Arizona will face Colorado State in the first round of the Maui Invitational on Nov. 23, giving the early-season men's basketball event a matchup between old and new Pac-12 teams.
The Maui Invitational released an official list of first-round matchups Wednesday, assigning the Wildcats and Rams to play the fourth and final game of the first day. Though an official bracket was not released, UA will face one of the teams in the third game, VCU or Providence, in the second round on Nov. 24.
Arizona's opponent for its final game on Nov. 25 could be either BYU, Clemson, Ole Miss or Washington. Ole Miss will face Clemson in the first game on Nov. 23 while BYU will face Washington.
Exact times have not yet been released. Arizona-Colorado will air on ESPN2, while the championship game will be on ESPN. Round 2 games will be carried on either ESPN2 or ESPNU and also streamed online via ESPN.com or the ESPN app.
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Colorado State, which went 21-13 overall and 11-9 in the Mountain West before reaching the NIT last season, is moving from the Mountain West to the Pac-12 this season while Arizona departed the conference after the 2023-24 season to join the Big 12. Washington also left the Pac-12 in 2024 and joined the Big Ten.
Half of the Maui teams reached the NCAA Tournament last season: Arizona (a No. 1 seed), BYU (No. 6), Clemson (No. 8), and VCU (No. 11).
While Arizona is the only Maui team that is a consensus pick in the major early Top 25s for next season, BYU is a contender after going 23-12 last season but losing NBA Draft picks AJ Dybantsa and Richie Saunders.
Last season, Clemson went 24-11 overall and 12-6 in the ACC while Ole Miss was 15-20, Providence was 15-18, VCU was 28-8 and Washington was 16-17. The Maui Invitational has faced competition from high-payout events such as the Players Era Festival in attracting top teams.
Arizona won the Maui Invitational in its last appearance, beating Cincinnati, San Diego State and Creighton for the 2022 title in what was UA coach Tommy Lloyd’s second season with the Wildcats.
UA coach Tommy Lloyd chats with the media before the Maui Invitational.
Overall, Arizona is 17-8 in eight previous Maui Invitational appearances, including an add-on game at McKale Center in 2014, and also won the event in 2000 and 2014.
This season, the Maui Invitational will be a homecoming of sorts for UA guard JJ Mandaquit, a native of Hilo on the neighboring Big Island of Hawaii.
Individual game tickets for the Maui Invitational are not yet on sale, while travel packages through the Wildcat Club with tickets and hotel but without airfare start at $3,989. When Arizona played in 2022, individual game tickets were $136 and all-session (12-game) passes were $1,063.
Contact sports reporter Bruce Pascoe at bpascoe@tucson.com. On X(Twitter): @brucepascoe
Bruce Pascoe
Reporter
