Jan. 19, 1998
Arizona State Plays Host to Oregon Schools
Urit Kelly Contributes Off the BenchThurs., Jan. 22 Oregon State Beavers (9-8/0-6) 6:30 p.m. MT Tempe, Ariz. No TV/KTAR 620 AM Sat., Jan. 24 Oregon Ducks (7-8/2-4) 6:30 p.m. MT Tempe, Ariz. KTVK-3/KTAR 620 AM
Arizona State Sun Devils (12-6/2-3 in 1997-98) Pos # Name Yr Ht. PPG RPG Notes G 11 Ahlon Lewis Sr. 6-0 7.4 9.1* 21 pts. and 7 assists at WSU; 39.4 minutes per game in Pac-10 G 21 Jeremy Veal Sr. 6-3 20.1 4.8 1,679 career points; 373 career assts.; 9 20-point games on year G 5 Eddie House So. 6-1 11.9 3.3* 33-74 (44.6%) from 3-pt./42 steals/24 points vs. Eastern Michigan F 4 Bobby Lazor Jr. 6-9 17.4 7.3 Syracuse transfer; 9 20-pt. games in '97/57.9% from field F 24 Mike Batiste Jr. 6-8 16.6 6.8 122-211 (57.8 %) from floor/38 bks on year/71.0% career FTs G 3 D'Angelo Jones Fr. 5-10 0.5 0.5 Walkon from Scottsdale, Ariz./speaks Japanese fluently G 13 Ron DuBois Jr. 5-10 1.6 0.4 Walkon who has earned scholarship/12 games in 2-year career G-F 22 Jason Patton So. 6-4 6.3 2.7 21 pts. vs. Del. St./11.9 minutes per game/10 pts. vs. E. Michigan F-C 25 Okeme Oziwo So. 6-8 2.9 5.2 Will miss season (car accident injuries in late August) F 32 Derek Smith Fr. 6-5 0.9 1.0 Walkon from Grand Junction, Colo./6 games played F 40 Urit Kelly Sr. 6-6 5.7 3.5 9 pts. and 5 boards at WSU/8 rebs. vs. UCLA/11 pts. and 8 rebs. at UA * -- denotes assists per game.
SUN DEVILS HOST BEAVERS AND DUCKS: The Arizona State men's basketball team, picked to finish last in the Pac-10 preseason media poll, hopes to improve on its 10-1 home record as it hosts the Oregon State Beavers and the Oregon Ducks this week at the University Activity Center (14,198). ASU (12-6; 2-3 in the Pac-10) is led by senior Jeremy Veal, who averaged 18.7 ppg. last year en route to earning All-Pac-10 and is averaging 20.1 ppg. this year, tops in the league. ASU, who has just seven healthy scholarship players, has already surpassed its 1996-97 win total with 12 after going 10-20 last year. The combined opponent's record of ASU's six losses (as of Tues., Jan. 20) is 88-19 (.822), as No. 6 Arizona is 15-3, Oklahoma State 12-3, Washington 11-3, No. 9 UCLA 13-4, No. 3 Kansas 21-3 and No. 8 UConn 16-3.
ASU will hope to continue recent wins vs. Oregon State, as ASU has won five straight vs. the Beavers in Tempe and has won eight of the past 10 against OSU, although the past two wins in Tempe have been overtime games. Oregon has won three straight vs. ASU in the University Activity Center, including a 25-point margin (76-51) last year.
ELITE GROUP: ASU senior guard Jeremy Veal already has accumulated 1,679 points and 373 assists in his career. A look at the other nine players in Pac-10 history who have notched 1,600 points and 350 assists:
Player School Years Points Assists Jeremy Veal Arizona State 1994-present 1,679 373 Brevin Knight Stanford 1993-97 1,714 780 Damon Stoudamire Arizona 1991-95 1,849 663 Khalid Reeves Arizona 1990-94 1,925 396 Stevin Smith Arizona State 1990-94 1,679 416 Eldridge Recasner Washington 1987-90 1,700 376 Gary Payton Oregon State 1987-90 2,172 938 Sean Elliott Arizona 1986-89 2,555 451 Kevin Johnson California 1984-87 1,655 521 Ron Lee Oregon 1972-76 2,085 572
Note: WSU, UCLA, USC have not had a player notch 1,600 points AND 350 assists in a career.
