The Arizona State men’s basketball team (3-1) plays Marquette on Tuesday, Nov. 24, at 8 p.m. in the championship game of the Legends Classic at the Barclays Center on ESPN2. ASU topped North Carolina State 79-76 Monday as sophomore Tra Holder posted a career-high 22 points and Savon Goodman added 21 points and 16 rebounds. ASU had 18 offensive rebounds that led to 28 second-chance points. Marquette leads the series 3-1 as it topped ASU 78-71 in Milwaukee last year on Dec. 16. Gerry Blakes had 20 points in what was Savon Goodman’s first college hoops game in 635 days after sitting out first semester due to mid-year transfer policies.
TRA GETTING BETTER: Last year at this time Tra Holder was learning the college game. In his first 15 games he averaged under 20 minutes and just over four points per game. Now 21 games later he has made himself into a double-digit scorer. He is averaging 10.5 points in his past 21 games and posted his two top scoring games in the first four games, with 22 vs. North Carolina State and 17 vs. Sacramento State.
TRA HOLDER COMPARSIONS FIRST 15 GAMES/PAST 21
MINUTES PG: 19.5/32.1
PPG: 4.2/10.5
FTM-A: 31-49 (.633)/86-111 (.775)
Savon Goodman is going to be one of the more productive big men in the Pac-12. Had 21 & 16 against NC State's front line last night.
? Jon Rothstein (@JonRothstein) November 24, 2015SAVON NOTE: Savon Goodman transferred from UNLV to Indian Hills College for 2013-14, and had to sit the first nine games last year after doing it, so when he suited up at Marquette it was his first college game since March of 2013. After shaking off the rust, he came on strong the last half of the year. In his past 16 games, he is averaging 12.9 points and 9.8 rebounds while shooting 86-of-139 (.618) from the field.
QUICK COACH NOTE: Buffalo was 285-369 (.436) in 22 seasons after going Division I (1991-2013). Under Coach Hurley the Bulls were 42-20 (.678) in his two seasons.
TRA FIRST 15 GAMES: 4.2 ppg, 31-49 FT/.633
TRA PAST 21 GAMES: 10.5 ppg, 86-111 FT/.774
STATS https://t.co/ejYG6CORyx pic.twitter.com/VX892YG0op
? Sun Devil MBB (@SunDevilHoops) November 24, 2015BARCLAYS CONNECTION: Brooklyn Nets head coach Lionel Hollins is one of six Sun Devils to have his number (33) honored in the rafters at Wells Fargo Arena. A 1986 ASU graduate with a degree in sociology, Hollins is a 1975 charter member of the ASU Hall of Fame and a two-time team Most Valuable Player who started every game in his two-year career and led ASU to a 43-13 (.768) record.
QUICK NOTES AFTER NCSU: Savon’s double-double (21/16) was his seventh in his 29 games at ASU. It was his third-best scoring night and second-best rebounding night, as he had 17 at Richmond in the NIT last year...Kodi Justice is 22-51 (.431) from the three-point stripe in his career...in his past two seasons Eric Jacobsen is 118-of-188 (.627) from the field...Gerry Blakes is averaging 6.8 rebounds through four games after averaging 4.2 last year...Willie Atwood is averaging 25.3 minutes after averaging 11.6 last year.
SAVON GOODMAN TOP SCORING GAMES
24 vs. Lehigh (12/20/14)
22 vs. Detroit (12/23/14)
21 vs. North Carolina State (11/23/15)
WHAT IS UP NEXT: After Marquette, the Sun Devils have a five-game stretch that starts with UCSB (19-game winner last year) at home on Sunday, a road trip to Creighton (Dec. 2) and its 17k fans, at home for bubble top-25 team Texas A&M (Dec. 5), and road trips to Kentucky (Dec. 12) and UNLV (Dec. 16).
NOVEMBER OF 1994: ASU will try and win a November tournament for the first time since Bill Frieder’s crew won the 1994 Maui Invitational.