Three Takeaways From Arizona's Win Over UConn

The Wildcats kept their perfect season alive with a gritty win on the road against one of the nation's best.

Nov 3, 2025; Las Vegas, NV, USA; Arizona Wildcats guard Jaden Bradley (0) celebrates a play against the Florida Gators in the first half of the Hall of Fame Series game at T-Mobile Arena. Mandatory Credit: Candice Ward-Imagn Images | Candice Ward-Imagn Images

Arizona's 71-67 road win over UConn is another feather in Tommy Lloyd's cap to begin the season. With wins over Florida, UCLA and now the Huskies, all away from home, the Wildcats have the best resume in the country to this point.

The Wildcats and Huskies went back and forth for a while until Arizona opened up a 13-point lead in the second half. However, the Huskies battled back with a 17-5 run heading into the final minutes.

Nov 11, 2025; Tucson, Arizona, USA; Arizona Wildcats head coach Tommy Lloyd yells out towards players during the first half of the game against the Northern Arizona Lumberjacks at McKale Memorial Center. Mandatory Credit: Aryanna Frank-Imagn Images | Aryanna Frank-Imagn Images

In those final minutes, Arizona once again turned to veteran guard Jaden Bradley to close things out. He battled inside to make a layup to put the Wildcats up by three with 16 seconds left.

Arizona is now 5-0 with three ranked wins. Tommy Lloyd's aggressive scheduling out of conference, coupled with a challenging Big 12 slate, has the Wildcats soaring up rankings early in the season and inspiring plenty of confidence for a potential tournament run in March. Here are a few takeaways from Arizona's latest big win.

Koa Peat Steps Up When It Matters Most

Nov 11, 2025; Tucson, Arizona, USA; Arizona Wildcats forward Koa Peat (10) scores a three pointer during the first half of the game against the Northern Arizona Lumberjacks at McKale Memorial Center. Mandatory Credit: Aryanna Frank-Imagn Images | Aryanna Frank-Imagn Images

Arizona's top true freshman in the latest recruiting class has been every bit as advertised so far. Peat jumped out to a big start with 30 points, seven rebounds and five assists in the opener against Florida.

Peat has played a significant number of big minutes this season and performed well. He had a tough outing against UCLA, but his bounce-back against the Huskies was an excellent sign. He dropped 16 points and 12 rebounds against the Huskies, recording his first double-double for the Wildcats.

Nov 3, 2025; Las Vegas, NV, USA; Arizona Wildcats forward Koa Peat (10) celebrates a play against the Florida Gators in the second half of the Hall of Fame Series game at T-Mobile Arena. Mandatory Credit: Candice Ward-Imagn Images | Candice Ward-Imagn Images

The star-studded recruiting class has been up and down so far, but Peat has been a core piece to the puzzle this season. The 6-foot-8 freshman forward is averaging 16.2 points, 6.6 rebounds, 2.8 assists, one steal and 0.6 blocks per game.

His defense at the rim and his scoring ability are obvious, but his passing and playmaking abilities can go under the radar at times. When Bradley takes over at the end of games, Peat can be used as a space creator and a facilitator for the offense.

Brayden Burries' Struggles Continue

Nov 7, 2025; Tucson, Arizona, USA; Arizona Wildcats guard Brayden Burries (5) passes the ball during the first half of the game against the Utah Tech Trailblazers at McKale Memorial Center. Mandatory Credit: Aryanna Frank-Imagn Images | Aryanna Frank-Imagn Images

One of the freshmen who has not hit his stride yet is Burries, who continued to be quiet offensively against UConn. Burries played just 19 minutes and scored four points, shooting 2-of-4 from the field.

Arizona's offense still has room to grow, and Burries is the catalyst for that growth. Against UCLA, he shot just 1-of-9 from the field, and against Florida, he played only 17 minutes before fouling out.