WHAT TO LOOK FOR: Jeremy Veal is the only current Sun Devil who has played at ASU for more than one year...Urit Kelly is averaging 21 minutes, 6.8 points and 5.8 boards in his past four games off the bench...Eddie House has posted 167 assists in his 48-game career and has just 65 turnovers, a ratio of 2.57-to-1. House has played 20 games without a turnover...Ahlon Lewis is averaging 18.5 points and 7.5 assists in his past two games...Jeremy Veal's 26 points at Washington State on Jan. 11 was the most since he posted 29 vs. second-ranked Kansas on Nov. 26 at Madison Square Garden...ASU has had six players post at least one 20-point game, as all five starters have notched 20 points along with swingman Jason Patton...Lewis has played all but three minutes in the five Pac-10 games. His 21 points at Washington State is a career best...ASU played the final 19:23 of the game at Washington State on Jan. 11 without commiting a turnover...the 163 assists by Lewis already is fifth on the ASU single-season list...Mike Batiste's 38 blocks already is tenth on the ASU single-season list...ASU's win at WSU broke a 13-game Pac-10 road losing streak, dating back to Feb. 15, 1996, when ASU topped USC 69-66...ASU has used the same starting lineup in all 18 games...Jeremy Veal has played in 108 straight games...Mike Batiste is 30-of-46 (.652) from the field in the past four games...Eddie House is 9-of-20 (.450) from the three-point stripe in Pac-10 play...a quick look at the Jan. 19th Associated Press poll reveals that ASU has played No. 3 Kansas, No. 6 Arizona, No. 8 UConn, No. 9 UCLA and No. 21 Cincinnati.
TALK ABOUT IMPROVEMENTS: Much talk recently has centered around ASU Coach Don Newman and the job he has done since being named to the position on Sept. 22, 10 days after Bill Frieder resigned. A look at some of the statistics regarding the 1997-98 Sun Devils:
97-98 96-97
Games at 50% Shooting 11 of 18 5 of 30
ASU has shot 50 pct. in 11 of 18 games...ASU had shot 50 percent just eight times in the past two years...ASU's 61.3 pct. (38-of-62) vs. NAU (Dec. 3) is the best since ASU shot 62 pct. at Cal on Jan. 14, 1995...ASU has shot above 55 percent four times.
Team FT shooting 74.9% 66.5%
ASU is at 74.9 percent from the FT line, its best mark since the 1954-55 squad shot 75.4 percent, the second-best mark in ASU history...ASU leads the league in FT percentage.
Eddie House's 3-Pt Shooting 44.6% 31.8%
House also is 44.6% from the field after shooting 41.6% last year...is 12-of-23 (52.2) from the three-point stripe in the past six games.
games of at least 80 points 14 8
ASU has scored at least 80 points in 14 games. Last year, ASU scored 80 points eight times, two of those games against non-Division I teams...ASU scored in triple-digits in back-to-back games for the first time since 1992-93 and has notched triple-digits four times.
Wins 12 10
ASU was just 10-20 last year and lost its last 11 games. The Sun Devils finished last in the Pac-10, going 2-16...ASU is 10-1 at home after going 9-9 in the UAC last year...ASU was just 17-17 at home in the past two seasons prior to this year...the win at Cincinnati ended a 12-game road loss streak for ASU, with its last road win on Feb. 15, 1996 (69-66 at USC), while the win at WSU ended a 13-game Pac-10 road loss streak dating back to that same USC game.
