Arizona to play in new Pac-12 Coast-to-Coast Challenge in 2021-22

The Pac-12 announced Tuesday a new basketball scheduling series called the “Coast-to-Coast Challenge” that will pit its schools against other power-conference teams in neutral locations.

The series will begin in 2020-21 with Colorado facing TCU, Washington facing Oklahoma and Oregon facing a TBD opponent at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, with return games at American Airlines Center in Dallas in 2021-22.

In 2021-22, Arizona, Arizona State, and USC will play power-conference teams in Las Vegas, with the return games taking place in New York City in 2022-23.

The plus side to this scheduling series is it guarantees Arizona will get to face a power-five opponent in a major market. That is good for exposure and to boost its non-conference strength of schedule.

The potential downside is it could mean Arizona is less likely to schedule a home-and-home series with a major-conference team since, naturally, scheduling opportunities are limited.