The Arizona State Sun Devil men's basketball team (15-16; 5-13) meets the Oregon State Beavers in the first round of the Pac-12 Tournament at the MGM in Las Vegas on Wednesday, March 9. Tip-off is set for 8:30 p.m. PT in Las Vegas and 9:30 p.m. MT in Arizona. Tim Healey and Kyle Dodd have the radio call on the Sun Devil Sports Radio Network, presented by MidFirst, while Ted Robinson, Bill Walton, and Lewis Johnson have the Pac-12 Network broadcast.
PAC-12 WILL LIKE THESE NUMBERS: Entering games on Tuesday (March 8) ASU's SOS is 20 and its non-conference SOS is 16...8-14 vs. top-100 teams as eight top-100 wins is the same as Maryland, Iowa, Texas Tech, Seton Hall, Notre Dame, Providence, Tempe and Vanderbilt...eight top-100 wins are more than St. Joseph's (5), St. Bonaventure (6), St. Mary's (6), VCU (6), Wichita State (4), Butler (6), Cincinnati (7), UCONN (6) and San Diego State (4)...defeated top-100 RPI teams Texas A&M (22), Oregon State (30), USC (46), Stanford (73), Stephen F. Austin (79), at Creighton (97), UCSB (98) and Belmont (100)...won road game at UNLV (139)...ASU had SEC #1 seed Texas A&M down by 25 in the second half on Dec. 5...defeated OVC #1 seed Belmont...defeated Southland Conference champion Stephen F. Austin.
TWEETABLES ABOUT @SUNDEVILHOOPS
√ Willie Atwood: 17 double-digit scoring games/15 games without scoring last year
√ Obi Oleka is averaging 10.1 points and 9.3 rebounds in the past seven games.
√ Obi Oleka: finished 46-54 (.852) FTs in Pac-12 games, 2nd-best in the league
√ ASU is averaging 7.9 threes made per game, first in the Pac-12
√ ASU has played nine games that were decided by five points or less (plus 12-pt OT L)
√ Obi Oleka: 11.4 ppg in past 21 games/6.4 ppg first 10 games
√ Willie Atwood: 80-102 (.784) from FTs on the year; 8th in Pac-12
√ Averaging 39.9 ppg in second half (33.2 in the first half)
√ Obi Oleka 72-92 (.783) in FTs overall, 9th in the Pac-12
√ Sun Devils averaged 8.7 three-pointers in 18 Pac-12 games, tops in the league
NOTES VS. BEAVERS: ASU has won six of the past eight and 12 of the past 15 vs. OSU, including an 86-68 win on Jan. 28, that was one of ASU's best games of the season...ASU and OSU meet for the 85th time with the Sun Devils holding a narrow 43-41 edge...ASU's .593 season-best shooting percentage vs. OSU on Jan. 28 (32-of-54) is its best in a Pac-12 game since Feb. 2, 2013 (.638/37-of-58 at Washington)...ASU's season-high 24 assists is its most in a Pac-12 game since it also had 24 vs. Oregon State on March 5, 2011...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, while Tra Holder matched his career high with eight assists...ASU placed five players in double figures...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.
BILL FRIEDER TIME MACHINE: ASU-OSU have some Pac-12 Tournament history behind them (then Pac-10). ASU pulled one of the biggest upsets in the history of the tournament on March 9, 1990, in Tempe, as eighth-seeded ASU beat top-seeded and No. 22 Oregon State (led by Gary Payton) 83-75 as the Sun Devils shot 30-of-45 (.667) from the field, currently the sixth-best mark in school history. ASU was in the first year of the Bill Frieder era in that 1990 upset.
OBI ONE TO KEEP AN EYE ON: It was the Jan. 14 WSU game where junior Obinna Oleka (Oh-BEE-nah Oh-LEH-ka) began to emerge as he has been in double figures in 13 of the past 15 games and is averaging 11.9 points, 7.7 rebounds and is 40-of-47 (.851) from the free throw line in that time. Obi also has three of his four double-doubles in that span. Oleka had no points and one rebound in the first two games, but since he only played five games for State College of Florida, Manatee-Sarasota two seasons ago and didn't play last year, a slow start was expected. Consider this: Before he took the court in the opener Nov. 13, his previous official game was Dec. 7, 2013...a 705-day break between games.
