Texas-Arlington @ Gonzaga preview

Last Meeting ( Dec 18, 2018 ) Texas-Arlington 55, Gonzaga 89

Eighth-ranked Gonzaga aims to record its 26th straight home victory when it entertains UT Arlington on Tuesday night at Spokane, Wash. The Bulldogs were viewed as a program in transition prior to the campaign but have won each of their four games by at least 30 points.

Gonzaga has four new starters but the results have been stellar with the squad averaging 95.3 points per game, allowing 59.8 and compiling a plus-17.8 rebounding margin. Sophomore forward Filip Petrusev leads the Bulldogs in scoring (18.3), rebounding (9.3) and blocked shots (eight) and he said the superb board work isn't an accident. "That's a big point of emphasis the last couple weeks," Petrusev told reporters after Friday's 79-49 road win over Texas A&M. "Everybody is going to the boards, especially defensively and not allowing (teams) the second chances. We rebound and get into our offense right away." UT Arlington suffered a 67-47 road loss at Oregon on Sunday night and shot a program-worst 23.4 percent (15 of 64) from the field, just below the previous mark of 23.5 against Texas State on Jan. 9, 1999.

TV: 9 p.m. ET, ROOT Sports (Gonzaga)

ABOUT UT ARLINGTON (2-2): The poor shooting against Oregon sabotaged any hopes the Mavericks had of giving the Ducks a competitive challenge. "We can't expect to beat them when scoring 47 points," UT Arlington coach Chris Ogden said after the loss. "For the most part we were locked in, but we went through some stretches where we couldn't get a shot to fall, and in those moments we have to be more disciplined to get a piece of the paint and make better shot selections." Sophomore guard David Azore is the lone player averaging in double figures at 10.5, and he was just 2-of-8 shooting while scoring 11 points against Oregon.

ABOUT GONZAGA (4-0): Junior forward Corey Kispert (15.3 average) is the lone returning starter but six players are averaging in double figures as the Bulldogs display solid balance in the early going. Senior guard Admon Gilder (13.3) and senior point guard Ryan Woolridge (11.0) each had 16 points and seven rebounds against Texas A&M while Petrusev contributed 14 points and 10 rebounds. Freshman reserve forward Drew Timme is averaging 13.3 points on 70-percent shooting while freshman forward Anton Watson is averaging 10.5.

TIP-INS

1. Gonzaga is 2-0 against UT Arlington, including an 89-55 home victory last season when the Mavericks shot just 26.8 percent.

2. The Bulldogs are shooting 42.3 percent from 3-point range, while UT Arlington is at 29.9 after a 6-of-30 showing against Oregon.

3. Gonzaga senior forward Killian Tillie (knee) is close to making his season debut.

PREDICTION: Gonzaga 95, UT Arlington 57