TURNAROUND: Point guard Ahlon Lewis, who arguably could be the nation's most improved player, has posted 163 assists after posting just 77 last year. He set the school record on Dec. 3 vs. Northern Arizona with 16. The 16 assists also is tied for the fourth-best mark by any Pac-10 player and is the most assists by a Pac-10 player since Jason Kidd posted 18 for Cal on Jan. 20, 1994. Lewis posted his best overall game of the year on Jan. 11 at WSU, notching 21 points and seven assists. A look at the improvement of Lewis:
97-98 96-97
Games Started All 18 10 of 29
Minutes Per Game 34.7 16.4
Free Throw Percentage 84.3 57.1
Rebounds Per Game 3.7 1.7
Assists Per Game 9.06 2.7
Assist-to-Turnover Ratio 1.85-to-1 1.2-to-1
Steals Per Game 1.61 0.7
Points Per Game 7.4 2.7
Double-Digit Assist Games 7 0
Double-Digit Point Games 4 0
ON A ROLL: Junior Bobby Lazor has posted five "double-doubles" in the past nine games...42-of-53 (.792) from the FT line in his past 10 games...named Tribune Classic MVP after averaging 24.5 points and 10.5 rebounds in the two games...a strong candidate for Academic All-American as a business major with a 3.61 grade point average...had a career-high 16 boards vs. USC on Jan. 3...a quick look at Lazor in the past nine games:
Date Opponent FGs (Pct.) FTs (Pct.) Pts. Rebs.
Dec. 19 Texas A&M 8-13 (.615) 6-7 (.857) 23 10
Dec. 22 Weber St. 4-7 (.571) 7-10 (.700) 16 10
Dec. 27 La Salle 8-13 (.615) 7-7 (1.000) 24 9
Dec. 28 E. Michigan 10-16 (.625) 4-4 (1.000) 25 12
Jan. 3 USC 3-7 (.429) 7-10 (.700) 13 16
Jan. 5 UCLA 9-19 (.474) 2-3 (.667) 20 11
Jan. 8 @Washington 4-8 (.500) 0-0 (.000) 9 13
Jan. 11 @WSU 2-8 (.250) 4-6 (.667) 9 4
Jan. 15 @ UA 5-10 (.500) 2-3 (.667) 12 0
Totals 53-101 39-50 151 85
(.525) (.780) 16.8 9.4
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| Eddie House has 42 steals in 18 games. (File photo) |
GOOD HOUSEKEEPING NOTES: Eddie House has 42 steals (2.33 per game) and 59 (3.28) assists through 18 games this year and has just 26 turnovers...was 5-of-8 (.625) from the floor with two three-pointers in UC win...had 22 points vs. No. 2 Kansas on Nov. 26...has 167 assists and 65 turnovers through 48 games in his career, a 2.57-to-1 ratio...Mike Bibby and House were the only Pac-10 players to notch at least 50 three-pointers, 50 steals and 100 assists in 1996-97...posted 59 steals (ASU frosh record) and hit 57 three-pointers and dished out 108 assists, the second-best amount for a freshman in ASU history...has played 20 turnover-free games in his 48 game-career, averaging 30.3 minutes per game...had 24 points on 9-of-11 shooting in Eastern Michigan win on Dec. 28...is 30-of-63 (.476) from the field and 12-of-23 (.522) from the three-point stripe in his past six games...hit the game-winning shot vs. Washington State on Jan. 11...team leader with 42 steals.
OSU-UO SERIES INFORMATION: OSU leads the ASU series 30-18...ASU has won the past five against the Beavers in Tempe and eight of the past 10 overall...the last OSU win in Tempe was 61-47 in 1991-92...the past two OSU-ASU games in Tempe have gone into overtime, with ASU winning both...ASU leads the Oregon series 25-18...Oregon has won the past three overall and has also won three straight in Tempe...Oregon beat ASU by 25 points last year in Tempe, 76-51.
BATISTE NOTES: Last season, junior college transfer Mike Batiste joined the Sun Devils as a 6-8 December transfer and played in 22 games (his first on Dec. 22, 1996) despite having left knee surgery the previous March...shooting 57.8 percent from the floor on the year...posted 12 points, six boards and four blocks in win at UC...had career highs with 36 points and 20 rebounds vs. Wagner on Nov. 19...posted six blocks in opener vs. Northridge...made the Pac-10 All-Newcomer team last year...posted three 20-point games in 1996-97 and has five in 18 games this year...turned 20 years old on Nov. 21...has 38 blocks on the year after posting just 17 last season...has two games of double-digit rebounds...has two "double-doubles" and three other games of double-digit points and nine rebounds...made the Tribune Classic All-Tournament team, averaging 16 points and 10 boards in the the two games...has hit 14-of-17 (.824) free throws in the past four games.
