The Arizona State Sun Devil men's basketball team (12-9; 2-6) plays host to the #23 (AP) Oregon Ducks (Sunday, Jan. 31) at 6:30 p.m., with Roxy Bernstein and Cory Williams on the call for ESPNU. Tim Healey and Kyle Dodd have the Sun Devil radio call on the Sun Devil Sports Radio Network (620 AM), presented by MidFirst.
TWEETABLES ABOUT @SUNDEVILHOOPS...
√ Tra Holder: 17.8 points in past 12 games and is 26-60 (.433) from 3PT in that time
√ Willie Atwood: 65-83 (.783) from FTs on the year
√ Obi Oleka: 26-29 (.896) FTs in Pac-12
√ Obi Oleka: 11.5 ppg. in past 11 games and 35-40 (.875) FTs
√ Kodi Justice: 10.0 ppg past 5 games, 23-50 (.460) FGs
√ 330-of-462 (.714) from the free throw line after 15-27 in first game
√ Averaging 42.2 points in second half (33.7 in the first half)
√ 9.7 turnovers per game in the past 9; 13.2 in first 12 tilts
√ FT% of .706 is best since 2009-10 (.712)
√ As of Jan. 29 the Pac-12's top RPI win is ASU over #14 Texas A&M (Dec. 5)
√ ASU is averaging 76.2 ppg., its best mark since 2002-03 squad scored 77.0
√ ASU has played eight games that were decided by five points or less
√ Obi Oleka is averaging 13.2 points in the past five games
√ Savon Goodman is at 11.0 points per game in the past four.
AT HOME: ASU is 56-11 (.839) at home in the past four seasons, the most home wins in a four-year period since the Lionel Hollins-led Sun Devils opened the building in 1974-75. Prior to this era, the most home wins in any four-year era was 51 (1991-95 and from 2007-11). The best winning percentage in a four-year span came from 1979-83, when the Sun Devils went 49-12 (.803). ASU is the only team to beat each of the past three Pac-12 champions in those seasons as it topped Arizona the past two seasons and beat UCLA in 2012-13, all at home.
SUN DEVILS VS. OREGON: ASU is 10-5 vs. Oregon in Tempe since 2001...ASU has won five of the past seven in Tempe...ASU is 7-6 overall against the Ducks in past 13 meetings...the Ducks and ASU split a pair in 2013-14, but Oregon swept the series last year...ASU is 8-9 against UO in past nine years, including 3-5 in Eugene, 5-3 in Tempe and 0-1 in the Pac-10 Tournament...ASU is 42-36 against the Ducks all-time.
ASU VS. DUCKS PAST SEVEN IN TEMPE
Oregon 68, ASU 67 (OT)/Jan. 30, 2015
ASU 74, Oregon 72/Feb. 8, 2014
Oregon 67, ASU 59/Jan. 12, 2012
ASU 73, Oregon 53/Mar. 3, 2011
ASU 61, Oregon 51/Feb. 13, 2010
ASU 76, Oregon 58/Jan. 10, 2009
ASU 62, Oregon 54/Jan. 3, 2008
VS. BEAVERS THURSDAY: ASU's .593 shooting percentage Thurdsay vs. OSU (32-of-54) is its best in a Pac-12 game since Feb. 2, 2013, when it shot .638 (37-of-58) at Washington...ASU's 24 assists is its most in a Pac-12 game since it also had 24 vs. Oregon State on March 5, 2011...Thursday marked the first time an ASU opponent did not have a block this year...OSU's 17 points in the first half was the fewest by an ASU opponent since a 34-13 halftime lead at California last year (Jan. 22, 2015)...Obi Oleka (18 points) led ASU in scoring for the third time this year...Tra Holder matched his career high with eight assists...ASU placed five players in double figures for the fourth time this year, the most times it has done that since it did that four times in the 2008-09 season...ASU has now won eight straight over Oregon State in Tempe and is 26-12 (.684) against them in Wells Fargo Arena...ASU has won six of the past eight and 12 of the past 15 in the series...it marked only the tenth time in the past 27 years (1989-90 to present) that ASU led by 19 at the half (36-17) in a Pac-12 game.
