QUICK RECAP: Bobby Hurley's fifth squad, the highest scoring squad in the Pac-12 over the past three seasons (78.05 points per game), won 20 games for the third straight season for just the third time in school history and posted a seven-game Pac-12 win streak in February, the program's longest since it won 11 straight in 1980-81. The team's 11-7 record marked just the second time it posted back-to-back winning seasons in Pac-12 play in the past 25 years. Remy Martin earned Pac-12 first-team honors, while Alonzo Verge Jr. claimed the league's Sixth Man of the year Award. Verge led the nation in off-the-bench scoring at 16.8 points per game in 19 games, while the team led the league in steals (249/8.03 per game), turnover margin (+3.19) and turnovers forced (16.42). The Sun Devils are now 16-5 after a loss the past two seasons, the best mark in the Pac-12. The Sun Devils averaged 9,251 fans on the, sixth on the all-time Sun Devil list. ASU defeated two ranked teams at home (No. 22 Arizona on Jan. 25 and No. 14 Oregon on Feb. 20), as the Sun Devils came back from 22 down (37-15) to beat the Wildcats. The Sun Devil now have 26 halftime comeback wins under Coach Hurley, the best mark in the Pac-12 in his tenure.
GOOD NOTE: ASU has defeated eight ranked teams in Bobby Hurley's five seasons, but it trailed at the half in five of the wins, including both wins over Kansas.
ASU WINS VS. RANKED TEAMS UNDER BOBBY HURLEY (ASU DEFICIT AT HALF)
ASU 77, #14 Oregon 72 (Feb. 20, 2020)
ASU 66, #22 Arizona 65 (Jan. 25, 2020)--Arizona 43, ASU 30
#18 ASU 80, #1 Kansas 76 (Dec. 22, 2018)--Kansas 39, #18 ASU 31
ASU 72, #15 Mississippi State 67 (Nov. 19, 2018/Las Vegas)
#16 ASU 95, at #2 Kansas 85 (Dec. 10, 2017)--Kansas 4 0, #16 ASU 37
ASU 102, #15 Xavier 86 (Nov. 24, 2017/Las Vegas)-- Xavier 46, ASU 44
ASU 74, #23 USC 67 (Feb. 12, 2016)-- USC 30, ASU 27
ASU 67, #18 Texas A&M 54 (Dec. 5, 2015)
BEST ASU AVERAGE SEASON ATTENDANCE MARKS (HEAD COACH)
2017-18: 10,603 (Bobby Hurley)
2018-19: 10,538 (Bobby Hurley)
1995-96: 9,514 (Bill Frieder)
2008-09: 9,354 (Herb Sendek)
1994-95: 9,333 (Bill Frieder)
2019-20: 9,251 (Bobby Hurley)
Our Shining Moments.
— Sun Devil MBB (@SunDevilHoops) March 18, 2020
No one we'd rather share them with than our #SunDevilFamily. ???? pic.twitter.com/hltDeP4MpC
20: While the creation of exempt tournaments and more games has given teams a better chance to reach 20 wins, we won't take for granted what ASU has done. Coming off records in of 23-11 in 2018-19 and 20-12 in 2017-18, ASU has notched its third straight 20-win season, something it has done just twice. In James Harden's two seasons ASU went 21-13 (2007-08) and 25-10 (2008-09) and then went 22-11 in 2009-10. You have to go back to 1960-63 for the only other time in ASU history for it to happen, as ASU went 23-6 in 1960-61, 23-4 in 1961-62 and 26-3 in 1962-63, led by another Olympic gold medalist, Jumpin' Joe Caldwell.
CLOSE GAMES: ASU was 9-3 in games of 5 points or less in 2019-20 and 8-2 in Pac-12 two-possession tilts (six points or less).
The end may have been sudden, but the journey was unforgettable.
