NAU (0-0) at Arizona (0-0)

When: 8:30 p.m.  Where: McKale Center
TV: Pac-12 Arizona
Radio: 1290-AM, 107.5-FM

Probable starters

ARIZONA

G — Kerr Kriisa (6-3 sophomore)

G — Dalen Terry (6-6 sophomore)

F — Bennedict Mathurin (6-6 sophomore)

F — Azuolas Tubelis (6-11 sophomore)

C — Christian Koloko (7-0 junior)

NAU

G — Jalen Cone (5-10 junior)

G — Isaiah Lewis (6-6 junior)

F — Keith Haymond (6-7 junior)

F — Nik Mains (6-9 senior)

C — Carson Towt (6-7 sophomore)

How they match up

The series: Arizona has beaten its in-state cousins 34 straight times, though the last 17 have been held in Tucson. The Wildcats beat the Lumberjacks 96-53 at McKale last season in a game that was rescheduled twice: From Nov. 10 to Nov. 25 after the entire NCAA season was pushed back two weeks and again to Dec. 7 because of COVID issues in the NAU program. When the game was finally played, Jemarl Baker led the Wildcats by scoring 33 points with 7-for-9 3-point shooting.

Game agreement: NAU is scheduled to face UA, usually for the opening game, every season at McKale Center through at least 2030-31.

NAU overview: The Lumberjacks stumbled to a 6-16 record last season, in part because of two COVID pauses, after a 16-14 record in 2019-20 that earned coach Shane Burcar the permanent head coaching job. Burcar took over on an interim basis when coach Jack Murphy left the Lumberjacks to become UA’s associate head coach in June 2019. After the season the Lumberjacks’ two top players transferred out — Cameron Shelton (Loyola Marymount) and Luke Avdalovic (Pacific) — but Burcar landed Virginia Tech transfer guard Jalen Cone and former Santa Clara big man Ekeziel Richards. Cone is more of a 3-point shooter than was Shelton, a frequent driver inside, but he’s expected to have a similar offensive impact while also handling point guard duties. Richards is expected to play heavy minutes off the bench behind starter Carson Towt, while the versatile Nik Mains can play under the basket or stretch outside in what if often a four-out offensive structure. Junior forward Keith Haymond was a part-time starter last season who is expected to start full-time this season while wings Jay Green, the brother of former UA guard Josh Green, and Isaiah Lewis have been battling for the final starting spot. Defensively, the Lumberjacks play primarily man-to-man.

He said it: “Cameron Shelton averaged over a 20 a game over a college basketball season and that’s not easy to do, but Jalen Cone is certainly capable of doing that as well. Nik Mains is a really good shooter who can play inside-out, is skilled on the block. He’s improved his strength over the years and had some big games for them late last season. He’ll play some four when he’s in there with Carson Towt so you really have to be aware of him. Keith Haymond is a really great kid. He was unbelievable student and a great shooter … and Isaiah Lewis had a big game (13 points) against us two years ago in his first college game. He’s got good size, length and passing ability. They relied on him a lot toward the end of last year.” — UA associate head coach Jack Murphy, who scouted the Lumberjacks

Key players

NAU: Jalen Cone

A key reserve for Virginia Tech last season, Cone could have remained in the ACC or headed out of the transfer portal to any one of a number of other high-major schools that included Indiana, Penn State and Nebraska last spring. But he opted instead for the chance to make an even bigger splash at NAU. Lumberjacks coach Burcar have said his impact could compare even to similarly-sized Max Abmas, who led the NCAA in scoring last season at low-major Oral Roberts and became an NCAA Tournament hero.

Arizona: Jordan Mains

The Wildcats are fortunate to practice against two walk-on players with good size and the skills to play regularly at lower levels of college basketball: Mains, who once teamed with Nico Mannion at Phoenix Pinnacle, and former Catalina Foothills High School center Will Menaugh. Against NAU, Mains might get a shot at facing his brother on the floor, too.

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Sidelines

The unfriendly skies

If it’s not rough enough that NAU has to start out its season by facing two Pac-12 opponents over the first three days of the season, consider also that the Lumberjacks are playing both of them on the road — against the two most geographically disparate teams in a far-flung conference.

That’s right, after playing a late-night game at McKale Center that won’t allow for bedtimes before midnight, the Lumberjacks will awaken at 7:15 a.m. to catch a Tucson to Seattle flight on Wednesday morning. Then they’ll face Washington at Hec Edmundson Pavilion on Thursday.

That’s an extreme example of the sort of thing that mid- or low-major teams have to do in order to bring home five-figure guarantee money that helps support other programs. But Burcar said there’s a competitive benefit, too.

Not in the short term, but rather when the Lumberjacks get to Big Sky play.

“We want to open a season like that because you can tell where you’re at and what you have to work on,” Burcar said. “We could have played Washington on Friday but this is Big Sky travel. That’s why we did it like that. That’s exactly what we want.”

Just for the “fun” of it, the Lumberjacks will also go back to the state of Washington to face top-ranked Gonzaga on Dec. 20.

But, should the Lumberjacks break through and win the Big Sky Tournament in order to reach the NCAA Tournament, Burcar figures all that experience might pay off. There won’t be a first-round opponent that’s any tougher.

“It’s a win-win for us,” Burcar said.

Jacked up

It’s no secret why UA associate head coach Jack Murphy has drawn the game scouting assignment for NAU for the third season in a row: He used to be the Lumberjacks’ head coach until June 2019, so he’s recruited and/or coached many of the players still on NAU’s roster.

Murphy is also a close friend of Burcar, who took over for Murphy on an interim basis in 2019-20 then gained the job permanently after going 16-14 that season.

“It’s not a game that I look forward to just because you have friends on the other side,” Murphy said. “And especially there’s still young men on the team that I’ve coached and recruited. (Some of them) I sat in their homes and talked to them and ended up not being there. So that part of it is difficult.

“But for this this moment right now, I’m just focused on the fact that it’s coach (Tommy) Lloyd’s first game at Arizona and we want to get the season and his head coaching career off to a good start.”

Certainly, at least, there are no hard feelings for Burcar.

“I think (Lloyd) was a great hire for the University of Arizona and I think it’s an even better hire to keep Coach Murphy,” Burcar said.

Mains event

If recent Arizona-NAU history is any indication, playing time will be spread all over both benches Tuesday night. The Wildcats won 91-52 in 2019-20 and 96-53 last season, giving UA walk-on Jordan Mains bragging rights over his older brother, Lumberjacks forward Nik Mains.

Jordan Mains didn’t play against the Lumberjacks as a freshman in 2019-20 while he was serving as a manager during the 2019 fall semester but he hit a 3-pointer in three minutes against NAU last season, while Nik had four points in 19 minutes.

There’s at least a decent chance that the two brothers might see at least a little of each other this time, though Lloyd said he hadn’t thought about that possibility.

“We’ll see. That could be good,” Lloyd said, smiling. “Maybe they couldn’t guard each other — maybe it’d be like a fistfight out there or something.”

Numbers game

13

Times UA’s previous 16 head coaches have won their first games coaching the Wildcats.

42.1

Arizona’s average victory margin over NAU in the last six games against the Lumberjacks, dating back to the 2012-13 season.

79.1

Arizona’s winning percentage in season openers since joining what was the Pac-10 in 1978-79.

— Bruce Pascoe