This is a 10* ASSASSIN on Washington.

While I won't be so bold as to call for an outright victory, I do think that the home side can keep this one a lot closer than what the oddsmakers are leading us to believe and look for the home side to at the very least sneak in through the back door down the stretch with what I feel is a healthy amount of points afforded to it in this one. After a rare and stunning defeat, I think this sets up as classic letdown spot for the Wildcats. Conversely, Washington is looking to avoid its longest losing streak in more than 13 years, there's no question in my mind which team will be the more focused and "hungry." Arizona is coming off an 81-78 setback to rival Arizona State on Saturday, it was the team's third road defeat vs. an unranked opponent. The Wildcats looked susceptible defensively, allowing the Sun Devils to shoot 50.0 percent from the field. Washington will look to take advantage, after winning his first 11 games and reaching No. 13 in the AP poll, Huskies coach Lorenzo Romar finds himself in one of the longest losing streaks in his tenure. Note though that Washington hasn't dropped six straight since 2001: "We're not going to be able to show up and just win games based on our overall talent level," Romar said last night. "We're going to have to win games by being gritty and blue collar." It's true that Washington is without the services of 7-foot center Robert Upshaw, who was dismissed for violating team rules, but Nigel Williams-Goss has filled in admirably in averaging 20.0 points over his last four. This is a revenge game as well for the home side after losing three straight in the series. Note that Arizona is just 3-4 ATS on the road this year and only 13-16 ATS in the same position over the last two. And note that Washington is 6-2 ATS in its last eight after three or more consecutive SU losses. In my opinion, the situation, the numbers and the trends do all indeed point to WASHINGTON as the savvy move in this one.

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