Lauri Markkanen sends a 2-word message

The No. 1 Arizona Wildcats walked into one of the toughest road environments college hoops and went undefeatedwith a familiar face showing his loyalty along the way.

As it is Arizona basketball visited Provo on Monday night to face the no. 13 BIU Cougars at the Marriott Center, several prominent figures from the Utah Jazz organization were in attendance. Jazz owner Ryan Smith, head coach Will Hardy and several players sat courtside to witness the clash of Big 12 heavyweights. Among them was former Arizona star Lauri Markkanen, who found himself cheering in enemy territory.

Markkanen, who played for Arizona during the 2016-17 season before becoming the seventh overall pick in the 2017 NBA draft, made his support clear on social media. After basketball in Arizona posted a photo on the field captioned “Nice to see Laura in the house tonight!”, the the former All-Star responded on X, formerly Twitter, with the simple but striking message, “Bear Down!!”

Bear Down!! 🐻🔽 https://t.co/G2v77omKslb

— Lauri Markkanen (@MarkkanenLauri) January 27, 2026

The two-word post underscored Markkanen’s continued connection to his college program, even while surrounded by a largely pro-BIU crowd. While many of the inductees have ties to the Jazz or had local ties or neutral grassroots interests, Markkanen openly supported his former school as the Wildcats defended their perfect record.

On the court, Arizona showed why it remains the number one ranked team in the country. The Wildcats led by as many as 19 points in the second half, threatening to quiet a BIU crowd that entered the night on a 13-game hitting streak. However, the Cougars made a late surge, cutting the deficit to one in the final seconds.

Freshman Braiden Burries had a standout performancefinishing with 29 points and sealing the game with a key chase block before knocking down late free throws. Jaden Bradley added 26 points with three reboundsas Arizona held on for an 86-83 victory to improve to 21-0 and match the best start in program history.

Arizona now turns its attention to a rivalry matchup with the Arizona State Sun Devils, while BIU faces another big test on the road against the No. 14 Kansas Jayhawks as both teams prepare for a demanding stretch of conference play.