Predicting No. 13 Arizona's Game Against NAU

After pulling off the upset over No. 3 Florida (1-1) to open the college basketball season Monday in Las Vegas, No. 13 Arizona (2-0) was back in action on Friday night as the Wildcats faced off against Utah Tech in their home opening game.

The opponent drop off from Florida was massive and the Wildcats looked sluggish throughout parts of the game against the Trailblazers. However, Arizona took care of business walking away with a 93-67 win over Utah Tech.

Coming into the game, the Wildcats were (-33.5) point favorites but at the half it was only a 44-37 game with the Trailblazers being able to get to the line and knock down a few 3-point buckets.

As a team, Arizona shot 53% from the field but turned the ball over eight times, which led to 15 points on the other end for Utah Tech. The sloppy play from the Wildcats really kept the Trailblazers in the game during the first half.

Nov 7, 2025; Tucson, Arizona, USA; Arizona Wildcats guard Jaden Bradley (0) and Utah Tech Trailblazers guard Chanced Trujillo (2) both chase after the ball during the second half of the game at McKale Memorial Center. Mandatory Credit: Aryanna Frank-Imagn Images | Aryanna Frank-Imagn Images

However, Arizona was able to clean things up in the second half and turned the ball over only three times and finished the game with three turnovers.

Once again, the calming force for Arizona was point guard Jaden Braldey, who didn’t have a great scoring game with eight points but racked up six assists to just one turnover. Bradley was able to get the offense under control and back on track after a sloppy first half.

In the paint, Arizona was able to use its size to cause issues for Utah Tech as forward Tobe Awaka went for his first double-double of the season with 12 points and 18 rebounds. Awaka managed to go 5 of 10 from the field and get to the line four times.

Nov 7, 2025; Los Angeles, California, USA; UCLA Bruins head coach Mick Cronin reacts to a play during the second half against the Pepperdine Waves at Pauley Pavilion presented by Wescom Financial. Mandatory Credit: Kiyoshi Mio-Imagn Images | Kiyoshi Mio-Imagn Images

Now, With two games under their belt, the Wildcats will be getting ready to go up against NAU in the second home game of the season before Arizona heads to LA for a showdown against rival No. 12 UCLA (2-0).

With the game against NAU right around the corner, we at Arizona Wildcats On SI came up with our game prediction for Tuesday night’s third basketball game of the season.

Game Pick

No. 13 Arizona: 96

NAU: 65

Reason

The bottom line for this game is that the Wildcats have too much talent at every position for NAU and should be able to put this game to bed by the time half time rolls around. However, when you are dealing with three freshmen in the starting lineup, it is hard to predict how they will do in a game against a lower-level opponent.

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

However, the Wildcats have strong veteran leadership that will have the young players ready to roll against the Lumberjacks.This should be another big game for Koa Peat, who has scored 48 points in his first two collegiate games.

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