Washington State vs Arizona Picks and Odds
- Arizona will follow its most impressive win of the season at USC with a Pac-12 home game against Washington State at 11 PM ET Thursday.
- Washington State sophomore guard Noah Williams scored 72 points in victories over the Bay Area schools last weekend
- Check the odds, analysis and betting predictions below
Arizona (15-8, 9-8 Pac-12) will attempt to sweep the season series when it plays host to Washington State in a Pac-12 game on Thursday. The Wildcats enter off their best game of the season, an 81-72 road take-down of then-No. 17 USC.
Washington State (14-10, 7-10) has won two games in a row and five of its last eight following a six-game losing streak in January.
Washington State vs Arizona Odds
| Team | Moneyline | Spread | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Washington State Cougars | +360 | +9 (-110) | 138.5 (Over-110) |
| Arizona Wildcats | -460 | -9 (-110) | 138.5 (Under-100) |
Odds from FanDuel on Feb 24.
Arizona freshman forward Azuolas Tubelis had 16 points and a career-high 15 rebounds and reserve Jordan Brown had 19 points and 13 rebounds when the Wildcats handled USC inside to help coach Sean Miller to his 300th career victory.
Cougars’ guard Noah Williams scored 32 points in a home victory over California on Thursday and 40 in a triple-overtime victory over Stanford, when his 3-pointer at the buzzer sent the game into a third overtime.
Arizona’s Tubelis Continues to Improve
Lithuanian 6-foot-11 forward Azuolas Tubelis was considered among the best bigs in the European recruiting class last summer, and his adjustment to the college game has been slowish but steady.
Tubelis, who entered the starting lineup in the seventh game, is averaging 12.2 points and 6.8 rebounds per game while shooting 50.7 percent from the floor this season. He has expanded his range, with 11 of his 13 three-point makes coming in January and February
His numbers that have grown as he has gotten more experience. He is averaging 15.8 points and 8.2 rebounds while shooting 54.5 percent in six February games, and he more than held his own against USC 7-footer Evan Mobley in the Wildcats’ victory last Saturday.
Tryin’ One
Washington State 6-5 sophomore guard Noah Williams did not shy away from the moment when he was cast into the principal scoring role when leading scorer Isaac Bonton missed the Cougars’ three games last week with injuries to both ankles.
Noah Williams dropped 40 in Washington State’s 3OT win over Stanford today 🔥
Dropped a career-high 32 on Thursday. Automatic bucket. pic.twitter.com/E5M0CnvPWh
— Bleacher Report CBB (@br_CBB) February 21, 2021
Williams scored 12, 32 and 40 points as the Cougars won two of three. Williams scored 72 points on 55 shots against California and Washington, making 12 of 31 three-point attempts. His 35 field goal attempts against Stanford was a school record and the most in Division I this season.
Bonton’s condition for the Arizona game is unknown, although both he and Ryan Rapp (leg) will make the trip. Bonton scored 25 points in the Cougars’ 86-82 double overtime loss to Arizona on Jan. 2. Williams had 16.
Kyle Smith’s full answer on the looming decision for Isaac Bonton. #WSU coach notes Bonton “missed half his freshman year” and says “my pitch is to get him back, play in front of fans, maybe we could have a chance to be a good postseason team.” pic.twitter.com/DsI8K60fnl
— Theo Lawson (@TheoLawson_SR) February 23, 2021
Andrej Jakimovski, who had 15 points and four threes in the first meeting, could see time at point.
For Each, a Tale of Two Seasons
Arizona and Washington State have taken similar paths to the rematch. Each team won nine of its first 10 games against nondescript competition — they played a combined 23 games against Quad 3 and Quad 4 opponents — before stalling in Pac-12 play.
The Wildcats’ issue is that they have had relatively little to play for since Dec. 29, when the school announced a self-imposed one-year ban that will keep it out of the 2021 NCAA tournament.
They have beaten only one Pac-12 first division team since, USC last week, in a season made more trying when Jemarl Baker was lost for the year with a broken wrist suffered in a Jan. 9 loss to UCLA.
Washington State’s season-opening winning streak was broken by Arizona on Jan. 2. The Cougars have two first-division wins, against Oregon and UCLA. They will finish the season in Arizona, with games at Arizona State on Saturday and Monday.
By the Numbers
Arizona is 9-14 ATS and 5-9 ATS as a home favorite, the second-worst record in the Pac-12 in each category. The Wildcats’ victory over USC was their second Quad 1 win of the season, and they have not won back-to-back games since sweeping Arizona State to cap a three-game winning streak a month ago.
Washington State is a healthy 6-2-1 ATS in its last nine games and 5-1-1 ATS on the road in league play. The Cougars’ lone Quad 1 win, at Oregon on Feb. 4, came in the Ducks’ first game after an 11-day absence because of Covid-19 issues.
Rough game for the Sean Miller can't coach crowd. Arizona just dropped 81 on Ken Pom's 11th best defense in the country and Fox drops this stat pic.twitter.com/enqz4LfxcV
— Jason Scheer (@JasonScheer) February 21, 2021
Arizona has not done much to enhance its reputation at home this season, losing to both Los Angeles schools, Stanford and Oregon, and second-year analytics driven Smith has Washington State moving in the right direction after three 20-win seasons at San Francisco.
Bonton is averaging 18.4 points and two steals per game, and his health should be monitored, But the Cougars again should be able to hang with an Arizona team that has been excluded from the Pac-12 tournament, also.
The pick: Washington State (+9.5) (-110)
Jack has covered college and professional sports for various Arizona media outlets since the 1980s and has written for the Associated Press, USA Today and Baseball America, among others. He staffed the 2015-17 World Series and has staffed four Super Bowls.