LEAGUE'S BEST SHOOTER???: Jeremy Veal is shooting 78.8 percent (283-of-359) from the FT line in his career...posted 32 points against Cal State Northridge, 26 at Washington State, 25 at Cincinnati and 26 at Arizona...has nine 20-point games on the year...needs 156 points to become ASU's career leader...second on the ASU career scoring list (1,679 points)...only the second player in ASU history to notch at least 1,400 points and 300 assists...averaging 4.8 boards per game and had a career-high 10 boards vs. Northern Arizona...has been (or shared) ASU's leading rebounder in five games...is the only player in the Pac-10 returning this year who finished in the league's top 10 in both 3-point shooting percentage and FT percentage...finished third in 3-point percentage (.443/58-of-131) and 10th in FT percentage (.774/106-of-137)...has yet to miss a game in his 108-game career.
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| Jeremy Veal has never missed a game in his ASU career. (File photo) |
MORE QUICK NOTES: The 123 points vs. Delaware State on Dec. 1 is the fourth-most points in ASU history, and the most since ASU topped DePauw 124-73 on Jan. 2, 1971...ASU's 39 assists vs. Delaware State was the most by any Sun Devil team in the 1990s...the last two times ASU has started the season 3-0, it has advanced to the NCAA Tournament (1990-91 and 1994-95), ASU's only NCAA appearances since 1980-81...this year also marked just the third time in the past 10 seasons ASU has started 3-0. The last time was in 1994-95, when ASU won the Maui Invitational and advanced to the Sweet Sixteen and ended the season 24-9. ASU also was 3-0 in 1990-91, when it ended 20-10 overall, and lost to Arkansas in the second round of the NCAA Tournament. In 1987-88, ASU started 3-0 but ended the season 13-16...ASU has outrebounded just three opponents (Wagner, La Salle and Eastern Michigan) on the year...the last ASU opponent to score 100 points in the UAC was Arizona on Feb. 27, 1988, when it topped ASU 101-73...ASU's last win over a ranked team was 103-98 in double overtime at Arizona on March 11, 1995...ASU has not beaten a team ranked higher than it at the UAC since Jan. 15, 1995, when No. 15 ASU topped No. 9 Arizona 53-52 in the Pac-10 opener...ASU has lost 14 straight games to teams ranked in the AP poll...the last time ASU did not make a three-pointer in a game was Jan. 10, 1987 vs. USC in Tempe in a 66-62 Trojan win, the 12th game of the 1986-87 season. ASU has made a three-pointer in 330 straight games since then...ASU is 4-2 in games decided by six points or less.
SWEET 16: Since the NCAA Tournament field expanded to 64 teams in 1985, five Pac-10 teams have reached the Sweet Sixteen. Arizona (1988, 1989, 1991, 1994, 1996, 1997), UCLA (1990, 1992, 1995, 1997), California (1993, 1997), Stanford (1997) and Arizona State (1995).
PAC-10 MEDIA POLL: ASU was picked to finish tenth by the Pac-10 Media in a preseason poll, announced on Nov. 6. The results, with first-place votes in parentheses:
1. Arizona (22) 2. UCLA (5) 3. Stanford 4. Washington 5. California 6. USC 7. Oregon State 8. Oregon 9. Washington State 10. Arizona State
BAD LUCK: Since 1990, 23 of 24 Pac-10 teams who have won 11 conference games have been selected to the NCAA Tourney. The exception? ASU in 1992-93, when it was 11-7 and tied for third. Also, 27 of 28 teams since 1990 who have posted 18 overall wins and 10 Pac-10 wins have qualified for the NCAA. Again, the odd team out was ASU in 1992-93.
