Arizona men's basketball scouting report: No. 6 UA at ASU, 8 p.m. Wednesday

No. 6 Arizona (21-6, 12-4) at ASU (14-14, 8-9) | Desert Financial Arena, Tempe | 8 p.m. Wednesday | Pac-12 Network | 1290-AM, 107.5-FM

Probable starters

ARIZONA

G Kylan Boswell (6-2 soph.)

G Caleb Love (6-4 senior)

F Pelle Larsson (6-6 senior)

F Keshad Johnson (6-7 senior)

C Oumar Ballo (7-0 senior)

ASU

G Frankie Collins (6-1 junior)

G Adam Miller (6-3 junior)

F Jamiya Neal (6-6 junior)

F Jose Perez (6-5 senior)

C Shawn Phillips (7-0 soph.)

How they match up

The last time: After ASU took early leads of 13-10 and 20-15, Arizona turned their Feb. 17 matchup at McKale Center into a blowout, holding the Sun Devils to 36.2% shooting in a 105-60 victory. Center Oumar Ballo had his fifth straight double-double while Jaden Bradley had a career-high 21 points off the bench, and lightly used forward Paulius Murauskas had 12 points in just five minutes. Guard Caleb Love added 12 points for UA, which shot 57.7% from the field, outscoring ASU 30-10 in the paint while also hitting 4 of 10 3-point attempts.

The last time at Desert Financial Arena: ASU nearly erased Arizona’s 45-28 halftime lead, going on a 19-4 run early in the second half to pull within two points on Dec. 31, 2022. However, the Wildcats went on a 10-3 run of their own to eventually win 69-60, thanks in part to Ballo’s late block of a layup by ASU’s Luther Muhammad. Azoulas Tubelis led UA with 21 points and nine rebounds.

Series history: Arizona leads ASU 160-86 in the 101-year-old series and has won seven of the past eight games. The Wildcats have also won their past three at Desert Financial Arena, last losing 66-65 during the 2019-20 season.

What’s new with the Sun Devils: ASU hosted the Washington schools after losing at McKale, creating a microcosm of its unpredictable season. They completely erased a 25-point deficit before losing to Washington in overtime on Thursday — then returned on Saturday to beat WSU after the Cougars had just upset Arizona two nights earlier.

Against Washington, ASU trailed 49-24 early in the second half when coach Bobby Hurley called a timeout and yanked all of his starters. From there, ASU eventually pulled into a tie game at 75 when Frankie Collins drove in for a layup with 6.9 seconds left before the Sun Devils eventually lost in overtime. Collins had three steals to total 78 this season and break Fat Lever’s school record of 76 set in 1982.

Then, on Saturday, ASU played one of its best games of the season, leading WSU for 36 minutes and holding the Cougars to 39.3% shooting. ASU shot 49.2% from the field and had four players in double-figures; forward Jose Perez led ASU with 16 points, six rebounds and four assists.

He said it: “I think that the game against Washington State was probably their best they’ve played this year. They played so hard, they were more solid in a way. Their defense was really, really good, taking away (Isaac) Jones, taking away (Myles) Rice, making everything tough for them.

“I have no other reason to expect anything different against us. Historically, they've been a team that plays hard, even at the end of the year. They don't relax, and I'm sure they're not happy about having lost to us.’

“(The Washington game) teaches you what kind of team they are. You can think you got the job done, but that was a crazy, crazy comeback from being down 25. They are a team that is capable of great runs. They've been down big, and they came back big.

“At home we know they're a good team. That crowd gets into it, and they have talented players, they can make plays on offense. I think their defense is kind of their key."

— UA assistant coach Riccardo Fois, who scouted the Sun Devils.

Key players

ASU — Frankie Collins

One big reason the Wildcats tore apart the Sun Devils on Feb. 17 at McKale resulted from the way they made life difficult for ASU’s leader in scoring (13.8) and assists (3.3). Collins had just eight points on 2-for-10 shooting and three turnovers to his one assist. But Collins rebounded to average 17.5 points on 43.7% shooting in two games last weekend, and he's averaging 15.1 points on 44.7% shooting at Desert Financial Arena this season.

ARIZONA — Oumar Ballo

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Not only is the Wildcats’ senior center on a roll lately, putting together seven straight double-doubles, but he particularly thrived in the Feb. 17 matchup against ASU, with 15 points on 5-for-5 shooting (though just 5 for 9 from the line) and 11 rebounds. He also had 12 points and 12 rebounds at ASU last season.

Sidelines

Tough love

After visibly tearing into point guard Kylan Boswell when Washington went on a 10-0 first-half run during the Wildcats’ 91-75 win over the Huskies on Saturday, UA coach Tommy Lloyd noted that a mentor once told him that those were the kind of moments when a player knows you care about him.

“I love Kylan, and that's why I'm on him because I have high standards for him. I believe in him,” Lloyd said after the game. “I want him to get better at those things and just having coached Kylan a little bit, it’s not my favorite thing to do, but I’ve got to do what I think is best for for that individual player and Kylan responds to that.”

Boswell responded with five points, three rebounds and two assists in the second half. Then, after the game, he pinged Lloyd back.

“He texted me later that night and he apologized,” Lloyd told ESPN’s Scott Van Pelt on Monday night. “I just reminded him, `Hey, no apology needed. I’m on you because I love you and I believe in you. Don’t ever forget that.’ “

Payback opportunity

If there’s a downside for Arizona in beating ASU by 45 points, it’s that the Wildcats did so just 11 days before the return game was scheduled to be played in Tempe.

Naturally, the Feb. 17 game was a point of conversation during ASU’s media interviews Tuesday.

“You don’t forget a loss like that,” ASU wing Jamiya Neal said. “It’s humiliating. It’s embarrassing. It’s unfortunate. So obviously just off that loss alone, we have to go out there and try to do better.”

Hurley told Arizona Sports radio that turnovers and rushed decisions especially hurt the Sun Devils after they trailed just 24-23 with 9:39 to go in the first half.

“We got rushed up three or four times consecutively,” Hurley said. “We turned the ball over, we shot quickly in a possession and we went empty. You just can't afford to do that against a team like Arizona because they will make you pay in transition. … and in the paint, we have to do a better job.”

Neal said it will help that the Sun Devils will be at home, and that they are coming off an upset win over Washington State on Saturday.

“Everybody's going to be hyped and on top of how we lost last time, sparks will fire under us,” Neal said.

UA didn’t hold media interviews before Wednesday’s game, but center Oumar Ballo said after UA’s win over Washington on Saturday that the Wildcats expected the Sun Devils would be especially fired up.

“The game didn't go well for them in McKale so they're gonna try to respond, and we are aware of that,” Ballo said. “They are a great team, well coached. We're gonna come out and just play Arizona basketball.”

Numbers game

4.9: Percent of possessions by ASU opponents that end in a Collins steal when he’s on the floor, the ninth-highest steal percentage in the country. Collins is fourth in steals overall with 78.

5: Times this season ASU has come back to win after trailing at halftime.

54.2: Arizona’s 2-point shooting in Pac-12 games, the best in the conference

32.0: ASU’s 3-point shooting percentage in Pac-12 games, the worst in the conference.

— Bruce Pascoe

Photos: Arizona pound on on arch rival ASU 105-60, Pac-12 men's college basketball

Photos: Arizona takes down Washington 91-75, Pac 12 basketball