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Top Southern Arizona sports stories of 2025: December

By Javier Morales

Posted on December 31, 2025

Top Southern Arizona sports stories of 2025:

Arizona Athletics

Wildcats Football Bowl Bound: After a 9-3 regular season and reclaiming the Territorial Cup with a 23-7 win over Arizona State, No. 17 Arizona traveled to San Diego after Christmas to prepare for SMU in the Holiday Bowl. A win would secure only the fifth 10-win season in program history.
Men’s Basketball Dominance: The top-ranked Wildcats finished their non-conference schedule 13-0, their best start since 2013. Significant December victories included a 96-75 win at No. 12 Alabama and a 97-68 rout of No. 20 Auburn. Tommy Lloyd’s program earned a No. 1 ranking for eighth different season in program history.
Becky Burke Earns 100th Division I Coaching Victory: The first-year Arizona coach reached the milestone on a night when the Wildcats eclipsed 100 points in a game for the first time in three seasons. Arizona routed Bellarmine 105-59 in front of 5,124 fans at McKale Center on Dec. 18.

Pima Community College

Men and Women’s Hoops Ranked in Top 10 to End Year: The men’s team is 13-0 and ranked No. 8 while the women’s team is 11-3 and ranked No. 5. Both team project to be challengers for a regional title with berths in store for the NJCAA national tournaments again.

High School Sports

Mica Mountain Repeats as State Champs: The Thunderbolts successfully defended their 4A state title with a 42-17 victory over top-ranked Arcadia on Dec. 6. Standout player Riley Carson had a 99-yard kickoff return for a touchdown. Quarterback Jayden Crist threw for 264 yards and three touchdowns. The MVP was receiver Evan Wheeler, who had four catches for 194 yards and three touchdowns.
Sunnyside excels in boys soccer and girls basketball: The soccer team coached by Casey O’Brien won the Brandon Bean Invitational and the Arizona Holiday Extravaganza tournament. The Blue Devils earned the Arizona Holiday Extravaganza title by upsetting the state’s No. 1 ranked team, Mesa Westwood, 2-1 in the final. The girls hoops team, coached by Justin Delgado, claimed the Inferno Invitational and Flowing Wells Holiday Shootout championships.
Buena Coach Moves to Casa Grande: Joe Thomas ended his 11-year run at Buena to become the next coach at Casa Grande. The move was made for him to be closer to his daughter and son who live in the Gilbert area. He was 54-54 (after starting 0-21) with consecutive trips to the postseason the last three years with the Colts.

Other Developments

Fresno State Tops Miami (Ohio) in Snoop Dogg Arizona Bowl: An announced crowd of 37,232 watched Fresno State beat Miami (Ohio) 18-3 on Dec. 27 at Casino del Sol Stadium was short of last year’s record crowd of 40,076 for the Colorado State-Miami game. But the 10-year bowl continued to hold its own in terms of attendance with similar bowls. Excluding the four College Football Playoff games this postseason, the Arizona Bowl had the third-largest attendance when the game was played. Snoop Dogg expressed interest to local media to keep a long-term sponsorship of the game in Tucson because of the game giving all of its proceeds to local charities.
Mosaic Quarter Sports Complex Under Construction: The facility near Kino Boulevard and Ajo Boulevard will include a large-scale iceplex and turf fields will address local ice shortages for youth hockey and be the home of a potential women’s ice hockey team for Arizona.
Mexican Pacific League Shut Down in Tucson: Ongoing federal visa issues prevented games for the Mexican Pacific League at Kino Veterans Memorial Stadium throughout the winter season. County officials are hopeful a team can be fielded in Tucson next winter.
Legendary Local Wrestler Opens Training Facility: Roman Bravo-Young, a four-time state champ at Sunnyside and two-time national titlist at Penn State, fulfilled a long-term goal opening a wrestling facility on the southside on Dec. 15. “I’m excited to bring something back,” Bravo-Young said. “I love Tucson, especially South Tucson. I’m excited. I put a lot of thought and effort into this as you can see. Just trying to make a gym that’s unique and different.”