ASU EIGHT-GAME WIN STREAK IN TEMPE OVER OSU
ASU 86, Oregon State 68/Jan. 28, 2016
ASU 73, Oregon State 55/Jan. 28, 2015
ASU 86, Oregon State 82 (OT)/Feb. 6, 2014
ASU 76, Oregon State 66/Jan. 14, 2012
ASU 80, Oregon State 66/Mar. 5, 2011
ASU 56, Oregon State 46/Feb. 11, 2010
ASU 69, Oregon State 38/Jan. 8, 2009
ASU 72, Oregon State 53/Jan. 5, 2008
DOUBLE DIGITS: ASU had five players in double figures in the Oregon State, Texas A&M and the Houston Baptist wins and six in the Washington loss. Five players in double digits happened once last year.
EIGHT OF 75: ASU was one of eight in the "power five" conferences (75 teams) to play at least three out-of-conference "true" road games (true being on the opponent home floor). Others: Alabama, Auburn, Creighton, DePaul (4), Florida, Ole Miss (4) and Penn State.
FALL SIGNING PERIOD: ESPN tabbed Arizona State's November signing period two-man class as 19th in the nation. Sam Cunliffe, a 6-6 wing from Seattle who averaged nearly 20 points per game in his junior season, is rated as the top 2016 player in Washington, while shot blocker Jethro Tshisumpa at 6-10 and 260 is ranked as the 12th-best center prospect
OOC: ASU played five games away from Tempe in non-conference action, and went 3-2 (wins at UNLV, at Creighton and vs. NC State in Brooklyn). It lost at #5 Kentucky and in an overtime game to Marquette in Brooklyn. ASU went 3-10 on the road last year (3-13 away from home), and was 15-42 on the road (.263) and 21-56 (.272) away from home in the previous five seasons.
QUICK COACH NOTE: Buffalo was 285-369 (.436) in its first 22 seasons after going Division I (1991-2013). Under Coach Hurley the Bulls were 42-20 (.678) in his two seasons.
ONE CALENDAR YEAR: Last year after the Jan. 15 Utah game Tra Holder was shooting below 30 percent, had 15 buckets, two three-pointers and was averaging just over four points. Just over a calendar year later, in the first 21 games this year he is averaging a team-best 15.5 points and has made 33 three-pointers. Already he has led the team in scoring in 12 games and has six 20-point games. He became the first Sun Devil to post five straight 20-point games since James Harden did it in his freshman season of 2007-08 and the first Pac-12 player to open league play with four straight 20-point games since Cal's Patrick Christopher in 2008-09. Tra had 23 vs. Cal-State Bakersfield on Dec. 28, then notched 24 vs. Arizona (1/3), 21 at USC (1/7), 26 at UCLA (1/9) and 20 vs. WSU (1/14).
WILLIE THEN AND NOW: Last season Willie Atwood averaged 11.6 minutes, scored 92 total points (3.0 per game) and was 11-of-31 (.355) from the three-point stripe. With a slimmed-down frame, he is a new player this year. He is averaging 27.9 minutes and is averaging 10.5 points and has three double-doubles. He has 15 double-digit scoring games (he had two last year also had 15 games where he did not score).
ONE MORE STOP, ONE MORE BUCKET: Scoring margins can be twisted and turned in many ways, but in ASU's 1-6 conference start, the margin in those games was just over two buckets (-4.1). ASU trailed at the half in all six of its losses, but has averaged 42.6 in the second half of the first seven Pac-12 games and had some rallies fall just short. Below are quick notes on the past five losses.
SUN DEVIL SECOND-HALF RALLIES
@Stanford: Trailed 66-56 with 4:50 left, took 73-72 lead but lost 75-73 (17-7 run)
@California: Trailed 54-40 with 12:53 left, tied it at 65 at 2:25 (25-11 run over 10:28)
UW: Trailed by 12 with 19:34 left, cut it to 3 three times in final 10 minutes in 89-85 loss
@UCLA: Trailed by 12 in first half, held 74-72 lead with two minutes left in 77-74 loss
@USC: Trailed by 17 with 10:27 left, yet had 3PTA to go ahead 1:02 (26-9)