Arizona begins its quest for the first Big XII Tournament title in program history on Thursday against Central Florida. Top seed Houston defeated third seed Arizona 72-64 in the 2025 Big XII Tournament Championship Game for its second title in as many years in the conference.
Arizona finished 16-2 to win the 2026 Big XII regular season title. Houston is the second seed in the 2026 Big XII Tournament after finishing 14-4 in the regular season. Arizona won 73-66 at Houston on February 21, playing without forwards Dwayne Aristode and Koa Peat.
Arizona won a tough game at Central Florida 84-77 on January 17. Central Florida advanced to the Big XII Tournament quarterfinals with a 66-65 overtime win in the second round. The Knights scored the final eight points in regulation to force overtime.
Central Florida guard Themus Fulks scored 30 points on 11-18 from the field, made two of his four three-point attemps and all six of his free throws attempts with five rebounds, eight assists and two steals in the loss to Arizona in January,
Arizona versus Central Florida Game Time and TV
Arizona versus Central Florida in the Big XII Tournament quarterfinals will tip off at noon Mountain Standard Time on ESPN with their top announcing team of Dan Shulman on play-by-play, Jay Bilas as the analyst and Kris Budden as the sideline reporter.
Arizona versus Central Florida FanDuel odds
Arizona is a 15.5-point favorite over Central Florida in the FanDuel Sportsbook odds. Taking the points and UCF is -105. Laying the points with Arizona is -115. UCF is +1100 on the money line and Arizona is -2500. The over/under is 159.5. Betting the over is -115 and the under is -105.
Arizona versus Central Florida series history
Arizona has won both games in its history against Central Florida. In addition to the win in January, Arizona beat UCF 88-80 in Tucson in 2025. The Big XII Tournament game in Kansas City will cap Arizona and UCF playing a home-and-home and now on a neutral site.