Arizona basketball game notes: the numbers of the game

By ZACK ROSENBLATT Published November 9, 2012 at 3:00am Updated November 9, 2012 at 3:00am

Arizona outlook
Last year: 23-12, 12-7 Pac-12
Head coach: Sean Miller (fourth year at UA): 182-82 career coaching record, 69-35 at Arizona.

Projected starters (stats are from 2011-12)
*indicates high school stats – Mark Lyons, point guard — 15.1 points per game, 3.2 rebounds, 2.8 assists, 58 3-pointers made – Nick Johnson, shooting guard — 8.9 points, 3.3 rebounds, 2.4 assists – Solomon Hill, small forward — 12.9 points, 7.7 rebounds, 2.6 assists, 1.0 steals – *Grant Jerrett, power forward — 22.3 points, 10.0 rebounds, 2.4 blocks – *Kaleb Tarczewski, center — 20.7 points, 10.2 rebounds, 2.7 blocks

Preseason leaders (two games):
Scoring: Lyons — 17.5 points per game
Rebounds: Brandon Ashley — 7.0 per game
Assists: Lyons — 4.0 per game
Steals: Johnson — 3.5 per game
Blocks: Jerrett — 2.0 per game
3-pointers: Lyons — 3.0 per game

History against Charleston Southern: First meeting

The numbers: – 84-21: Arizona’s all-time record in season openers, and Wildcats have won 10 consecutive openers – 103.0: Wildcats’ scoring average in two preseason wins against Humboldt State and Chico State – 77-23: Arizona’s record in November in the last 28 years. 29 percent of those opponents (29 of 100) were natonally ranked. Arizona is 18-11 in those games. – 6-foot-6 3/4 : The average height of Arizona’s starting lineup in the two preseason games, nearly three inches taller per player than last year’s starters – 1,194: points Mark Lyons scored in three years at Xavier before transferring to the UA this year – 3: The national rank of Arizona’s freshman recruits, which include Tarczewski, Jerrett, Brandon Ashley and Gabe York

Scouting the Buccaneers
Last year: 19-12, 11-7 Big South
Head coach: Barclay Radebaugh (eighth year at CSU): 90-119 career coaching record, 88-122 at Charleston Southern.

Key players: (2011-12 stats)
Arlon Harper, guard — 12.5 points per game, 2.9 rebounds, 2.0 steals, 55 3-pointers made
Saah Nimley, guard — 13.5 points, 2.8 rebounds, 3.9 assists, 62 3-pointers made
Jeremy Sexton, guard — 8.8 points, 1.9 rebounds, 2.0 assists
Mathiang Muo, forward — 9.8 points, 4.0 rebounds, 67 3-pointers made

Key Depature:
The Buccaneers lost Kelvin Martin, their leading scorer and the Big South Defensive Player of the year. He scored 15.4 points per game and grabbed nine rebounds per contest last year.

They said it:
“This is the best Charleston Southern team since Eric Burks and Brett Larrick played for the Buccaneers. With the backcourt of Saah Nimley and Arlon Harper, Charleston Southern will be the best team [in the Big South division].” — ESPN college basketball analyst Jay Bilas