Arizona vs Tennessee: 2021-22 college basketball game preview, TV schedule

Arizona kicks off a difficult three-game stretch with a road trip to Knoxville to take on No. 19 Tennessee. Will the Wildcats stay undefeated with a statement win or can Tennessee take down the No. 6 ranked Wildcats on Rocky Top?

TV schedule: Wednesday, Dec. 22 – 7:00 PM ET, ESPN2

Arena: Thompson-Boling Arena – Knoxville, TN

Arizona will put its undefeated record to the test this Wednesday with a cross-country road trip to take on No. 19 Tennessee on Rocky Top. The Wildcats have had an incredible start to Tommy Lloyd’s first season as head coach, going 11-0 with a road win over Illinois and neutral-site wins over both Michigan and Wichita State. This trip gives them another opportunity for a statement win.

This game marks the beginning of the most difficult three-game stretch of the season for Arizona, which will see them play three straight road games against No. 18 Tennessee, No. 5 UCLA, and No. 8 USC. The Wildcats have some quality wins already, but this road trip gives them the opportunity to let the nation know that they are here to stay.

The No. 6 ranked Wildcats are led by  Benedict Mathurin, who is averaging 17.4 PPG and 6.5 RPG on 58.3% shooting from the field. Mathurin is a 6-7 wing who can score from all three levels, making him an appealing prospect and potential lottery pick in the 2022 NBA Draft.

Part of what makes Arizona so difficult to play against is their size, with the 6-11 Azuolas Tubelis (16.1 PPG, 6.8 RPG) and 7-0 Christian Koloko (13.6 PPG, 7.3 RPG, 3.5 BPG) forming an intimidating frontcourt duo. Accordingly, they rank first in the nation in opponent 2P% and fourth in block rate.

Tennessee will be fired up to play this game as their matchup against Memphis this past Saturday was canceled just over an hour before tip-off due to COVID-19 issues within Memphis’ program. Rick Barnes had the team stick around and play an intrasquad scrimmage for the fans, but their disappointment in the last-minute cancelation was evident.

The Vols have two quality wins over UNC and at Colorado but have lost arguably their two most difficult games against Villanova and Texas Tech. They will have back-to-back opportunities for top 10 wins as they have a trip to Tuscaloosa to take on No. 10 Alabama after this game against Arizona.

Tennessee is led by its backcourt which features star freshman Kennedy Chandler (14.6 PPG, 5.4 APG) and junior Santiago Vescovi (13.1 PPG, 4.4 RPG, 3.4 APG). Vescovi has thrived in more of a traditional shooting guard role so far this season, leaving point guard duties to Chandler.

Tennessee scored 53 points on 33.3% shooting in its loss to Villanova and 52 points on 26.8% shooting in the loss to Texas Tech. Perimeter shooting issues factored heavily in those struggles, shooting 11-68 (16.2%) from three in those two losses.

Arizona has faced solid defensive teams but none as elite as Tennessee, which has the No. 2 ranked defense in the nation per KenPom. On the flip side, Tennessee has faced some quality opponents but none that are currently as highly ranked as Arizona. This will be a significant and potentially revealing test for both teams.

Arizona would be the clear pick on a neutral court, but Tennessee is 11-6 at home against top 30 KenPom teams over the past five seasons. Thompson-Boling Arena is the fourth-largest arena in the country, seating 21,678 fans that will be ready to see their team in action after the ordeal with Memphis this past Saturday.

That said, I like Arizona to win an incredibly close, high-level matchup. The Wildcats truly have no weaknesses on either end of the floor and are one of the three to five best teams in the country, if not the best.