GETTING TO KNOW DON NEWMAN: Named ASU's 11th head coach on Sept. 22, 1997...turned 40 on Nov. 22...born in New Orleans...played at LSU and Idaho...has coached at Cal-State Sacramento, Washington State, Moscow High School and Lewiston High School, both of them in Idaho...played for numerous professional teams, including: Seattle Seahawks, Boston Celtics, Montana Golden Nuggets, New York Jets, Saskatchewan Roughriders, Edmonton Eskimos and Hamilton Tiger Cats...coached at Montana by George Karl...went 20-114 at Cal State Sacramento while taking team from Division II to Division I...CSS traveled to almost half the country (22 states) in five-year career.
VEAL IN GOOD COMPANY: Jeremy Veal finished in the league's top five in both scoring (4th/18.7 ppg) and assists (T5th/4.7), becoming only the fourth Pac-10 player to accomplish the feat since 1983. The others are all NBA stars: Damon Stoudamire (1993-94 and 1994-95), Terrell Brandon (1990-91) and Gary Payton (1988-89 and 1989-90).
HOUSE ON ALL-FROSH SQUAD: Eddie House made the Pac-10 All-Freshman Team, becoming the seventh Sun Devil to accomplish the feat. Others are: Steve Beck (1983-84), Chris Sandle (1984-85), Jamal Faulkner (1990-91 and also Pac-10 Freshman of the Year), Dwayne Fontana (1990-91), Mario Bennett (1991-92) and Ron Riley (1992-93).
ALL-LEAGUE HONORS: Jeremy Veal earned All-Pac-10 honors, the 13th Sun Devil to earn the honor. The last Sun Devil to accomplish the feat was Mario Bennett in 1995. Veal will have a chance to earn the honor twice in his career, something accomplished by just three other Sun Devils: Mario Bennett (1993-94 and 1994-95), Lafayette "Fat" Lever (1980-81 and 1981-82) and Stevin Smith (1992-93 and 1993-94).
MEDIA COVERAGE: KMVP 860 AM is the radio home of Sun Devil basketball. Tom Dillon, Arizona's Sportscaster of the Year 15 years running and the voice of Sun Devil athletics as well as the Arizona Cardinals handles the play-by-play duties. All games are on KMVP 860 AM, except those that conflict with other KMVP programming. Sun Devil games are then moved to KTAR 620 AM. Tim Healey and Gil Tyree handle the play-by-play and color commentary for KTVK-3. KTVK-3 will broadcast 14 Sun Devil games this year.
ASU CAREER POINTS Rk. Points Name Years 1. 1,834 Ron Riley 1992-96 2. 1,679 Jeremy Veal 1994-present FIELD GOALS MADE Rk. FGs Name Years 1. 651 Ron Riley 1992-96 4. 611 Joe Caldwell 1961-64 5. 603 Steve Beck 1984-87 6. 601 Jeremy Veal 1994-present ASSISTS Rk. FGs Name Years 1. 454 Bobby Thompson 1984-87 4. 416 Stevin Smith 1990-94 5. 377 Johnny Nash 1976-81 6. 373 Jeremy Veal 1994-present STEALS Rk. FGs Name Years 1. 246 Stevin Smith 1990-94 5. 141 Marcell Capers 1992-95 6. 136 Steve Beck 1984-87 7. 134 Jeremy Veal 1994-present SEASON ASSISTS Rk. ASSTS Name Years 1. 233 Marcell Capers 1994-95 3. 185 Mike Redhair 1989-90 4. 177 Lynn Collins 1991-92 5. 163 Ahlon Lewis 1997-98 SEASON BLOCKS Rk. BKS Name Years 1. 115 Mario Bennett 1994-95 2. 113 Rodger Farrington 1996-97 3. 55 Mario Bennett 1991-92 3. 55 Alton Lister 1979-80 9. 42 Jon Taylor 1984-85 10. 38 Mike Batiste 1997-98
WALKON INFORMATION: ASU has three walkons on its roster in 1997-98, two of them newcomers...Ron DuBois, a 5-10 guard, was on the squad last year and earned a scholarship for 1997-98...Derek Smith, a 6-5 forward from Grand Junction, Colo., and D'Angelo Jones, a 5-10 freshman from Scottsdale, Ariz., joined the team in the fall.
