Arizona picked 5th in Big XII, Caleb Love preseason All-Conference

Big XII coaches picked Arizona fifth and named guard Caleb Love to one of the five spots on the All-Conference team on Thursday. Kansas was picked first with nine first-place votes, followed by Houston with five, Iowa State with one, Baylor fourth and Arizona fifth with one vote to win the league.

Arizona will encounter a much more demanding league schedule in the Big XII than they did in the Pac-12 recently. Baylor and Kansas have each won national championships in this decade and Houston has made it to a Final Four. Iowa State has reached a regional semifinal in two of the last three NCAA Tournaments.

Arizona plays Baylor and Iowa State twice each and Houston and Kansas once during the 2024-25 season. Kansas barely earned the top spot from the coaches with 215 points. Houston had 211, Iowa State, 194, Baylor 185 and Arizona 179. Cincinnati is picked sixth with 140 points.

Arizona is the only former Pac-12 team picked high in the Big XII preseason poll. Arizona State is picked 12th, Colorado 15th and Utah 16th at the bottom of the conference. Arizona plays Arizona State twice, but Colorado and Utah only once each.

Love was named to the preseason All-Big XII team with LJ Cryer and J’Wan Roberts from Houston, Tamin Lipsey of Iowa State and Hunter Dickinson, Kansas who was chosen as the Player of the Year and a unanimous choice to the team. Jeremy Roach who transferred from Duke this spring will be an interesting and familiar matchup for Love.

Arizona plays its inaugural Big XII conference game versus TCU on December 30. TCU is picked 10th in the Big XII. Cincinnati will host Arizona for their first Big XII road game on January 4. The new era and different rivalries for Arizona make the 2024-25 season a transformative one for Arizona.