Arizona men’s basketball’s trip to the Southwest Maui Invitational won’t be as arduous as past years, but if all goes right Tommy Lloyd’s squad could find itself in a compelling championship matchup.
Arizona will open the Maui Invitational against Colorado State on Nov. 23. The winner will face either Providence or VCU.
Arizona got the easier end of the bracket; the other side features Ole Miss vs. Clemson and Washington vs. BYU. The UA is guaranteed to play one of those four Power 4 teams in its third game. Which one it gets depends on whether Arizona can win its first two matchups.
Arizona last played Colorado State in 1978, when the two schools were members of the Western Athletic Conference. Between 1960-78, the teams played 21 times, with CSU winning 11 of the matchups.
CSU is led by second-year coach Ali Farokhmenash. The Rams went 21-13 last year and lost in the first round of the NIT.
In the second game, Arizona could face VCU for the first time in program history, or take on Providence, who the UA last played in the 2015 Wooden Legacy.
Arizona is the only preseason top 25 team in the Maui Field, a reminder that Maui no longer holds the cache it once did in the sport. Arizona last appeared at the tournament in 2022, where it beat Cincinnati, No. No. 17 San Diego State and No. 10 Creighton.
Arizona’s three Maui championships (2000, 2014, 2022) are tied with Kansas and Syracuse for third-most all time. Arizona could move into a tie with North Carolina for second with another title this November.