Top 1997-98 numbers: Here's a look at ASU's top players, with Pac-10 rankings noted:
Pac-10 Scoring
Jeremy Veal 1st 20.1
Bobby Lazor 8th 17.4
Mike Batiste 10th 16.6
Pac-10 Rebounding
Bobby Lazor 7th 7.3
Mike Batiste 10th 6.8
Pac-10 FG Pct.
Bobby Lazor 3rd 57.9
Mike Batiste 4th 57.8
Pac-10 Assists
Ahlon Lewis 1st 9.06
Jeremy Veal 9th 4.11
Pac-10 Steals
Eddie House 4th 2.33
Ahlon Lewis 10th 1.61
Pac-10 Blocks
Mike Batiste 1st 2.11
Bobby Lazor 3rd 1.67
Pac-10 3-PT Pct
Eddie House 6th 44.6
Pac-10 FT Pct
Ahlon Lewis 5th 84.3
1997-98 Team statistics
Free Throw Pct. 1st 74.9
Assists Average 1st 21.28
Blocks 1st 4.56
Assist/TO Ratio 2nd 1.30
Field Goal Pct. 2nd 49.5
Scoring Offense 2nd 88.7
Steals Per Game 3rd 9.78
Turnover Margin 3rd +2.67
3-PT FG Pct. 5th 36.3
3-PT FG Pct. Def. 6th 33.9
FG Pct. Defense 7th 45.5
Scoring Margin 7th +3.9
Rebound Margin 10th -5.2
Scoring Defense 10th 84.8
QUICK NOTES
The last time ASU was picked to finish tenth in the
Pac-10 media poll (1992-93), ASU finished tied for third with an 18-8 overall and
11-7 Pac-10 mark.
1997-98
PAC-10 STANDINGS
(as of Jan. 19)
Conf. Overall
Team W L W L
STAN 5 0 15 0
UA 5 0 15 3
UW 4 1 11 3
UCLA 4 2 13 4
ASU 2 3 12 6
CAL 2 3 6 7
UO 2 4 7 8
USC 2 4 6 10
WSU 1 4 8 8
OSU 0 6 9 8
PAC-10 PICKS: A look at ASU's finishes compared to the Pac-10 preseason media picks in the 1990s:
Media Pac-10
Picks Finish
1997-98 10th ???
1996-97 9th 10th
1995-96 6th 8th
1994-95 4th 3rd
1993-94 5th T-4th
1992-93 10th T-3rd
1991-92 3rd 5th
1990-91 6th 3rd
1989-90 6th T-7th
PRESEASON PREDICTIONS
ASU vs. Oregon: 25-18
In the 1990s: 10-6
UO @ UAC in 1990s: 5-4
UO @ UO in 1990s: 5-2
Series Streak: UO, three
ASU has won 10 of the past 15
Year W/L Site Score
1989-90 L UO 61-63
W ASU 75-71
1990-91 W UO 99-84
W ASU 87-84*
1991-92 W ASU 71-62
W UO 58-48
1992-93 W UO 99-84
W ASU 103-84
1993-94 W ASU 84-78
L UO 80-87
1994-95 W UO 79-76
L ASU 72-73
1995-96 W UO 74-73
L ASU 70-81
1996-97 L ASU 51-76
L UO 77-85
*-overtime game
ASU vs. OSU: 18-30
In the 1990s: 10-7
OSU @UAC in the 1990s: 7-2
OSU @OSU in the 1990s: 3-5
Series Streak: OSU, one
ASU has won 8 of past 10 and five straight in Tempe
Year W/L Site Score
1989-90 L OSU 64-87
L ASU 59-73
W ASU 83-75!
1990-91 L OSU 69-91
W ASU 84-69
1991-92 L ASU 47-61
L OSU 72-80
1992-93 W OSU 82-73
W ASU 76-61
1993-94 W ASU 88-82
W OSU 80-60
1994-95 L OSU 70-83
W ASU 82-44
1995-96 W OSU 93-75
W ASU 63-58*
1996-97 W ASU 78-75*
L OSU 67-71
!-Pac-10 Tournament (Tempe)
*-overtime games