No. 3 Arizona Basketball takes on No. 7 UCLA in Tuesday Tussle

After dominating the Bay Area schools, No. 3 Arizona Basketball (15-1, 5-0) returns to action to take on No. 7 UCLA (13-2, 5-1) in this Tuesday night tussle!

As we are all aware, No. 3 Arizona Basketball was supposed to play UCLA a couple of weeks ago, but unfortunately, COVID hit the Bruins’ program pretty hard, and that game was ultimately postponed.

Well, over the past few weeks, it has been a steady build-up to this game as Arizona finally takes on Pac-12 foe UCLA in this Tuesday night tussle in Southern California.

Coming in, Arizona is considered the slight favorite here, and rightfully so, as the Wildcats are rolling, winning their last four conference games by an average of 23 points.

However, as we have seen over the past few years, UCLA has provided a tough matchup for the Wildcats, so once again, we expect UCLA to provide a competitive and challenging game here.

Hopefully, even with Arizona likely to be without Azuolas Tubelis again, head coach Tommy Lloyd will have the Wildcats ready to rumble inside Pauley Pavilion!

Getting to Know the details of Arizona Basketball’s opponent, the UCLA Bruins.

Team: UCLA Bruins

Conference: Pac-12 Conference

2020-21 Record: Finishing the year with a 22-10 (13-6) record in 2020-21, the Bruins finished in 4th place in the conference, but got hot to end the year, winning five-straight games in the NCAA Tournament as an 11-seed before falling to No. 1 Gonzaga in the Final Four.

Head Coach: Mick Cronin enters his 3rd season with the Bruins, having compiled a 54–24 (30-13) record so far. Mick is currently coaching his 19th season in the NCAA, making previous stints with Murray State and Cincinnati, compiling a 419-195 record overall as a head coach.

Keys to the Game:

Contain UCLA’s Stars – The Bruins are a talented group, but there is no doubt that they are led by Johnny Juzang, Jaime Jaquez, Tyger Campbell, and Jules Bernard.

Together, they make up a large majority of the production for the Bruins, and when all four are rolling, they are a tough team to beat.

While I think the Wildcats have the size and athleticism to match they Bruins, they will need to contain the Bruins’ stars as much as possible if they are to win. If they slow them down a little, UCLA will have a tougher time winning.

Limit the Opposing Offensive Rebounds – The Wildcats have had moments where they do not rebound well defensively, allowing for opposing teams to get a lot of offensive rebounds.

If the Wildcats are to continue their winning ways, they will need to have a great effort on the glass, especially against a talented team like UCLA if they are going to come away with the win here.

Bench Production – After Azuolas Tubelis went down to injury on Thursday evening against Stanford, the Wildcats’ bench did a nice job in stepping up to pick up the production in that win, as well as their win against Cal

Once again, Arizona is going to need big numbers from their bench if they are going to come away victorious, especially if the Wildcats start to get into foul trouble.

If Arizona can replicate that level of production that they had against Stanford and Cal, then this one should be a win for Arizona.

Arizona Basketball versus the UCLA Bruins game information and details:

Date: Tuesday, Jan. 25, 2022

Time: 9:00 P.M. MST / 8:00 P.M. PST

Location: Pauley Pavilion, Los Angeles, Calif. (13,800)

Spread: -2.5 Arizona (Also, don’t forget to use WynnBet to enhance your overall betting experience)

Television: ESPN

Radio: 107.5 FM (Tucson) / 1290AM (Tucson) | Arizona IMG Sports Network

Team Records:

No. 3 Arizona Wildcats (16-1, 6-0): After sweeping the Bay Area schools to remain unbeaten in Pac-12 play, Arizona returns to action to take on a talented UCLA team inside a rowdy and raucous Pauley Pavilion.

No. 7 UCLA Bruins (13-2, 5-1): After falling to Oregon, the Bruins have won three straight, including two, tough road wins over Utah and Colorado. However, UCLA will have a big challenge with Arizona coming into town.

Head-to-Head Record (since 1949-50): Since 1949-50, Arizona has been outmatched by UCLA, as the Wildcats currently trail the Bruins 59-42 in the head-to-head series. UCLA has also won the last five straight against Arizona.

Last Meeting vs. Arizona: The last time the Wildcats played the Bruins was in Los Angeles. UCLA came away with the big win, defeating Arizona 74-60.

My Prediction: Arizona 83 UCLA 77 – Arizona’s length and athleticism make this a challenging game for UCLA. The Bruins are a good jump-shooting team, and with Arizona’s length in the post, they are not going to make things easy on UCLA in getting those shots. So even without Azuolas Tubelis, I believe the Wildcats will still come away with the narrow win here.