Awaka discusses eight double-doubles, academics at University Of Arizona
Tobe Awaka used an interview with University of Arizona Provost Patricia Prelock to lay out how he balanced business administration coursework in the Eller College of Management with a season that ended in eight double-doubles. The Wildcats also reached the program’s first Final Four berth in a quarter century during the 2025-2026 season.
Awaka was named the Big 12 Conference’s Sixth Man of the Year and became an Academic All-American, making him the sixth U of A men’s basketball player selected to that team. He averaged 9.1 rebounds, second in the Big 12 Conference, and led all college basketball players in offensive rebounding percentage by collecting 20.2% of available offensive rebounds while on the court.
Awaka and Patricia Prelock
Prelock, U of A’s provost and chief academic officer, spoke with Awaka about his studies, basketball season and reading interests. Awaka said he took the interview as a chance to talk about what comes after college as he nears graduation.
“Yeah, it was something I kind of gravitated to. I was looking to do business administration and then do something with finance on the side. I took an internship on Wall Street with AlphaDyne Asset Management – that was a great experience. You learn stuff from the textbook, from the lectures in class, but to see it happen in real life, to see it operate functionally, it was a great experience.”
Wall Street and reading
Awaka said his interest in business grew alongside a focus on personal finance and investing. “I’m really big into investing books – philosophical books and theology as well – but especially investing from the standpoint of managing personal wealth, finances, things of that nature.”
He named several books from that list: “One Up on Wall Street” by John Rothchild and Peter Lynch, “The Big Short” about the 2008 market crash, and “Market,” which he said he was reading at the time. Over the summer, he also read “Crime and Punishment” by Dostoevsky.
Dostoevsky and purpose
Asked about “Crime and Punishment,” Awaka said, “Yeah, I was big into Dostoevsky over the summer. I was reading ‘Crime and Punishment,’ that was great.” He added, “The way that he sort of breaks down his characters and makes them so human and realistic, I think it’s really amazing.”
Awaka also tied the conversation back to graduation and life after basketball. “The key here moving forward is just establishing an identity of yourself and just understanding who you are and kind of what you’re here for in terms of your purpose,” he said. “I think that’s the biggest question that anybody’s going to have to ask within their lives.”
