The Star's Bruce Pascoe previews all of the game day essentials, from projected starting lineups to storylines and series history, ahead of the Arizona Wildcats' contest against Arizona State in Tempe.Β
Game info
Who: No. 22 Arizona (13-5, 3-2) at ASU (11-7, 2-3)
Where: Desert Financial Arena, Tempe
When: 7:30β―p.m.
TV: Pac-12 Networks
Radio: 1290-AM, 107.5-FM
Follow:Β @TheWildcasterΒ on Twitter /Β TheWildcasterΒ on Facebook
Probable starters: Arizona
G Nico Mannion (6-3 freshman)
G Dylan Smith (6-5 senior)
F Josh Green (6-6 freshman)
F Stone Gettings (6-9 senior)
C Zeke Nnaji (6-11 freshman)
Probable starters: ASU
G Remy Martin (6-0 junior)
G Rob Edwards (6-5 senior)
F Kimani Lawrence (6-8 junior)
F Taeshon Cherry (6-8 sophomore)
C Romello White (6-8 junior)
How they match up
The last time: Arizona shot 47.6% from the field and held ASU to just 30.5% in a 75-47 win on Jan. 4 at McKale Center in the Pac-12 opener for both teams. The Sun Devils also made just 8 of 19 free throws. Zeke Nnaji led a balanced UA attack with 17 points and 11 rebounds, while Josh Green had 12 points and seven rebounds. Remy Martin led the Sun Devils with 20 points.
The last time at ASU: Justin Coleman hit a 25-footer with 24 seconds left in regulation to help force overtime, but the Wildcats went on to lose 95-88, their third straight loss in what became a seven-game losing streak. ASU shot 55.6% overall, including 9 of 19 3-pointers, and collected 10 of its 24 misses, a staggering offensive rebounding percentage of 41.7. Most important in the long run for the Wildcats was that Brandon Williams missed his first game of the season with a reoccurrence of knee pain related to the congenital condition that is also keeping him out all of this season.
Series history: The Wildcats also lost to ASU at McKale Center in the regular season finale last March but won six straight before last season. UA leads the series 153-84 overall and is 6-4 in Tempe in the Sean Miller era.
Whatβs new with the Sun Devils: A quirk in the Pac-12 schedule means the Sun Devils have played only four other games since meeting the Wildcats on Jan. 4. Over that time, ASU has wins at Oregon State and over Utah at home, but losses at Oregon and to Colorado at home.
But a lot has changed even in that short amount of time: Not only is center Romello White playing better after fully healing from an ankle injury that limited him at McKale but wing Kimani Lawrence has emerged to sometimes replaced shooting guard Alonzo Verge in the starting lineup. In addition, guard Rob Edwardsβ shooting slump is over: Edwards is averaging 12.6 points in Pac-12 games, and has hit half of his 28 3-pointers.
Martin continues to be one of the Pac-12βs best guards, averaging 24.5 points in the four games since Jan. 4, becoming the only Pac-12 player since 1996-97 to open the first five games of conference play with 20 or more points. The Sun Devils still arenβt a great shooting team, making only 43.7% of two-point shots and 34.6% in conference games, but they continue to run the fastest tempo in the league. ASU keeps the ball for just 17.1 seconds on an average possession in conference play and continues to run an aggressive, if not overly effective, defense.
ASU is the seventh most efficient defense in conference play. Martin averages 1.83 steals per game and Jaelen House averages 1.6 off the bench but adjusted for tempo, the Sun Devils are recording steals on just 7.6% of opponent possessions, the seventh-best mark in the league. ASU primarily runs a man-to-man defense, occasionally picking up opponents with a man-to-man press that can prompt help defenders to jump switch on to a primary ballhandler when the occasion calls for it.
He said it
βRemy Martin is still the catalyst for them. Rob Edwards is playing really well right now. It was just a matter of time before he figured it out. We didnβt expect him to be in a slump all season. β¦ Sliding Kimani Lawrence into the lineup allows them to be a lot bigger, a lot more physical. Heβs playing well. He does a lot of the little things for them. He doesnβt need to have the ball in his hands to be productive. (Defensively), House and Martin are really good on- and off-ball defenders, and Lawrence gives them size at the three-spot.β β UA assistant coach Justin Gainey
Key player (ASU): Remy MartinΒ
The Sun Devilsβ floor leader isnβt just smiles, hustle and hair: He seriously produces on both ends of the floor, too. Martinβs 20 points against Arizona on Jan. 4 were actually below average in a sense, considering that he averaged 29 points while making 5 of 11 3s and taking 21 total trips to the line in two games last season.
Key player (Arizona): Nico Mannion
Mannion returns to the same floor where he led Pinnacle High School to the Arizona 6A title last season, but the circumstances are decidedly different. The Phoenix-area product will be trying to lead the Wildcats to their first road win of the season in front of a crowd that wonβt be so friendly this time.
Sidelines
Sort-of homecomings
While ASU-UA basketball games typically generate more passion from fans than players, since most players on both sides traditionally are not from the state, Mannion and Green will be returning to their adopted hometown Saturday.
Mannion was born in Italy and spent his early years in Utah before moving to the Phoenix area, then played high school ball at Phoenix Pinnacle. Green moved from Sydney, Australia, to Phoenix in 2014, though he said playing at ASU wouldnβt really mean anything extra to him.
βIβm from Australia,β Green said. βMy family lives in Phoenix, yeah, but at the same Iβm just going to treat it just as any other road game, with same goal in mind and thatβs to come out with a win.β
Mannion wasnβt available for comment this week but judging by the maturity heβs shown on and off the court this season (the freshman even referred last week to fifth-year senior Max Hazzard as a βkidβ), the gameβs location isnβt likely to faze him.
βItβs always a big game playing on the road in our conference, especially up there in Phoenix, but those two guys have been in a lot of big games,β Miller said of Green and Mannion.
βNow they enter that phase as a freshman where theyβve started 18 games, theyβve been at this since early October... theyβre different types of freshmen in that theyβve been through a lot of experiences and in their case, theyβve been through a lot of experiences before they ever came here as well.β
Bobbyβs playlist
Believe it or not, ASU coach Bobby Hurley does actually know how to manage his mood.
You can sometimes see it before games, when, like many college basketball players, Hurley will wear earbuds during warmups so he can listen to music.
All types of music.
βIt spans decades, of music that has meant something to me for one reason or another,β he told reporters in Tempe on Thursday. βYou mix in some more depressing music that might touch an emotion there or some more upbeat stuff, some rap from the 80s or 90s, and then my son has a little influence on me to get me in the current generation.β
Whatever it is, it works, the way Martin figures it.
βI donβt really know what he really listens to, but Iβm sure itβs pretty cool,β Martin said. βYou know how fiery he is β he can probably get anybody fired up. So I agree with his music choice.β
Romello rolling
Since going scoreless in 23 minutes against Arizona on Jan. 4 in his first game back from a sprained ankle, ASU center Romello White appears back to normal. Heβs averaged 10.8 points and 8.0 rebounds in the four games since then.
βAnytime heβs going well and feeling great, you feel good about that,β Hurley said.
The Sun Devils run much of their offense through White, and Martin said his unselfishness makes it work.
βHeβs been passing the ball out, kicking it out, and Mello as a player, I think heβs been ready,β Martin said.
Numbers game
13
Games Kenpom predicts Arizona win in the Pac-12 this season.
12
20-point games by Martin
39.8
Arizonaβs 3-point percentage in Pac-12 games, second-best in the conference
50.6
Two-point percentage shot by ASU opponents in Pac-12 play, the third-worst mark in the league.
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