NCAA Basketball: Way-too-early top 25 power rankings for 2022-23 season
511. . . . Wildcats . 4. team
2021-22 season record: 33-4 (18-2 in Pac-12)
No team outperformed expectations more than head coach Tommy Lloyd and Arizona this past season, earning a 1 seed and making the Sweet 16 in the NCAA Tournament. And they have the pieces to make sure that it’s the start of a trend, rather than a fluke. They’ll have to do it without star wing Bennedict Mathurin, who is a projected top-10 NBA Draft.
The only other draft prospect to watch for is Pac-12 Defensive Player of the Year center Christian Koloko. He’s around the 25-40 range so he could stay or go but the team can survive without him, as Oumar Ballo played well as his backup and is a quality defender in his own right as well. Starting forward Azuolas Tubelis (13.9 ppg and 6.2 rpg) should be back as well, giving them an ideal frontcourt to work with.
In the backcourt, look for point guard Kerr Kriisa to continue developing and become more steady and consistent. He’ll have to avoid awful shooting nights but with Mathurin gone, his own offense will be relied on more so there will have to be a balance. And look for Dalen Terry to have more of a scoring role as well. He’s already one of the better defenders in the country and quietly shot 50% from the field overall last season and 36% from deep.
Combo guard Pelle Larsson will round out what would be an elite starting lineup, with four-star big man Dylan Anderson potentially adding depth in case Koloko opts out. This is a group that has incredible defensive potential but it’ll be up to Kriisa to steer the offense in the right direction.