TOP SCORING GAMES FOR OBINNA OLEKA
19 vs. Kennesaw State (11/18/15)
17 vs. Oregon (1/31/16)
17 vs. Oregon State (1/28/16)
17 vs. Arizona (1/3/16)
LOOKING AHEAD: Transfer Shannon Evans arrived at ASU after having spent two seasons under Coach Hurley at Buffalo. As a sophomore last year he averaged 15.4 points, 3.2 rebounds and 4.6 assists led the Bulls to the NCAA Tournament as he earned second-team All-MAC honors. As a freshman he averaged 8.5 points and 3.3 assists per game and was named to the All-MAC Freshman Team. He played in all 29 games off the bench posting one of the highest minute totals amongst all bench players nationally (26.4 minutes per game). He is sitting out this year but will have two years to play starting in 2016-17.
52,961: In early December ASU had a four-game stretch that included three road games and home game vs. a SEC ranked team. ASU won at Creighton (Dec. 2) and at UNLV (Dec. 16) and lost at #5 Kentucky (Dec. 12), playing in front of 52,961 in those three games. The home game in that stretch? A 67-54 win over No. 18 Texas A&M (in which ASU led by as much as 25) on Dec. 5, which itself was coming off wins over Gonzaga and Texas.
SUN DEVIL WINS OVER RANKED TEAMS PAST 10 SEASONS
ASU 74, #23 USC 67/Feb. 12, 2016
ASU 67, #18 Texas A&M 54/Dec. 5, 2015
ASU 81, #6 Arizona 78/Feb. 7, 2015
ASU 69, #2 Arizona 66 (2 OT)/Feb. 14, 2014
ASU 79, #25 Marquette 77/Nov. 25, 2013
ASU 68, #24 Washington 51/Jan. 8, 2010
#23 ASU 75, #13 Washington 65/Pac-10 Tourney/Mar. 13, 2009
#18 ASU 74, #11 UCLA 67/Feb. 12, 2009
#16 ASU 61, @ #9 UCLA 58 (OT)/Jan. 17, 2009
ASU 72, #7 Stanford 68 (OT)/Feb. 14, 2008
ASU 77, #17 Xavier 55/Dec. 15, 2007
ASU 68, #22 USC 58/Feb. 18, 2007
DOUBLE DIGITS: ASU had five players in double figures in the Stanford, Oregon State, Texas A&M and Houston Baptist wins and in the loss at Washington and had six in the Tempe Washington loss. Five players in double digits happened once last year.
WILLIE THEN AND NOW: Last season Willie Atwood averaged 11.6 minutes, scored 92 total points (3.0 per game) and was 31-of-50 (.620) from the three-point stripe. With a slimmed-down frame, he was a new player this year. He has 17 double-digit scoring games (he had two last year also had 15 games where he did not score). He made just 11 three-pointers last year but has 32 this year.
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.
NOV. 23-DEC. 16: From the end of November until mid-December, ASU had a seven-game stretch (which included just two home games) that was solid. The Sun Devils won 79-77 at Creighton on Dec. 2 (in front of 16,282 people screaming in blue shirts), topped #18 Texas A&M 67-54 (the eventual SEC co-champion) on Dec. 5 and lost at No. 5 Kentucky (Dec. 12). Prior to Creighton, the Sun Devils beat 2015 NCAA Tournament team NC State and dropped an overtime game to Marquette in Brooklyn. It also beat 19-game winner from year ago UCSB. ASU then had Texas A&M down 25 in the second half before notching the 13-point win on Dec. 5, and finished it up with the comeback win at UNLV on Dec. 16.
THEY WON'T QUIT: Scoring margins can be twisted and turned in many ways, but in ASU's 2-7 conference start, the margin in those games was just over a three-pointer (-3.1). ASU railed at the half in all seven of its losses, but had some big rallies fall just short. Quick notes on five second-half rallies.
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)
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.
TRA'S TREYS AND OTHER THINGS: 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. This year he is averaging a team-best 14.3 points and has made 48 three-pointers. Already he has led the team in scoring in 16 games and has seven 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.
FALL SIGNINGS: ESPN tabbed ASU's fall 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 Dallas shot blocker Jethro Tshisumpa at 6-10 and 260 is ranked as the 12th-best center prospect.
