Game info

What: No. 14 Arizona (21-6, 11-3) at Oregon State (13-13, 5-9)

Where: Gill Coliseum, Corvallis, Oregon

When: 7 p.m. Thursday

Watch: FS1

Listen: 1290-AM, 107.5-FM

Follow:  @TheWildcaster on Twitter / TheWildcaster on Facebook

Probable starters: Arizona

Probable starters: Oregon State

How they match up

The last time

Oregon State led for the entire first half and trailed by just one with seven minutes left before Arizona took a 62-53 win over the Beavers on Jan. 11 at McKale Center. Deandre Ayton had 14 points and 10 rebounds while Allonzo Trier scored 21 points.

The last time at Gill Coliseum

Arizona shot just 34.6 percent and didn’t get a point from Lauri Markkanen in the first half, trailing 29-27 at halftime, but rallied for a 71-57 win over Oregon State on Feb. 2, 2017. The Beavers were 0-10 in the Pac-12 after their loss.

Overall series

Arizona leads 62-21 all-time and has won 10 of the last 11 but is only 3-3 in its last six trips to Corvallis.

What’s new with the Beavers

Oregon State lost another two close ones last weekend in Los Angeles to drop to 0-8 in true away games, but the Beavers have beaten UCLA, Washington and WSU at home since their Jan. 11 loss at McKale Center. The major lineup shift has been the emergence of freshman Alfred Hollins, a former teammate of Deandre Ayton’s at Hillcrest Prep last season.

Hollins first started at small forward, replacing Seth Berger, on Feb. 8 against WSU and responded with 19 points on 7-for-9 shooting. Hollins is averaging 16.3 points in four games as a starter while shooting 65.7 percent from the field and 7 of 12 from 3-point range.

The Beavers are also getting good long-range shooting from Kendal Manuel 6 for 13) and Zach Reichle (6 for 15) in Pac-12 games. OSU has been playing without a true point guard since JaQuori McLaughlin left the team in December, but Stephen Thompson, Ethan Thompson and Tres Tinkle each average at least three assists per game.

He said it

“They’re a very physical team. They’re a team that takes a lot of pride in their halfcourt defense. They do it by playing a lot of zone — not all zone — but even when they’re in man-to-man they’re very physical. In the first game, we did not generate enough good shots and that had a lot to do with their defense." — UA coach Sean Miller

Key player: Tres Tinkle

The Wildcats scored 20 points off 15 OSU turnovers on Jan. 11 and OSU’s versatile forward (seven turnovers) was a big part of the reason. But he was typically effective in every other way, with 18 points, nine rebounds and six trips to the free-throw line, and he’ll be in cozy Gill Coliseum this time.

Key player: Deandre Ayton

Another double-double at OSU would tie Ayton with Bob Elliott at 18 for the third-most in a season in Arizona history, behind only Jordan Hill (20) and Al Fleming (22). It’s possible that the dominant power forward, who had 14 points and 10 rebounds against OSU last month, could break the record as early as the Pac-12 Tournament.

Ayton's player of the year push

While Arizona has a chance to clinch a share of the Pac-12 title with a sweep this weekend, Deandre Ayton probably can do the same in the race for the conference player of the year.

To Miller, the two feats are related.

“A lot of those things take care of themselves if at the end of the regular season you have the most wins,” Miller said. “If you’re the conference champion, with team success comes individual accolades, as you know. Especially in all conference voting. But I think he’s in the mix and a lot will depend on how we finish.”

Ayton is the second-leading scorer (19.9) and rebounder (10.4) in conference games, while rival candidate Aaron Holiday of UCLA leads the conference in scoring with 20.9 points and 3-point shooting percentage (51.2) during conference games, while he’s also second in assists with 5.8. Ayton is second in blocked shots (2.3) even though the Wildcats’ defense does not emphasize them.

While the Pac-12 Player of the Week awards are voted on by media who regularly cover the league, the end-of-season awards are voted on by the league's 12 coaches. 

Talking it out

The Wildcats have put up two of their best wins since a team meeting following their loss to UCLA on Feb. 10, beating USC at McKale Center and ASU at Wells Fargo Arena, but Miller downplayed the talk somewhat.

“I mean, sometimes team meetings can be overblown or overstated,” Miller said. “If your team’s constantly having them, that’s probably not good, either. Over the long journey of the season there’s probably going to be a couple times when they’re needed and we’ve had those times.

“Somebody like Dusan (Ristic) has been at the forefront of those conversations. I believe we have a team that cares about each other. We have high expectations and we’ve all worked really hard.”

Father knows best

OSU forward Tres Tinkle says this season has been the most enjoyable of his three-year Beaver career so far, and not just because he’s finally healthy.

He also gets along with dad better. OSU coach Wayne Tinkle didn’t exactly play favorites with his standout son as a freshman in 2015-16, but Tres said things are smoother now.

“I think now I have a better idea of what he expects,” Tres said. “When I first came in, I knew he was gonna be hard on me but I thought there was gonna be a little more sunshine and things like that. But I was a freshman so he wasn’t going to give things to me. He was tough on me.”

Tres said maturity helps him better relate now, while Wayne has backed off a little as his son has proven himself.

“It was hard for sure. He was hardest on me,” Tres Tinkle said. “We had talks about that I think it should be this way or that way, and he told me it was going to get tougher. So we butted heads for a while and at the beginning of this year we had a another talk and I think he came to the realization that I deserve a little more praise from him because I have put in so much work and dedication.

“So this year has been a lot more enjoyable for sure. He’s still hard on me but he also has a lot of confidence in me as well and we’re able to share special moments.”

Numbers game

1

Win played in that Dusan Ristic needs to tie Matt Muehlebach and Kaleb Tarczewski as the winningest player in UA basketball history.

11

Oregon State’s rank in tempo among Pac-12 teams, according to kenpom.com

29

Straight games Tres Tinkle has scored in double figures, dating back to last season.

55.7

Arizona’s two-point shooting percentage in Pac-12 games, best in the conference.