Arizona basketball is on the brink of making history - again.
With a 21-0 start to the 2025-26 season, the Wildcats are one win away from setting a new program record for consecutive victories. That shot comes Saturday afternoon in Tempe, where Arizona will look to notch its 22nd straight win - this time against in-state rival Arizona State.
It’s a streak that ties the mark set by the 2013-14 squad, which opened its season with 21 straight wins before injuries and late-season losses derailed what had looked like a potential championship run. That team ultimately fell to California after losing forward Brandon Ashley just two minutes into the game. They later dropped a double-overtime heartbreaker at Arizona State and closed the regular season with a loss at Oregon.
Despite a strong postseason push, that team came up short - falling to UCLA in the Pac-12 title game and then losing a one-point overtime thriller to Wisconsin in the Elite Eight. That season ended at 33-5, and although it was the only time under Sean Miller that Arizona earned a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament, the campaign left fans wondering what could’ve been.
Fast forward to now, and this year’s Wildcats are writing their own script - and so far, it’s been a dominant one.
Arizona has already matched that 21-game win streak, but the path to get there has looked even more impressive. Through 21 games, the Wildcats have racked up six wins over ranked opponents - a significant leap from the two ranked wins logged by the 2013-14 team, which beat then-No.
6 Duke early in the season and topped No. 13 San Diego State in the NCAA Tournament.
Now, it’s not just about the rankings. The way we measure team strength has evolved, and Arizona is thriving in the metrics that matter most today. The Wildcats lead the nation with nine Quadrant 1 wins according to the NCAA’s NET rankings - a stat that reflects success against top-tier competition and carries serious weight in tournament seeding.
And the road ahead? It’s about to get even tougher.
After Saturday’s rivalry showdown at Arizona State and a February 7 matchup with Oklahoma State, Arizona faces a gauntlet of four straight games against ranked opponents: Kansas, Texas Tech, BYU, and Houston. That stretch could define the Wildcats’ season - and their standing as a national title contender.
But make no mistake: Arizona’s positioning right now is elite. If the Wildcats can keep this momentum rolling, they’re in prime shape to lock down the top seed in the NCAA Tournament’s West Regional - and maybe even make a deeper run than that 2013-14 team ever did.
So as Saturday’s tip-off approaches, the stakes are clear. A win would mean more than just bragging rights over Arizona State. It would mark a new high point in program history - and keep the Wildcats’ perfect season alive as they head into their toughest stretch yet.