Arizona
Arizona basketball March Madness prediction: How far will Wildcats go in NCAA Tournament?
Arizona’s Caleb Love recalls the best moments from his previous March Madness appearances
Arizona’s Caleb Love talks about expectations for his team in the Big 12, and his hopes for March Madness. He also talks about his partnership with Ritz.
The NCAA Tournament bracket is set. How hard is the Arizona Wildcats’ potential road to the Final Four?
Here’s a look at Arizona’s possible opponents in each round of March Madness and our prediction for how far Tommy Lloyd’s team will advance in the bracket.
Last season, Arizona advanced to the Sweet 16 as a No. 2 seed, beating No. 15 Long Beach State 85-65 in the first round and No. 7 seed Dayton 78-68 in the second round before falling to No. 6 seed Clemson, 77-72.
The Wildcats haven’t made the Elite Eight since 2015. They haven’t made the Final Four since they lost to Duke in the 2001 National Championship game.
Could they end those skids in the 2025 NCAA Tournament?
Watch Arizona vs Akron on Sling TV
Arizona’s first-round NCAA Tournament opponent
Tommy Lloyd’s team is the No. 4 seed in the East Region of March Madness and will face No. 13 seed Akron in the first round of the NCAA Tournament in Seattle, looking to begin a long NCAA Tournament run.
Arizona’s first-round March Madness opponent, Akron, advanced to the NCAA Tournament by winning the MAC Conference Tournament.
It went 28-6 overall in the regular this season and 17-1 in conference play.
Arizona’s potential second-round March Madness opponents
The winner of the Arizona vs Akron game will face the winner of the No. 5 Oregon vs No. 12 Liberty game in the second round on Sunday, with the winner of that game advancing to the Sweet 16.
Arizona’s potential Sweet 16 opponents
Arizona would likely face No. 1 seed Duke, No. 8 seed Mississippi State or No. 9 seed Baylor in the Sweet 16, if it were to win its first two games in March Madness.
Arizona’s potential Elite 8 opponents
If Arizona were to win its first three games, the Wildcats would face the winner of the other half of the NCAA bracket for the East Region in the regional semifinal, with No. 2 Alabama, No. 3 Wisconsin, No. 6 BYU and No. 7 St. Mary’s being the highest seeds on that side of the bracket.
Arizona’s potential Final Four opponents
The winner of the East Region faces the winner of the Midwest Region in the Final Four. If Arizona were to somehow make it that far, the highest seeds in the Midwest Region include No. 1 seed Houston, No. 2 seed Tennessee, No. 3 seed Kentucky and No. 4 seed Purdue.
Arizona’s potential National Championship game opponents
The winner of the Midwest Region vs East Region national semifinal would face the winner of the South Region vs West Region national semifinal in the NCAA title game. Arizona’s possible opponents in that game, should it somehow make a run in the tournament and advance that far?
Auburn is the top seed in the South, with Michigan State the No. 2 seed, Iowa State the third seed and Texas A&M the fourth seed. The West Region’s Top 4 seeds are No. 1 Florida, No. 2 St. Johns, No. 3 Texas Tech and No. 4 Maryland.
Arizona Wildcats NCAA Tournament March Madness prediction
We wrote about Arizona’s “potential” opponents in the March Madness bracket, but how far will the Wildcats actually advance in the NCAA Tournament?
We predicted an 85-78 win for Arizona over Akron in our first-round March Madness game prediction. As for the second round? We think the Wildcats can get past Oregon (or Liberty) to make their second straight Sweet 16 appearance under Tommy Lloyd.
But we don’t foresee Arizona getting to the Elite Eight for the first time since 2015 in this tournament. Duke will be too much for the Wildcats in that round, even if Cooper Flagg isn’t 100%.
Prediction: Arizona Wildcats lose in Sweet 16 of NCAA Tournament
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Reach Jeremy Cluff at jeremy.cluff@arizonarepublic.com. Follow him on X, formerly Twitter @Jeremy_Cluff.
