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No. 3 Arizona aims for 12-0 start Friday at UTEP
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Published: 12/19/2014  at  5:27:00 AM
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ARIZONA WILDCATS (11-0)

at UTEP MINERS (6-3)

Don Haskins Center - El Paso, TX
Tip-off: Friday, 11:00 p.m. ET
Line: Arizona -7.5

No. 3 Arizona looks to remain undefeated on Friday night when it visits 6-3 UTEP.

The Wildcats (6-5 ATS) lost key players to the NBA last season, but they have not skipped a beat in starting 11-0 SU. Of their 11 victories, eight have been by at least 17 points. This will Arizona's third game in a seven-day span, and the team is 1-8 ATS in the past two seasons on the road when playing its third game in a week. The matchup against the Miners (3-4 ATS) is also the first time all season that the Wildcats have a true road game. UTEP has been great at home this season, going 4-0 SU (1-1 ATS), while outscoring opponents by 12.0 PPG and outshooting them 50% FG to 40% FG. Under Tim Floyd, the Miners are a perfect 7-0 ATS as a home underdog. They are 1-1 SU against Pac 12 schools this year, as they beat Washington State by 13 points, but fell to Washington by a narrow 68-65 margin on Nov. 30. There are no significant injuries for either team in this game.

Can Arizona win big on the road on Friday? For the latest college basketball picks, check out The Platinum Sheet for all the Expert picks. The experts have begun the 2014-15 season with a bang, posting a collective 55% ATS mark (74-61) in Best Bets. The five experts are led by StatFox Gary's stellar 64% ATS mark (18-10), while StatFox Brian is 57% ATS (16-12), StatFox Dave is 56% ATS (15-12) and StatFox Zach is 54% ATS (14-12) to open the season.

Arizona has been very efficient on offense this season, ranking eighth in the nation in shooting (51.1% FG), 28th in scoring (78.6 PPG) and 44th in assists (15.7 APG). The Wildcats have plenty of players who are capable of having big scoring nights, but the leading scorer on the team is freshman SF Stanley Johnson (14.5 PPG, 51% FG, 6.4 RPG). Johnson is a potential star who creates a mismatch for whoever is guarding him. His sweet stroke from the three-point line (39% threes) has made him even tougher to guard on the offensive end, but he can also influence a game on the defensive end of the court with 1.5 steals per game. SF Rondae Hollis-Jefferson (12.5 PPG, 57% FG, 6.6 RPG) also has great size for a wing player (6-foot-7, 220 pounds), and he plays similar to Johnson. He does not look to shoot a lot from the three-point line (4-for-13 this season), but is relentless in attacking the rim. In the past three games, he has 11.7 PPG on 56% FG while getting to the foul line 22 times. His athleticism allows him to get out and run in transition, something the Wildcats can do very well with guys like 6-foot-9 PF Brandon Ashley (11.7 PPG, 55% FG, 5.3 RPG) and 7-foot C Kaleb Tarczewski (9.0 PPG, 64% FG, 5.7 RPG) running the floor. Tarczewski is not super athletic, but he does a great job of running the floor and getting position on defense. If there is one guy capable of having a big shooting night from long distance, it is junior SG Gabe York (9.5 PPG, 36% threes). He is starting to catch fire from deep, as he has hit 5-of-10 from three-point range in the past two games.

The Miners enter the game ranking a pedestrian 141st in the country in scoring (70.3 PPG) despite a strong 47.2% shooting clip (62nd in nation), 14.8 APG (70th in NCAA) and 37.2 RPG (101st in nation). Everything for UTEP starts with the play of 6-foot-8 PF Vince Hunter (16.1 PPG, 55% FG, 10.1 RPG), who is one of the best low-post players in college basketball. He teams with 6-foot-10 C Cedrick Lang (10.7 PPG, 58% FG, 6.2 RPG) to form one of most physical frontcourts in college basketball. They both do a great job of attacking the glass, and getting great position on the block. SF Julian Washburn (10.9 PPG, 4.3 RPG, 2.9 APG) also has great size at 6-foot-8, but he plays a lot of time on the perimeter. He can shoot the ball from outside well enough (33% threes) to force defenses to respect him, allowing him to put the ball on the floor. The key player in this game will be SG Earvin Morris Jr. (9.3 PPG, 44% threes). The Kent State transfer has the ability to really shoot the ball, and that will be key to help open things up down low.


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