Updated NCAA tournament predictions: Arizona headed to West Region with former Pac-12 rival

The Arizona Wildcats (12-6, 6-1) are preparing for a daunting stretch of basketball games.
As head coach Tommy Lloyd said, the Wildcats still "have three hard laps to go" in the Big 12. After the matchup vs. Colorado on Saturday, Arizona will play five Quadrant 1 games in a span of 22 days.
That stretch could make or break Arizona's season. Quad 1 victories are gold in the eyes of the NCAA Tournament Selection Committee, and winning three or four of those games could vault Arizona into contention for a top-four seed in the 2025 NCAA Tournament.
A Quad 1 game is a home matchup against a top 30 team in the NCAA NET Rankings, or a road game against a top 50 team in the NET. Arizona is currently ranked No. 15 in the NET and has a 3-6 record in Quad 1 games.
The NET Rankings are important because the NCAA Tournament Selection Committee uses the NET as the primary sorting tool for selection and seeding for the NCAA tournament.
Arizona's Latest NCAA Tournament Prediction
As it stands now, the Wildcats are projected to be a No. 6 seed in the West Region in ESPN's latest Bracketology update.
Arizona is slotted to play the winner of the First Four matchup between San Diego State and Ohio State in the first round in Seattle. If Arizona wins, ESPN predicts they'll play former Pac-12 foe Oregon in the second round.
The current projected No. 1 seed in the West Region? Iowa State. The Cyclones and Wildcats will meet twice over the next six weeks, with the first matchup scheduled for Monday night in Tucson. Iowa State is ranked No. 5 in the NET and has a 5-2 record in Quad 1 games.
Iowa State (16-2, 6-1) and Arizona could easily trade places over the final stretch of the season. The Cyclones faced a much easier nonconference schedule, playing just two Quad 1 games (Auburn and Marquette). Lloyd took the hard road, preparing the Wildcats for their first season in the Big 12 by playing four Quad 1 nonconference games (Wisconsin, Duke, Oklahoma, West Virginia), plus a matchup with longtime Pac-12 rival UCLA, who is just outside of a Quad 1 ranking.
Three weeks from now, Arizona could easily have more Quad 1 wins than Iowa State. Stay tuned.