Caleb Holt steals the show in Arizona’s exhibition win over Eastern Washington

Tommy Lloyd and the Arizona Wildcats wrapped up a perfect exhibition season on Friday night, picking up a comfortable 85-54 win over the Eastern Washington Eagles at the McKale Center in Tucson.

The Wildcats now turn their attention to the season-opener against UCLA, coming up on Nov. 2 in Las Vegas.

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Arizona put together its most complete exhibition game on Friday against the Eagles, dominating on both sides of the ball in the final tuneup before the games start counting in the standings.

Below is a look at three key takeaways from Arizona’s 31-point victory:

1. Caleb Holt looks ready for a major role at Arizona

Arizona target and five-star recruit Caleb Holt winning a gold medal in the FIBA World Cup | Caleb Holt’s Instagram

Caleb Holt showed flashes of his tremendous upside during Arizona’s first two exhibition games, but Friday was unquestionably his most complete performance – coming nine days before the season opener against UCLA.

The 6’5 freshman was all over the floor against Eastern Washington, drilling open threes, wreaking havoc in transition, and even showing off improved playmaking – although turnovers were a bit of an issue for the young guard.

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Ultimately Holt finished with a game-high 21 points, shooting 5-7 on twos and 3-4 from three while adding five rebounds, two assists, and three steals in 24 minutes played.

Mo Krivas and Ivan Kharchenkov may be Arizona’s preseason All-Big-12 representatives, but Holt sure looked like a player ready to put his name in that conversation on Friday night.

2. JJ Mandaquit is settling into Arizona’s backcourt

JJ Mandaquit had a fine, but by no means elite, freshman season at Washington – so some questioned why Arizona brought him in to presumably play a big role as a sophomore.

However, it’s become clear why that decision was made, as Mandaquit fits perfectly into the style of play Lloyd runs at Arizona. Mandaquit pushed the tempo, made quick reads in the half court offense, and hit open shots in an all-around…

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Publish date : 2026-10-24 04:08:00

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