The wait is finally over. College basketball is back and the UCLA Bruins are beginning the 2026-2027 season in the forefront, as No. 22 UCLA will take on No. 5 Arizona Monday night in Las Vegas in part of the Hall of Fame Series.
It’s two storied programs squaring off, with Mick Cronin’s team getting an immediate test. Arizona has a lot of talent, making the Final Four last season, but no Wildcat player will be a bigger test for the Bruins than center Motiejus Krivas, who was named the Big 12’s Preseason Player of the Year.Krivas isn’t alone either, 5-star recruit Caleb Holt and North Carolina transfer Derek Dixon giving head coach Tommy Lloyd plenty of talent at his disposal.
After UCLA’s preseason finale, Cronin spoke about the test that Arizona
will prove to a young Bruin team.
“We’ve been preparing. Arizona, Tommy and I have been preparing for each other for six months,” Cronin said. “Krivas is coming to town. There’s no way to stop it, he’s going to get on the plane and he’s going to be there. And that’s a problem.”
It sounds like Krivas has already caused Cronin some nightmares and that might continue Monday night, with the 7’3” center set to attempt to take away the interior for the UCLA offense. Krivas is entering his fourth season of college basketball, averaging 10.4 points, 8.2 rebounds and 1.9 blocks per game last season while just averaging 25.3 minutes.
Krivas isn’t the only star for Arizona, with the Wildcats giving UCLA a reminder of what a national championship-roster looks like on night one of the season.
“They play unbelievably hard. They got a great freshman, they got a great big guy,” Cronin said. “It’s always war when we play them. So I expect nothing less.”
It’s 𝐆𝐀𝐌𝐄𝐃𝐀𝐘 from 𝐋𝐚𝐬 𝐕𝐞𝐠𝐚𝐬!
— UCLA Men’s Basketball (@UCLAMBB) November 2, 2026
No. 22 UCLA opens the season tonight against No. 5 Arizona at @TMobileArena.
⏰: 7 p.m. (PT)
📺: TNT, truTV, HBO Max
📻: AM 790
📊: https://t.co/5i8FecBPbm #GoBruins 🏀 pic.twitter.com/sUOtKONHm8
This article originally appeared on UCLA Wire: 'It’s always war when we play them' Mick Cronin speaks on season opener
