Arizona Chasing History with 22nd Straight Win on the Line
The Arizona Wildcats are rolling-and they’re not just chasing wins, they’re chasing history.
When they take the floor Saturday afternoon in Tempe against in-state rival Arizona State, the Wildcats will be aiming for their 22nd consecutive victory, which would mark a new program record. They matched the existing mark of 21 straight wins earlier this week with a road win at BYU, tying the start of the 2013-14 season when Arizona also opened the year 21-0.
That 2013-14 squad was loaded and looked like a team of destiny-until things took a sharp turn. Just two minutes into a road game at Cal, starting forward Brandon Ashley went down with a season-ending foot injury.
Arizona dropped that game, and the ripple effects were felt down the stretch. They lost again three games later in double overtime at Arizona State, and then fell to Oregon in the regular-season finale.
UCLA edged them in the Pac-12 title game, and Wisconsin ended their season in the Elite Eight with a heartbreaking 64-63 overtime loss. That team still finished 33-5 and earned a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament-the only time Sean Miller’s Arizona teams reached that seeding line.
Fast forward to now, and this year’s Wildcats are carving out their own identity, one win at a time. The 2025-26 version of Arizona has already notched six wins over ranked opponents through 21 games-a significant uptick compared to the 2013-14 team, which only defeated two ranked teams all season (No.
6 Duke in the regular season and No. 13 San Diego State in the NCAA Tournament).
Yes, some of those ranked wins this season-like Auburn and UCLA-have lost a bit of shine as those teams have since dropped out of the Top 25. But in today’s college basketball landscape, rankings are just one piece of the puzzle.
The more telling stat? Arizona leads the country in quadrant one wins, with nine.
That’s the gold standard in the NCAA’s NET rankings, and it’s a major reason why the Wildcats are in prime position to earn the No. 1 seed in the West Region come March.
And the road ahead? It’s no cakewalk.
Arizona’s about to hit the teeth of its schedule. After Saturday’s rivalry game in Tempe and a home matchup with Oklahoma State on February 7, the Wildcats enter a brutal four-game stretch against ranked opponents: Kansas, Texas Tech, BYU (again), and Houston.
That’s the kind of gauntlet that can either expose cracks or solidify a team’s championship credentials.
Make no mistake-Arizona’s unbeaten run has been impressive. But the real tests are coming.
If they can survive February still standing, we won’t just be talking about a school-record win streak. We’ll be talking about a team with legitimate national title aspirations.
For now, all eyes are on Saturday. One more win, and Arizona writes a new chapter in its storied basketball history.