YOU CAN CALL IT A COMEBACK: The Dec. 16 win at UNLV was the fifth-biggest halftime comeback (down 12, 37-25) in past 27 years of Sun Devil hoops (1989-90 to present). It marked the largest halftime comeback since Dec. 14, 2008, when ASU came back from 16 down to beat IUPUI at America West Arena. It also is the largest ASU halftime comeback in a road game since Feb. 12, 1994, when ASU came back from 17 down at the half to win at Stanford. ASU trailed 45-31 at the 17:12 mark but it was all Sun Devils after that,. ASU held UNLV to 5-of-26 (.192) from the floor in the second half and grabbed 16 offensive rebounds which led to 16-1 advantage in second-chance points. ASU outrebounded UNLV 43-30, which included starting guards Gerry Blakes (11) and Tra Holder (career-high nine) grabbing 20. Holder had 19 and Willie Atwood 14 to lead the scoring.
LARGEST HALFTIME COMEBACK DEFICITS (1989-1990 TO PRESENT)
(17) @Stanford 46, ASU 29--Feb. 12, 1994/ASU 71, @Stanford 69
(16) IUPUI 34, ASU 18 (@Phoenix)--Dec. 14, 2008/ASU 59, vs. IUPUI 58 (OT)
(16) New Mexico St. 45, ASU 29--Mar. 15, 2000/ASU 83, NMSU 77 (NIT)
(16) Georgia 39, ASU 23--Dec. 29, 1989/ASU 62, Georgia 61
(12) @UNLV 37, ASU 25--Dec. 16, 2015/ASU 66, @UNLV 56
ASU 79, @CREIGHTON 77 (DEC. 2, 2015): ASU became the first team to beat CU in its building when it scores 75 (89-1) with the 79-77 win, as Savon Goodman led the way 23 points and seven boards. ASU, the second Pac-12 team to visit Creighton in the regular-season since 1978, fell behind by nine and was down eight at that half (41-33). ASU opened the half with a 14-4 run in the first 3:16 and shot 18-of-28 (.643) in the scond half.
8+ POINTS HALFTIME DEFICIT WINS PAST 10 YEARS (2006-PRESENT)
(16) IUPUI 34, ASU 18 (@Phoenix/Dec. 14, 2008)/ASU 59, vs. IUPUI 58 (OT)
(12) @UNLV 37, ASU 25--Dec. 16, 2015/ASU 66, @UNLV 56
(8) @Creighton 41, ASU 33--Dec. 2, 2015)/ASU 79, @Creighton 77
ASU 67, #18 TEXAS A&M 54 (DEC. 5, 2015): ASU jumped out to a 33-19 halftime lead and then led by as much as 25 before notching a 67-54 win over #18 Texas A&M. Willie Atwood had 15 points, Tra Holder added 13, Gerry Blakes had 13/6 and Savon Goodman posted 10/12. ASU shot .364 from the floor, but held Texas A&M to 19-of-61 (.311), including just 6-of-27 (.222) in the first half. Kodi Justice added 10 points off the bench.
EJ MAKES SHOTS: He didn't take a lot of them, but when he did, he made them. Eric Jacobsen shot .626 from the field (102-of-163) last season, the fourth-best season mark in Sun Devil history. Jacobsen averaged 28.6 minutes, 8.3 points and 5.9 rebounds last year in 34 games after averaging 8.8 minutes, 2.1 points and 1.8 rebounds in his first two seasons.
SUN DEVIL CAREER GAMES
132, Jon Gilling (2011-15)
131, Derek Glasser (2006-10)
130, Ty Abbott (2007-11)
129, Eric Jacobsen (2012-present)
129, Jerren Shipp (2006-10)
ERIC JACOBSEN’S CAREER DOUBLE-DOUBLES (3)
15/10 vs. Kennesaw State (11/18/15)
16/12 vs. UNLV (12/3/14)
13/10 vs. Bethune-Cookman (11/17/14)
ERIC JACOBSEN'S TOP SCORING GAMES
20 vs. # 25 California (3/5/16)
20 vs. Pepperdine (12/13/14)
16 vs. Houston Baptist (12/16/15)
16 vs. UNLV (12/3/14)
16 vs. Hartford (12/5/12)