Arizona men’s hoops to face defending champ Florida on opening night in Las Vegas

The Arizona Wildcats men’s basketball team is reportedly slated to face the defending champion Florida Gators in Las Vegas to open up the 2025-26 season.

According to CBS Sports’ and College Hoops Today’s Jon Rothstein, the two sides will meet on Nov. 3 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.

Rothstein adds tipoff times have yet to be determined and an official announcement is expected soon.

Wildcats, Gators coming off NCAA Tournament runs

Arizona is coming off a 22-12 record (14-6 conference) in 2024-25. The Wildcats made a run to the Sweet Sixteen before falling to the Duke Blue Devils.

The Wildcats’ roster has since undergone quite the change, with KJ Lewis (Georgetown), Henri Veesaar (North Carolina), Emmanuel Stephen (UNLV) and Conrad Martinez (High Point) transferring in the offseason.

Caleb Love and Trey Townsend won’t be back, either, after using up their college eligibility.

The Wildcats have since restocked the cupboard, with Mabil Mawut and Sidi Gueye joining high-profile freshmen Koa Peat, Brayden Burries, Bryce James and Dwayne Aristode. Evan Nelson is also headed to Tucson after transferring from Harvard.

Florida on the other hand, went the distance in the NCAA Tournament.

After knocking off Norfolk State, defending champion UConn, Maryland, Texas Tech and Auburn, the Gators got the better of the Houston Cougars in a come-from-behind 65-63 championship victory.

Leading the way for the Gators last season was guard Walter Clayton Jr. The guard averaged 18.3 points on 44.8% shooting and 38.6% from long range. He added 3.7 rebounds and 4.2 assists across 32.6 minutes per game.

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