When I saw that Arizona men’s basketball scheduled an exhibition game against Prescott’s Embry-Riddle University on Oct. 27 at McKale Center, I wondered why it couldn’t get a more challenging opponent.
Then it hit me: Tommy Lloyd is doing a favor for Embry-Riddle head coach Ben Tucker, a UA grad who was the Wildcats’ student manager from 2007-11 and assistant director of basketball operations for two years under Sean Miller. Tucker left the UA in 2016 to be an assistant coach for ex-UA assistant coach Joe Pasternack, where he stayed for five seasons.
Arizona head coach Tommy Lloyd speaks to his team during a partially-open practice inside Richard Jefferson Gymnasium, Aug. 12, 2025.
Lloyd is a good dude. Rather than look at Embry-Riddle as a low-scale NAIA school that plays in a conference with Benedictine University Mesa and Hope International University, Lloyd thought of Tucker, who had done so much for his alma mater. It doesn’t always have to be about the money and glamour.
Down-to-earth Arizona basketball assistant coach gaining experience all over world
