The University of Arizona men’s basketball team (13-0, 1-0 in Big 12) returns home to face Kansas State University (9-5, 0-1 in Big 12) on Wednesday, Jan. 7 at 7 p.m. MST in McKale Center. The Arizona Wildcats are looking to remain undefeated going into their second conference game.

History vs Kansas

The teams have a long history together dating back to the 1950-51 season. The first three games were narrowly won by Kansas State, including Arizona’s 61-59 loss in the series opener.

Since then, Arizona and Kansas State have fought 15 times with Kansas State holding the edge with nine wins. They most recently met in February 2025 in Kansas where Arizona suffered a close 73-70 loss. Despite previous troubles against the Kansas State Wildcats, this team for Arizona is likely to bring home a victory.

Key players

So far this season, freshman forward Koa Peat has been the front runner for Arizona. Peat leads with 201 points, averaging 14.4 points per game. Following Peat is another freshman Brayden Burries who has totaled 199 points this season.

Another key player for the Wildcats is senior forward Tobe Awaka. Awaka is always catching the rebound, averaging 10.3 and collecting 144 total. In the Wildcats last game against the University of Utah, Awaka put up two 3-pointers and 12 rebounds which helped Arizona to victory.

Leading the team for Kansas State is junior guard P.J. Haggerty. Haggerty has been the Wildcats’ primary threat; leading the team in points, rebounds and assists. So far this season, he’s acquired 322 points and averaged 23.0 points, 5.2 rebounds and 4.6 assists.

What to expect

Arizona enters this matchup holding the No. 1 spot in the AP Poll for the sixth consecutive week. The Wildcats have shown to be strong defensively and take control early in the game.

Both teams have demonstrated great strength collecting rebounds and second-chance points. Arizona leads with 610 rebounds and Kansas follows with 529 this season.

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