A No. 1 ranking in the AP Top 25 poll is a nice honor and it brings added visibility to a program, but it does not always translate to finishing on top at the end.
Arizona (8-0) is ranked No. 1 this week — only the third week the Wildcats have reached that plateau after Sean Miller’s 2013-14 team was at the top for eight weeks.
The 2013-14 team, without injured Brandon Ashley because of a foot injury, finished in the Elite Eight.
The Wildcats have advanced to the Final Four twice when ranked No. 1 in that particular season.
The 1987-88 team with Steve Kerr, Sean Elliott, and Co., lost to Oklahoma in the program’s first Final Four appearance.
The 2000-01 team, led by Jason Gardner, Luke Walton and Gilbert Arenas, lost to Duke in the national championship game.
In addition to making it to two Final Fours, the Wildcats reached the Elite Eight three times and Sweet 16 twice.
Could Tommy Lloyd’s second team to reach No. 1 go all the way? The 2023-24 team, that was at the top for two weeks, lost to Clemson in the Sweet 16.
Lloyd has surpassed Miller for number of teams at Arizona to reach No. 1. Miller’s lone team to ascend to the top spot was in 2013-14.
Lute Olson’s teams were ranked No. 1 in five different seasons (1987-88, 1988-89, 1997-98, 2000-01, and 2002-03).
The 2002-03 team with Jason Gardner, Salim Stoudamire, Andre Iguodala, Luke Walton, Hassan Adams, Rick Anderson and Channing Frye holds the school record with 13 weeks at No. 1 in a season. They lost to Kansas in the Elite Eight.
A fact: In the 20 years after the 2002-03 team was ranked No. 1 for 13 weeks, the Wildcats have been No. 1 a total of 11 weeks.
Arizona has been ranked No. 1 for a total of 40 weeks in program history, which ranks ninth among all schools since the AP poll began in the 1948-49 season.
When Arizona won the national title in 1996-97 with a 25-9 record, it was never No. 1. It went as high as No. 6 on Jan. 13, 1997.
The 2000-01 team that reached the championship game against Duke was ranked No. 1 in the preseason and the first two weeks of the season. That team did not go higher than No. 5 thereafter.
HISTORY OF ARIZONA AT NO. 1
Seasons that Arizona was ranked No. 1 with number weeks at No. 1, top rotation (players who averaged more than 10 minutes per game) and the head coach.| Season | Weeks | Rotation |
|---|---|---|
 |
||
| 1987-1988 | 6 | G Steve Kerr |
| Lute Olson | G Craig McMillan | |
| 35-3 | F Sean Elliott | |
| Final Four | F Anthony Cook | |
| F Tom Tolbert | ||
| G Kenny Lofton | ||
| F Joe Turner | ||
| F Jud Buechler | ||
 |
||
| 1988-1989 | 4 | G Kenny Lofton |
| Lute Olson | G Matt Muehlebach | |
| 29-4 | F Sean Elliott | |
| Sweet 16 | F Anthony Cook | |
| F Jud Buechler | ||
| C Sean Rooks | ||
| G Harvey Mason | ||
| G Matt Othick | ||
 |
||
| 1997-1998 | 3 | G Mike Bibby |
| Lute Olson | G Miles Simon | |
| 30-5 | F Michael Dickerson | |
| Elite 8 | F Bennett Davison | |
| C AJ Bramlett | ||
| G Jason Terry | ||
| F Eugene Edgerson | ||
| F Donnell Harris | ||
 |
||
| 2000-01 | 3 | G Jason Gardner |
| Lute Olson | G Gilbert Arenas | |
| 28-8 | F Michael Wright | |
| National runner-up | F Luke Walton | |
| C Loren Woods | ||
| F Richard Jefferson | ||
| F Justin Wessel | ||
| F Rick Anderson | ||
| G Lamont Frazier | ||
 |
||
| 2002-2003 | 13 | G Jason Gardner |
| Lute Olson | G Salim Stoudamire | |
| 28-4 | F Luke Walton | |
| Elite 8 | F Rick Anderson | |
| C Channing Frye | ||
| G Andre Iguodala | ||
| G Hassan Adams | ||
| F Isaiah Fox | ||
 |
||
| 2013-2014 | 8 | G TJ McConnell |
| Sean Miller | G Nick Johnson | |
| 33-5 | F Aaron Gordon | |
| Elite 8 | F Brandon Ashley | |
| C Kaleb Tarczewski | ||
| F Rondae Hollis-Jefferson | ||
| G Gabe York | ||
 |
||
| 2023-2024 | 2 | G Kylan Boswell |
| Tommy Lloyd | G Caleb Love | |
| 27-9 | F Keshad Johnson | |
| Sweet 16 | F Pelle Larsson | |
| C Oumar Ballo | ||
| G Jaden Bradley | ||
| G KJ Lewis | ||
| C Motiejus Krivas | ||
| F Paulius Murauskas | ||
| F Filip Borvicanin | ||
 |
||
| 2025-26 | 1 | G Jaden Bradley |
| Tommy Lloyd | G Brayden Burries | |
| 8-0 | G Ivan Karchenkov | |
| F Koa Peat | ||
| C Motiejus Krivas | ||
| F Tobe Awaka | ||
| G Anthony Dell'Orso | ||
| G Dwayne Aristode |
Recommended for you
