After Arizona finished one possession from winning the national championship at the 2021 Final Four, I was prepared for coach Adia Barnes to reward her loyal fanbase — No. 1 in the Pac-12 in average attendance from 2000-25 — by scheduling a roll-call of Top 25 programs for nonconference games at McKale Center.
But Barnes did not do that. The only Top 25 team that visited McKale in that period was No. 7 Texas in December 2024. The “top’’ nonconference team to play at McKale last year was UNLV.
That’s why it was a bit disappointing Friday when new Arizona coach Becky Burke announced an 11-game nonconference home schedule that included no Power 4 conference teams. The 11 teams are: Grambling State, UC Irvine, UC Bakersfield, UC Riverside, NAU, Northern Colorado, Southern, New Mexico, Eastern Kentucky, Chicago State and Bellarmine. In a rare move, Burke did not schedule any nonconference road games. I’ve never heard of that.
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Yet I still think about 7,500 fans will buy tickets to UA home games, no matter the opponent. Burke deserves a break-in season, and it seems likely the fans will be patient, understanding that scheduling on a few short months’ notice — with only one returning player — is complicated.
Montaya Dew chats with fans during a meet-and-greet event with the Arizona women’s basketball team at the Tucson Racquet Club on July 28, 2025.
Becky Burke, U of A women’s basketball team feel the love at fan event | Michael Lev
