulled away with a 126-117 win over the Nets last night. Dillon Brooks, Devin Booker and Collin Gillespie combined for 73 points.

Jalen Green did not make his return to action, but he is expected to play tonight against the 76ers, per head coach Jordan Ott. Phoenix’s offense should, in theory, be able to hit a higher gear with the former No. 2-overall pick back in the lineup again. Hopefully, it lasts more than one game this time…