The University of Arizona men's basketball team has already put together a remarkable 2025-26 season. Six games now stand between them and immortality.

The Wildcats (32-2, 16-2 in Big 12 play) begin their quest for the program's second NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament title, when they take on the Long Island University Sharks of the Northeast Conference (24-10, 15-3) at Viejas Arena in San Diego (tickets). The game tips off Friday at 10:35 a.m. on TNT or streaming on HBO Max.

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The Wildcats earned the No. 1 seed in the West region, which also includes No. 2-seed Purdue, No. 3-seed Gonzaga (where head coach Tommy Lloyd served as an assistant for more than two decades) and fellow Big 12 Conference member, sixth-seeded BYU.

Despite the excitement surrounding the NCAA Tournament, it is business as usual for Lloyd and the Wildcats.

"We're going to double down on strong culture, respecting our opponents and valuing preparation," Lloyd said during the team's Selection Sunday press conference.

Should the Wildcats advance to round two, they would face the winner of Villanova and Utah State on Sunday (time TBD). The West region's Sweet 16 and Elite Eight games take place at the SAP Center in San Jose. The Final Four takes place April 4 and the title game is scheduled for April 6, both in Indianapolis.

How we got here

The Wildcats began the season ranked No. 13 in the first Associated Press Top 25 poll, but they steadily climbed the rankings after big wins over Florida, UCLA and the University of Connecticut. Arizona assumed the top spot in the polls on Dec. 8 and held that No. 1 ranking for 10 weeks.

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Arizona suffered its only two losses of the season on Feb. 9 and Feb 14 to Kansas and Texas Tech, respectively, but never fell lower than No. 4 in the rankings. The squad finished the regular season on a six-game winning streak to claim the Big 12 regular season title.

The Wildcats found themselves well represented when the end-of-season awards were announced on March 9. Senior point guard Jaden Bradley was named the Big 12 Player of the Year and Lloyd earned Big 12 Coach of the Year honors, with Tobe Awaka became the unanimous choice for Sixth Man of the Year.

Arizona opened Big 12 tournament play with a decisive 81-59 win over Central Florida and advanced to the championship game after Bradley's already-legendary buzzer-beater lifted the Wildcats to an 82-80 win over Iowa State. The Wildcats closed out the tournament with a hard-fought 79-74 victory over Houston to claim the tournament championship.

By the numbers

The Wildcats are among college basketball's elite in several statistical categories. The team's plus-17.3 point differential ranks sixth in the nation, and KenPom ranks Arizona No. 2 in its net rating statistic, with top-five marks in both offensive and defensive rating. Arizona ranks No. 4 in the nation with 42.5 rebounds per game and holds opponents to under 39.2% shooting, ranking eighth.

Freshman Brayden Burries leads a balanced scoring attack at 15.9 points per game, but seven Wildcats average nine points per game or more.

Selection Sunday marked the eighth time the Wildcats have been named a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament. It is also the 40th all-time appearance in the NCAA Tournament for the Wildcats – the seventh-most in NCAA history.

This will be the third time Arizona has opened the NCAA Tournament in San Diego. During Lloyd's first season in 2022, top-seeded Arizona defeated Wright State before taking down No. 9-seed TCU in an overtime thriller. Prior to that, the 2013-14 Arizona Wildcats defeated Weber State and Gonzaga in the first and second rounds.

Go to ArizonaWildcats.com for more information on the University of Arizona men's basketball team and its run in the NCAA Tournament.