Obinna Oleka is hoping to be the next Sun Devil to have success after going to junior college when he arrives in Tempe this summer.
Oleka played at State College of Florida (Manatee-Sarasota) in 2013-14 and averaged 25.6 points and 13.6 rebounds. He has two years to play and at 6-7 and 240 pounds will add depth to a front line that includes senior Eric Jacobsen and junior Savon Goodman. Oleka and Shannon
"Obi has improved much in the past few years from when I first saw him in high school," says Sun Devil first year head coach Bobby Hurley. "Physically, he is ready to go. He plays very hard and is very tough. He is now about to step away from the basket, and he is still developing. He's a unique athlete. He can create some turnovers and missed shots on defense and he's a presence in the lane. I have told people he is going to bring an 'edginess' to our team with his athletic ability, toughness and rebounding.
He averaged 10.9 points and 6.2 rebounds and shot 55 percent from the field in 2013-14.
Arizona State (18-16; 9-9) finished 2014-15 tied for fifth in the Pac-12 and went 15-3 at home, which included wins over teams Arizona (Elite Eight), UCLA (Sweet Sixteen) and Ivy League champion Harvard. Four starters and seven rotation players are expected to return in 2015-16, while four lettermen have left the program.
Savon Goodman (12.4 points per game and 7.6 rebounds per game) is the team's top returning scorer after playing in final 25 games after transferring mid-year. The team also returns starters Gerry Blakes (11. 1 points per game and .822 free throw shooter), Eric Jacobsen (.626 field goal percentage) and Tra Holder (115 assists and 7.0 points per game). Kodi Justice played in the first 18 games and had a season-high 16 points
SCHOLARSHIP PLAYERS RETURNING IN 2015-16
WILLIE ATWOOD, F, 6-8, 210, Sr., Memphis, Tenn. (Connors State) (Melrose)
GERRY BLAKES, G, 6-4, 195, Sr., Inglewood, Calif. (San Bernardino Valley College)
SAVON GOODMAN, F, 6-6, 215, Jr. Philadelphia, Pa. (Constitution)
TRA HOLDER, G, 6-1, 180, So., Los Angeles, Calif. (Brentwood School)
ERIC JACOBSEN, F, 6-10, 255, Sr., Chandler, Ariz. (Hamilton)
KODI JUSTICE, G, 6-5, 180, So., Mesa, Ariz. (Dobson)
ROOSEVELT SCOTT, G, 6-3, 180, Sr., St. Paul. Minn. (Indian Hills C.C.)
ADDITIONS TO ROSTER
OBINNA OLEKA, F, 6-7, 240, Jr., Washington D.C. (State College of Florida)
ANDRE SPIGHT, G, 6-3, 200, Jr., Burbank, Calif. (South Plains College)
TRANSFER ADDITION WHO WILL SIT IN 2015-16
SHANNON EVANS, G, 6-1, 170, Suffolk, Va. (University of Buffalo)
QUICK NOTES ON PLAYERS AND TRENDS...
SAVON GOODMAN (6-6, F, JR., PHILADELPHIA, PA)
After not playing in a college hoops game for 635 days and missing the first nine games this year after transferring, sophomore Savon Goodman in the final 12 games averaged 12.9 points and 9.7 rebounds while shooting 66-of-107 (.617) from the field. He posted 18 points off the bench in the 89-70 loss at Stanford on Jan. 17 and had 15 vs. No. 6 Arizona on Feb. 7 (7-of-9 shooting) to go along with nine rebounds. At Washington State he had career-high 14 rebounds, and then he went bonkers at Washington on Feb. 15 with 19 points and 13 rebounds prior to doing nearly the same Feb. 18 vs. UCLA with 20 points and 12 rebounds. His final game of the season he was off the charts, notching 14 points and 17 rebounds, including eight on the offensive end, at Richmond.
TRA HOLDER (6-1, G, SO., LOS ANGELES, CALIF.)
Here is a look at how Tra Holder's freshman season compared to former Sun Devil Derek Glasser (2006-10), a four-year starter at point guard who set Sun Devil career records for games played (131), assists (551) and free throw percentage (.838) and is the only Sun Devil with 1,000 career points and 500 assists. Tra’s 115 assists in 2014-15 is second on the Sun Devil freshman list behind only Jahii Carson (177/2012-13).
DEREK GLASSER (2006-07)/TRA HOLDER (2014-15)
MPG: 27.9/27.0
FT PCT: .778/.708
ASSISTS: 97/115
PPG: 6.3/7.0
DOUBLE DIGIT SCORING GAMES: 7/13
ERIC JACOBSEN (6-10, F-C, SR., CHANDLER, ARIZ)
He doesn't take a lot of shots, but when he does, he makes them. Junior Eric Jacobsen shot .626 from the field (102-of-163) in 2014-15, the fourth-best season mark in Sun Devil history. Jacobsen averaged 28.6 minutes, 8.3 points and 5.9 rebounds this year in 34 games after averaging 8.8 minutes, 2.1 points and 1.8 rebounds in his first two seasons. He will enter his senior season with 98 games played and a career .576 shooter (148-of-257).
SUN DEVIL SINGLE SEASON FIELD GOAL PERCENTAGE
1. 66.5, Eric Boateng, 2010 (117-176)
2. 66.0, Jeff Pendergraph, 2009 (198-300)
3. 63.0, Trent Edwards, 1989 (208-330)
4. 62.6, Eric Jacobsen, 2015 (102-163)
5. 60.9, Kurt Nimphius, 1980 (185-304)
SPARKY BEATS LEAGUE CHAMPS: With UA winning the Pac-12 title, ASU is the only team to beat the Pac-12 champions in each of the past three seasons. ASU and Oregon State beat Arizona this season (16-2). In 2013-14 only California, Oregon and ASU beat the Wildcats (15-3). In 2012-13, UCLA won the league at 13-5, with losses at WSU, at Cal, at Oregon, at ASU and to USC in Pauley Pavilion. The Pac-12 champions are 44-10 in the past three seasons, and ASU is the only team to have three of the wins.
ABOUT THAT SUN DEVIL HOME RECORD...
--ASU has gone 47-8 (.854) at home the past three seasons, the fourth-best mark in the Pac-12.
--ASU’s 21-6 (.778) Pac-12 home mark is tied with Oregon for third in the league in that time, behind only Arizona (25-2) and UCLA (23-4).
--ASU is 49-8 in past 57 home games, including three wins over Arizona in that time frame.
--ASU is 23-3 in past 26 homes games and 31-4 in past 35.
ABOUT THOSE 47 @SUNDEVILHOOPS HOME WINS: Wondering how 47 home wins stacks up? In the Pac-12 it is fourth, but in the nation it is tied for tenth. Here is a look at schools with the most home wins in the past three seasons. ASU has posted records of 16-4 (2012-13), 16-1 (2013-14) and 15-3 (2014-15) the past three seasons that includes a 21-6 mark in the Pac-12.
MOST HOME WINS PAST THREE SEASONS (2012-15)
53: Arkansas (53-5)
51: Kentucky (51-4), Ohio State (51-7)
50: Virginia (50-5)
49: Arizona (49-2), Oregon (49-7)
48: Kansas (48-5), Maryland (48-8), Duke (48-1)
47: Wichita State (47-2), UCLA (47-6), Arizona State (47-8), Notre Dame (47-10)