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Cardinals’ Burch shares what he learned as a rookie in 2025
Arizona Cardinals second-year player Jordan Burch says his defensive line teammates have formed a bond heading into the 2026 NFL season.
Last year in early July, Cardinals edge rusher Jordan Burch was a rookie third-round draft pick out of Oregon who was looking forward to his first NFL training camp and eventual first season.
That rookie year is behind him now, and Burch has identified what he needs to improve on heading into his second season. He said he now knows what to expect and look for, and after talking with outside linebackers coach Matt Feeney, Burch built an offseason plan with which he was comfortable.
“I don’t think anything was like a surprise,” Burch said on Thursday, July 9, at the Cardinals’ Tempe headquarters. “I kind of know what to prep for, so this offseason I can look at my old plays, and then I can call my coach and tell him, from last year to this year, what does he want to see on the field.”
Burch seeks to improve his pass rush. He played in all 17 games last season and had five solo tackles with a sack, and also broke up three passes.
Much of his position was dropping into pass coverage, so Burch looks to recognize pass catchers’ routes better in 2026. He gets help from veteran Josh Sweat, who is there to answer questions about the position they share.
“Every week, every game going against somebody good,” Burch said about takeaways from last season. “The talent of the quarterbacks. We’re playing the Rams, how quickly they get the ball out.”
Burch looks forward to building a stronger bond with his teammates, having invited some of them for dinner or to watch TV. He said he was happy with his progress as a player throughout last season.
The Cardinals open training camp Wednesday, July 22, at State Farm Stadium. It’s a week earlier than most teams because Arizona plays the Carolina Panthers in the Aug. 6 Hall of Fame Game in Canton, Ohio.
Cardinals legend Larry Fitzgerald will be among those inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame Aug. 8.
A new study has ranked Arizona as one of the worst states to move to for two years in a row, largely due to what it calls a poor quality of life.
The study conducted by Consumer Affairs analyzed the best states to move to in the United States, putting Arizona at the bottom of the list.
Before Arizonans get too defensive about the Grand Canyon State, Consumer Affairs used factors such as affordability, safety, economic strength and education to measure each state, leaving out factors like entertainment, retirement benefits and other considerations that may be important to people living here.
Popular states such as California and New York also landed at the bottom of the list due to their lack of affordability, even though they both have some of the best health care and education in the nation, Consumer Affairs noted.
Here’s why the study says you shouldn’t move to Arizona. Do you agree?
Why you shouldn’t move to Arizona
Arizona ranked No. 10 out of the worst states to move to, scoring especially poorly in quality of life.
Quality of life was measured by the state’s Social Progress Index, average air quality, weather, environmental protection and number of national parks. Due to Arizona’s extreme summers and Phoenix’s consistently poor air quality, it’s easy to see why Arizona ranked No. 44 in quality of life out of 50 states, even though the Grand Canyon is one of the most popular national parks in the nation.
However, Arizona also ranked poorly in other categories, sitting at No. 42 in health care and education, No. 41 in safety and No. 34 in affordability out of 50 states.
There was one category Arizona did impressively well in, ranking No. 5 in economic strength even as one of the youngest states in the country. Still, Arizona’s economic power wasn’t enough to boost its ranking.
Top 10 worst states to move to
Arizona wasn’t alone; some of the biggest states in the country were also considered the worst states to move to in 2026.
- New Mexico
- Louisiana
- California
- Arkansas
- Oklahoma
- Nevada
- Alaska
- Mississippi
- Oregon
- Arizona
Top 10 best states to move to
- Utah
- New Hampshire
- Idaho
- Minnesota
- Massachusetts
- Maine
- North Dakota
- Pennsylvania
- Iowa
- South Dakota
PHOENIX — Arizona’s ACA marketplace enrollment fell from 363,000 to just over 255,000 in a single year — a nearly 30% decline and the third-largest annual drop in the country.
Rising premiums and expired tax credits are driving the trend, with the average benchmark plan premium in Arizona now at $532 — up 30% from 2025.
In the player above, ABC15 Data Analyst Garrett Archer takes a look inside the numbers on how healthcare premiums are impacting health insurance enrollment.
This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
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