Arizona Wildcats head coach Tommy Lloyd arrived two years ago from the Gonzaga Bulldogs facing uncertainty. Arizona was facing the possibility of serious NCAA sanctions. Cause by years of alleged recruiting misconduct and an FBI investigation. But Lloyd served under Mark Few at Gonzaga and learned how to build a college basketball powerhouse. So far, Lloyd has half of a team. The Wildcats’ offense is one of the best in the land. But their defense is often non-existent. Hence, that has put them in the red against the College Basketball odds oddsmakers.
2022-23 Arizona Wildcats
| Team | Odds |
|---|---|
| 2022-23 Arizona Wildcats National Championship Odds at SBG: | +1440 |
2022-23 Arizona Wildcats SBG Odds Overview
Overall, Arizona is 13-1 straight up, 6-7-1 against the spread, and 7-7 over/under the offshore betting total. Arizona has national rankings of 4th for scoring offense, 2nd for field goal percentage, 87th for 3-point field goal percentage, 66th for free throw percentage, and 6th for offensive rebounding. While defensively, Arizona has national rankings of 277th for scoring defense, 73rd for field goal percentage permitted, 132nd for 3-point field goal percentage allowed, and 63rd for defensive rebounding.
Late on, Arizona has lost only one of its last seven to the spread. Four of its last five games went under the total. Azuolas Tubelis leads Arizona with 20.1 points per game.
2022-23 Arizona Wildcats Preview
Indeed, it was a tremendous NCAABB betting season for Arizona. In Tommy Lloyd’s first year at the helm, the Wildcats went 33-4, won the Pac-12 regular-season and tournament titles, and were a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament. It is true that a Sweet 16 loss to Houston was a disappointing end of the season for a potential Final Four team. But the Cats are back on the map and could contend for another conference championship this season.
The Wildcats began the 2022-23 season ranked 17th in the Associated Press Top 25 and were picked to finish second in the Pac-12. Following a rank of second in the final AP poll. And they were winning both the regular-season and conference title en route to a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament and Sweet 16 bid.
But gone from that squad are four of the top eight contributors. Including three starters who are all now on NBA rosters. The reinforcements mix veteran transfers and unproven newcomers.
Last year, Tommy Lloyd stepped into the head coaching position for Arizona. Lloyd arrived from Gonzaga, where he was the top assistant to head coach Mark Few from 2001-2021. So respected was Lloyd that he was designated as Few’s heir apparent. But the opportunity to take over a traditional power such as Arizona proved irresistible.
Under Few, Lloyd studied and worked under one of the most successful head coaches in the modern game. However, Lloyd faces a far more difficult challenge at Arizona than what was the case at Gonzaga. First, Arizona plays in the much more difficult Pac-12 Conference. In comparison, Gonzaga is the big fish of the little pond known as the West Coast Conference. Still, Lloyd could see Few recruit top players and excellent students on a national stage.
Still, Arizona has two top-four scorers back in Azuolas Tubelis and Kerr Kriisa. With Terry and Mathurin gone, the key will be Kriisa. The challenge is for the rising junior point guard to coexist with Texas grad transfer Courtney Ramey.