— Sun Devil MBB (@SunDevilHoops) March 17, 2020
For everything this season, thank you. pic.twitter.com/d5h7whbZSi
ROAD REMY: Remy Martin, who earned first-team All-Pac-12 honors this season, averaged 22.6 ppg. and had eight 20-point games in ASU's 11 true road contests (6-5) this year. He led the team last year in road scoring at 15.0 ppg and in his freshman season was 11-of-23 (.478) from three and 24-of-29 (.828) from free throw line in road games. Solid stat: He has posted 10 games of 24+ points in his career, seven of them have been on the road. Other solid note on Remy is his progression: Pac-12 Sixth Man of the Year in freshman season, All-Pac-12 Second-Team in 2018-19 and first-team honors in 2019-20.
VERGE SURGE: Alonzo Verge Jr., who earned 2020 Pac-12 Sixth Man of the Year, averaged 16.8 points per game off the bench (19 games) which led the nation. After averaging 6.2 points, going 1-of-9 from the three-point stripe and shooting 11-of-45 (.244) from the field in his first five Pac-12 games, Verge after that five-game span averaged 17.3 points, was 87-of-176 (.494) from the field and 37-of-52 (.712) from the foul line in the final 13 games. In ASU's seven-game win streak he averaged 20.6 ppg., was 53-of-100 (.530) from the field, 7-of-18 (.389) from three and 31-of-43 (.721) from the free throw line.
NCAA OFF THE BENCH SCORING – PPG (GAMES)
Alonzo Verge Jr., ASU - 16.8 (19)
Saben Lee, Vanderbilt - 16.3 (16)
Keandre Cook, Missouri State - 16.1 (11)
Martins Igbanu, Tulsa - 15.8 (19)
16.8 ppg to lead the country in scoring off the bench...
— Sun Devil MBB (@SunDevilHoops) March 10, 2020
Zo is an absolute BUCKET and no one can say otherwise. ???? pic.twitter.com/gh9TU4ijyU
Forks Up Forever. ????? pic.twitter.com/cyFI2urSRV
— Sun Devil MBB (@SunDevilHoops) March 20, 2020
BACK-TO-BACK: The Sun Devils went 11-7 in the Pac-12 after going 12-6 last year, marking just the second time in the past 25 seasons the Sun Devils have posted back-to-back winning Pac-12 records. The 2008-09 squad led by James Harden went 11-7 while the 2009-10 team finished 12-6.
THIS IS US: ASU has 26 wins (11 on the road) when trailing at the half under Bobby Hurley in five seasons, after going 12-64 (.157) the previous five seasons. It did it seven times in 2017-18 and did it in 2018-19 at Georgia, vs. No. 1 Kansas, at California, at UCLA, vs. Cal and at Oregon State. This year it has halftime comeback wins over St. John's in Connecticut, at Princeton, vs. No. 22 Arizona, vs. USC and vs. Oregon State. ASU trailed Arizona 37-15 with just over five minutes remaining in the first half before closing the gap to 43-30 at the half and then scored the first 10 points of second half. The 22-point comeback matches what is believed to the biggest in Pac-12 history. On Feb. 8 ASU trailed USC by 13 with 5:34 left in the first half before cutting the gap to 40-32 at the half and then winning 66-64 despite leading for just 5:57 of the game.
e.
Statement from Head Coach Bobby Hurley. ?? pic.twitter.com/7gma0iEW1Z
— Sun Devil MBB (@SunDevilHoops) March 17, 2020
FINAL PAC-12 STATS NUMBERS: ASU led the league in overall games in steals (249 for 8.03 per game), turnover margin (+3.19) and turnovers forced (16.42 per game)…Remy Martin was one of three Pac-12 players to have two 30-point games, as he had 33 at Princeton and 30 at UCLA…Martin tied for lead league with 18 20-point games with CJ Elleby of Washington State, and his 19.13 points per game mark was second in the league…Romello White finished second in the league rebounding at 8.83 per game and sixth in field goal percentage at .569. He posted 13 double-digit rebounding games, third in the league, and eight double-doubles, tied for sixth in the league.
