Tommy Lloyd Lights Up Wildcats With Explosive Performance Over Tough Big 12 Rivals
KANSAS CITY, MISSOURI - MARCH 14: Head coach Tommy Lloyd of the Arizona Wildcats cuts down the next after defeating the Houston Cougars in the championship game of the Big 12 Tournament at T-Mobile Center on March 14, 2026 in Kansas City, Missouri. (Photo by Ed Zurga/Getty Images) | Getty Images When Arizona transitioned from the Pac-12 to the Big 12, Tommy Lloyd knew winning conference championships wouldn’t come as easily playing in one of the toughest leagues in college basketball. Nor would it be like at his former school, Gonzaga, which took home WCC championships nearly every year.
Yet just two years into the Big 12, Lloyd is having the same kind of success he had in the past leagues he coached in. Arizona defeated Houston Saturday in Kansas City to sweep the Big 12 regular season and conference tournament titles. For Lloyd, it was fitting that the victory would come over Kelvin Sampson ’s program.
“What I’ll say, just for me and my experience as a coach, I was at a place, we were kind of on top of the conference a lot. And when we got in the Big 12, I learned real quick that we were looking up and chasing a program, and it was Houston,” Lloyd said. “Not that we were fixated with the chase, but it gave us a great barometer for what we felt like we had to do to improve our program to see if we could put ourselves over the top.
So I’m thankful for Houston and the competition they give us. ” Houston pushed Arizona right to the end, but the Wildcats came out victorious as usual, moving to 32-2 ahead of the NCAA Tournament. Lloyd said the team will get back late Saturday, rest and recover and then prepare for who they’ll face in the Round of 64.
“Now, what’s next? What’s next is the NCAA Tournament, and then we’re going to figure out who’s in our crosshairs, and then we’ll just focus on that and try to advance as far as we can in that tournament, one game at a time,” Lloyd said. Our recap of the game can be found here , and you can find social media reactions to the Wildcats’ latest title here .
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