Hartford @ Southern Methodist preview

SMU returns home looking to continue its undefeated season against Hartford on Tuesday. The Mustangs are coming off two close, impressive road victories against UNLV and Evansville - a team that took down No. 11 Kentucky.

The Mustangs got a huge boost in their recent win at UNLV from sophomore guard Kendric Davis, who finally received a waiver from the NCAA after transferring from TCU. Davis converted 7-of-13 field goals and 6-for-6 from the free-throw line for 21 points, and grabbed nine rebounds despite being listed at 5 feet 11. The Mustangs remain without guard Darius McNeill, who has not received a waiver from the NCAA after transferring from California. The Mustangs have yet to allow an opponent to score more than 68 points, which does not bode well for the young Hawks, who have scored 58 or fewer in each of their three losses.

TV: 7 p.m. ET, No TV

ABOUT HARTFORD (4-3): The Hawks have been led by a pair of young big men in Miroslav Stafl and Hunter Marks. Stafl has made 54.4 percent of his field goals and has scored in double figures in five of the last six games while Marks utilizes an inside-out game, draining 35.7 percent of his attempts from beyond the arc. Balancing out the youth is graduate-transfer point guard Traci Carter from La Salle, who does not score much (6.3 points), but ranks fifth among America East players in assists per game (four) and assist-turnover ratio (1.6).

ABOUT SMU (5-0): Davis’ return compliments the Mustangs’ pre-existing duo of Tyson Jolly and Isiaha Mike. Despite only scoring a season-low seven points against UNLV, Jolly still showed his usefulness and versatility by dishing out seven assists. Mike has been a threat all season as a stretch-four, being aggressive in the post and averaging seven rebounds all while stepping out and shooting 52.2 percent from 3-point range.

TIP-INS

1. SMU has no seniors on its roster.

2. The Mustangs are 34-3 at home in non-conference play under Tim Jankovich.

3. The top five scorers for the Hawks are all underclassmen.

PREDICTION: SMU 88, Hartford 58