The Sweet 16 has been a regular stop for Arizona under Tommy Lloyd. Since he took over the program five years ago the Wildcats have reached this round of the NCAA Tournament four times, including three in a row.
Lute Olson managed that feat twice, from 1996-98 and 2001-03, while Sean Miller did it from 2012-14. But those runs also included trips to the Elite Eight, if not further, while Arizona has yet to get past the third game under Lloyd.
Like two of the previous three Sweet 16 appearances, No.
1 Arizona (34-2) is the higher-seeded team and a strong favorite to beat No. 4 Arkansas (28-8). The UA is favored by 8.5 points, per FanDuel Sportsbook, the second-largest spread in the regional semifinal round.
The UA has won 11 in a row, while Arkansas has run off seven straight victories. Both are playing some of their best basketball of the season, which should make for a great Sweet 16 battle.
Key players
Arizona G Jaden Bradley: The Big 12 Player of the Year has been Arizona’s closer all season, hitting most of the big shots down the stretch including his buzzer beater against Iowa State in the conference tournament semifinals. This is the senior’s fourth consecutive Sweet 16 appearance, including as a freshman in 2023 with Alabama, and his shooting numbers go through the roof during clutch moments.
Arkansas G Darius Acuff: The SEC Freshman of the Year leads his conference in scoring (23.3) and assists (6.5), something that hadn’t been done in that league since Pete Maravich in 1969-70. A projected lottery pick and consensus All-American, Acuff scored 36 points in the second round win over High Point and 30 to beat Vanderbilt for the SEC tournament title. He shoots better than 50 percent from 2 and 44 percent from 3 and has gotten to the foul line 10-plus times twice in th last five games.
Arkansas F Trevon Brazile: A skilled ball handler and shooter at 6-foot-10, the senior also leads the Razorbacks in rebounding, blocks and steals.
Arizona G Brayden Burries: One of three freshmen starting for the Wildcats, Burries leads the Wildcats in scoring (16.0) and 3-pointers (62). His 576 points this season are third-most in school history among freshmen.
Stats to watch
3-point shooting: Neither Arizona or Arkansas take a lot of 3-pointers, but when they do they make them at a high rate. Arizona has shot over 40 percent since the start of the Big 12 Tournament, despite only averaging only 15 attempts per game, while Arkansas shoots 38.7 percent for the season while making 9 of 16 in the second round against High Point and 15 of 24 in the SEC final against Vanderbilt.
Rebounding: Arizona has a plus-24.5 rebound differential so far in the NCAA Tournament, tops in the field, and for the season has outrebounded opponents by an average of 11.6 per game. Three different Wildcats have recorded double-doubles in two games, with Tobe Awaka the top offensive rebounder in the country (20.4 percent). Arkansas is only plus-1.7 on the boards for the season, and seven of its losses have come when opponents grab at least 30 percent of their misses.
Free throw shooting: Arizona has made 700 foul shots this season, the most by a power conference team since 2014-15 (also the Wildcats). It averages 26.6 attempts per game, often making more than the opponent takes. Arkansas has been good at keeping most teams off the line, though six of its losses have come when giving up at least 24 free throw attempts.
Top matchup
Both Arizona and Arkansas love to get to the rim, with each getting more than half their scoring from 2-point shots. But the Wildcats are much better at preventing that kind of production, holding opponents to 43.7 percent on 2s compared to 54 percent yielded by the Razorbacks.
UA center Motiejus Krivas has blocked seven shots in two games, tied for most in the tournament, while Arkansas has 11 blocks so far in the NCAA Tournament.
