Can Arizona State Keep Magic Alive vs. Wildcats?
Who: Arizona Wildcats at Arizona State Sun Devils
When: Monday, Feb. 7 at 7 p.m. Arizona time
Where: Desert Financial Arena, Tempe, Ariz.
Network: FS1
Spread (via SI Sportsbook): Arizona (-14)
According to sciencenotes.org, the odds of lightning striking the same place twice is one in nine million. For those keeping score at home, that's still higher than your chances of winning the Powerball.
The Arizona State Sun Devils will look to pull off a seemingly impossible task and upset two top-ten teams in a span of three days when rivals Arizona make the trip to Tempe.
ASU's last meeting with the Wildcats didn't exactly go to plan, as Arizona defeated the Sun Devils 67-56 in Tucson on Jan. 29.
Despite traveling on the road as an unranked team, Arizona State went into the break tied with Arizona at 32-32 before eventually falling behind the Wildcats.
This time, ASU is fresh off of an upset over No. 3 UCLA and is looking to ride their hot hand against their most heated rivals.
Arizona provides no easier task than their first meeting, however.
After falling to the hands of UCLA on Jan. 25, the Wildcats have strung together three consecutive wins which includes home games against the Bruins, Sun Devils and No. 19 USC.
The Wildcats boast a deep bench, as nine players average 13 or more minutes per game heading into Monday. Seven of those nine average 20 minutes or more.
Arizona touts four starters who are double-digit scorers, led by guard Bennedict Mathurin who averages 16.5 points per game. Forward Azuolas Tubelis (14.4), center Christian Koloko (12.5) and guard Kerr Kriisa (11) fall after Mathurin.
Koloko is currently the Pac-12's leader in blocks per game (3.2) and field goal percentage at 61.2%. He's also fifth in the conference with 7.3 rebounds per game.
As a team, the Wildcats rank third in the country in offense, averaging 84.9 points per game. Along with pacing the Pac-12 in scoring, the Wildcats also lead the conference in rebounds (43.6), field goal percentage (48%), assists (20.1) and blocks (6.52) per game.
The Sun Devils undoubtedly have their work cut out for them on Monday, although after defeating the Bruins, Arizona State carries a previously unpossessed swagger into Desert Financial Arena.
With their recent form, having previously hung with Arizona and home-court advantage on their side, Monday figures to be another great showdown in the ASU/UA rivalry.