12/19 Basketball Preview

(5-7)(9-2)

The Pit 7PM MT TV:

This is a rare home and home in season for these two rivals, and New Mexico is looking for some revenge. The Lobos are undefeated at home with their most recent win over Texas Tech, so this game should be different. Since the last matchup the Lobos are 2-1 with the loss coming on the road to Mississippi and for New Mexico State they have gone 1-1 losing to UTEP and defeating Prairie View A&M. Not much has changed for the way the teams play so expected a similar style of game from last time where the teams will score between the 60's and 70's but the Lobos will pull this one out and keep their undefeated record at home.

#19 (7-2) (7-2)

Thomas & Mack Center 7PM PT TV: CSTV PPV

Here is another chance for UNLV to defeat a ranked opponent at home, and the last one which was Louisville and the Rebels loss. This game features #19 ranked Arizona and for the Wildcats this is their first true road game on the year. UNLV needs to step up their play to get a signature non conference win for their RPI and at-large hopes if they do not win the conference tournament. This game should be a high scoring one with both teams averaging in the 70's, but a factor that could be in Arizona's favor is their PPS which is at 1.47 compared to UNLV's 1.26 which means UNLV needs more shots to get to their points per game average. So, if Arizona can limit possession and second chances for UNLV look for Arizona to lead. The Wildcats are lead by Jerryd Bayless who scores 20 per game and he shoots near 50% from the field. Arizona does have a weakness that UNLV can take advantage of and that is that the Wildcats average near 15 turnovers per game and the Rebels average just over 9 steals per game, so if the UNLV defense can create turnovers and get easy baskets look for the Rebels to win this one. This game should be a close one but Arizona will be too much for the Rebels.

(5-5) (5-4)

Lawlor Events Center 7P PT TV: WAV.TV

If I really wanted to I could sum up this game in that since it is a road game for Colorado State will lose since they have not won one all year and are 0-5. Nevada is not overly impressive with a 5-4 record, but have on 3 in a row after an early season 3 game skid. The Wolfpack are typically a top 2 team at worst in the WAC for the past few years, but with graduation they still might contend for the WAC but this is a slightly down year for Nevada. Nevada has more consistent scorers with 4 players who score at least 10 when compared to 3 for CSU and their fourth scorer is only at 7 per game. Neither team is impressive because almost every statistical category is almost a dead heat with the exception of scoring where Nevada scores 10 more points per game, and that means they use more possessions to get their points because they only average 1.24 PPS which is the same as the Rams. The deciding factor is that this game is at home for Nevada so look for the Wolfpack to win.