The start of the 2025-26 college basketball season is still a few months away, but the excitement of the upcoming campaign is already building. Especially for Florida Gators fans, whose beloved Orange and Blue is set to defend its title starting on Monday, Nov. 3, in Las Vegas.
Looking ahead to the first half of the schedule, which represents the non-conference portion of the slate, ESPN’s Jeff Borzello took a look at the best matchups for each top 25 team during the first two months of the season. For Todd Golden and Co., he selected their opening night game in Sin City against the Arizona Wildcats.
“It’s hard to pass up the season opener for the reigning national champs. There will be some growing pains for the Gators, who are bringing in a new backcourt in transfers Boogie Fland and Xaivian Lee,” Borzello notes.
“But the Wildcats should pose a good test, as they are going to be even more of a work-in-progress: likely starting two freshmen in five-star recruits Brayden Burries and Koa Peat.”
Florida basketball’s projected starting lineup vs Arizona
Florida basketball’s history vs. the Arizona Wildcats
The Gators and Wildcats have faced off just four times before, with their last meeting coming in 2012 — a 65-64 loss in Tucson. Overall, the two schools are knotted at two wins apiece, with Arizona’s other win coming in the first matchup in 2001, 75-71, in New York City.
Florida won the two meetings in between, with a 78-77 victory in Springfield, Massachusetts, in 2003 and a 78-72 triumph inside the O’Connell Center in 2011. The two programs’ combined all-time results reveal a narrow two-point margin in favor of UF.
ESPN’s early top 25 men’s basketball rankings
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This article originally appeared on Gators Wire: Which non-conference matchup for Florida basketball is the best this coming season?
Reporting by Adam Dubbin, Gators Wire / Gators Wire
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