FEB. 22 NATIONAL PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Remy Martin earned USBWA National Player of the Week (for week ending Feb. 22) and Pac-12 Player of the Week after averaging 23.0 points on 67 percent shooting (16-24), including 5-of-6 behind the arc, and 3.5 assists in the Bay Area road sweep. He scored 24 points on 9-of-14 shooting in 74-69 victory at Stanford. In the final 7:17 of the game, he scored 11 of those points. He scored 22 points on 7-of-10 shooting to go along with five assists in 80-75 win at California, as he scored 15 of his points in the final 11:08. It marked his third Pac-12 Player of the Week award in his career.
TURNED IT AROUND FAST: Buffalo was 285-369 (.436) in 22 seasons after going Division I (1991-2013). The Bulls were 42-20 (.677) in Coach Hurley's two seasons. He is 135-89 (.603) in seven years as a head coach and 93-69 (.574) at ASU.
BOBBY HURLEY YEAR-BY-YEAR (7-YEAR TOTALS: 135-89/.603)
ASU: 93-69 (.574/5 SEASONS)
2019-20: 20-11
2018-19: 23-11
2017-18: 20-12
2016-17: 15-18
2015-16: 15-17
BUFFALO (42-20/.677)
2014-15: 23-10
2013-14: 19-10
FINAL FOUR TRIVIA: Coach Hurley is one of four current head coaches who won a Final Four MOP. Juan Dixon (2002), Danny Manning (1988) and Patrick Ewing (1984) are the others.
SOLID DUBS: Bobby Hurley has led ASU to a 47-16 regular season OOC record in his five years. notable wins: NC State, at Creighton, Texas A&M, UNLV (twice), Stephen F. Austin, Kansas State, Xavier, St. John's (twice plus NCAA Tournament win), Kansas (twice), Vanderbilt and Georgia (twice).
REGULAR SEASON OOC RECORDS UNDER BOBBY HURLEY (47-16)
2019-20: 9-4
2018-19: 9-3
2017-18: 12-0
2016-17: 7-6
2015-16: 10-3
LOTS OF HOTEL PENS: ASU played five of its first seven in Shanghai, Connecticut, New Jersey and San Francisco as it spent 17 of its first 32 nights of the season in a hotel and flew 20,134 miles on nine flights. When Coach Hurley took the ASU job in April of 2015 he said ASU was going to play some folks and not be afraid to go on the road. ASU's tally of non-conference states in his five years is at 11 with other trips to the Bahamas (vs. Kentucky) and China. ASU has played non-conference games in New York (MSG and Barclays), Nebraska (Creighon), at Kentucky, Nevada (at UNLV), Florida (Old Spice Classic), California (San Francisco and San Diego State), at Kansas, at Georgia, Tennessee (Vanderbilt) and New Jersey (at Princeton).
THREE-POINT NOTE: ASU has now made a three-pointer in 652 straight games. The last time ASU did not make a three-pointer was in an 89-57 win over Washington in Tempe on Feb. 10, 2001.
PAC-12 RECORDS AFTER A LOSS PAST TWO SEASONS (2018-2020)
ASU, 16-5 (.762)
Oregon, 12-7 (.632)
Oregon State, 15-10 (.600)
Utah, 16-11 (.593)
Washington, 14-10 (.583)
Colorado, 12-10 (.545)
USC, 13-12 (.520)
Stanford, 12-14 (.462)
UCLA, 12-14 (.462)
Arizona, 11-14 (.440)
Washington State, 15-21 (.417)
California, 13-27 (.325)
PAC-12 TEAMS POINTS PER GAME, PAST THREE SEASONS
Arizona State, 78.05
UCLA, 76.41
Arizona, 76.08
USC, 74.95
Oregon, 74.57
Utah, 73.33
Stanford, 72.79
Washington State, 72.61
Oregon State, 72.56
Colorado, 72.23
Washington, 71.62
California, 66.42