Nov 7, 2025; Tucson, Arizona, USA; Arizona Wildcats guard Brayden Burries (5) looks to shoot the ball while Utah Tech Trailblazers guard Chance Trujillo (2) attempts to block him during the second half of the game at McKale Memorial Center. Mandatory Credit: Aryanna Frank-Imagn Images | Aryanna Frank-Imagn Images

Burries' best performance so far came against Utah Tech, when he scored 18 points and drilled three triples. That's the type of performance Lloyd hopes to get more consistently, because the shooting numbers have held the offense back.

Through five. games, Burries is shooting 33.3% from the field and 29.4% from long range. He also has 11 turnovers this season and hasn't been able to run the floor at the point yet.

Nov 14, 2025; Inglewood, California, USA; Arizona Wildcats guard Anthony Dell'Orso (3) reacts to a play during the second half of the Hall of Fame Series game against the UCLA Bruins at Intuit Dome. Mandatory Credit: Kiyoshi Mio-Imagn Images | Kiyoshi Mio-Imagn Images

The Wildcats haven't opened up from three-point range yet this season, and Burries was expected to be a big contributor in that area. Arizona is shooting 37.3% from range as a team, with most of the success coming from Bradley, Anthony Dell'Orso and Ivan Kharchenkov.

If Burries can find his groove before conference play, the Wildcats could open up their offense even more.

Arizona Dominates The Paint

Nov 14, 2025; Inglewood, California, USA; Arizona Wildcats center Motiejus Krivas (13) fights for a rebound against UCLA Bruins center Xavier Booker (1) during the first half of the Hall of Fame Series game at Intuit Dome. Mandatory Credit: Kiyoshi Mio-Imagn Images | Kiyoshi Mio-Imagn Images

Arizona beat the Huskies on the glass badly, out-rebounding UConn 43-23 on the road. That shouldn't happen against a Dan Hurley team full of veteran bigs, but the Wildcats were that much better.

With Arizona trailing by one point with just over a minute to go, Bradley took a bad shot and missed wildly. But, Motiejus Krivas was there under the basket and collected a chaotic rebound and then knocked down the basket to put the Wildcats in front.

Nov 7, 2025; Tucson, Arizona, USA; Utah Tech Trailblazers guard Tanner Davis (11) attempts to make a lay up while Arizona Wildcats forward Koa Peat (10) attempts to block him during the first half of the game at McKale Memorial Center. Mandatory Credit: Aryanna Frank-Imagn Images | Aryanna Frank-Imagn Images

UConn did not have Tarris Reed Jr. to pull in rebounds, but Arizona was just more physical anyway. The Wildcats grabbed 13 offensive boards and turned them into 16 second-chance buckets.

Lloyd said that style of play is how Arizona wants to win, especially with the lack of shooting from outside.

Nov 7, 2025; Tucson, Arizona, USA; Arizona Wildcats forward Tobe Awaka (30) looks to pass the ball while Utah Tech Trailblazers guards Britton Barrett (13) and Noah Bolanga (66) attempts to steal the ball during the first half of the game at McKale Memorial Center. Mandatory Credit: Aryanna Frank-Imagn Images | Aryanna Frank-Imagn Images

"That's how we're built," Lloyd said after the game. "If you're not up for the physical fight, it's going to be tough. It's going to be tough to be a team that wins consistently at a high level. It's going to be tough to win on the road. It's going to be tough to win in the NCAA tournament. It's going to be tough to make a deep run. We want to build our team with guys that are capable of playing physical basketball."

Nov 3, 2025; Las Vegas, NV, USA; Arizona Wildcats head coach Tommy Lloyd looks on during the first half of the Hall of Fame Series game against the Florida Gators at T-Mobile Arena. Mandatory Credit: Candice Ward-Imagn Images | Candice Ward-Imagn Images

Peat's 12-rebound performance was his best as a college player so far, and he owned the glass against Alex Karaban and Jaylin Stewart. Krivas also grabbed 14 rebounds, while Tobe Awaka grabbed seven off the bench.

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