The Arizona State Sun Devil men's basketball team (4-2) heads to Omaha to face Creighton and its 17k or so friends on Wednesday, Dec. 2, at 8 p.m. CT/7 p.m. MT on CBS Sports Network with Dave Ryan and Bob Wenzel on the call, while Tim Healey and Kyle Dodd have the Sun Devil radio call on 620 AM and Sirius/XM 119. ASU is 4-2, including 2-0 against 2015 NCAA Tournament teams with wins over Belmont and NC State. ASU has already played three games decided by three points or less (2-1) and one other overtime game (loss to Marquette).

ASU's next four games are about as challenging as one can find among major conference teams in December. The Sun Devils play at Creighton (5-1, averaging over 88 points a game and average attendance over 16K), host #18 Texas A&M (just beat Gonzaga), play at No. 1 Kentucky (Dec. 12) and then play at UNLV on Dec. 16 (just beat Indiana).

KNOCKING DOWN THROWS: The Sun Devils went 23-of-26 (.885) from the free throw line in its 70-68 win over UCSB on Nov. 29, which included making their final 14. The .885 mark is the second-best in school history for at least 25 attempts, behind only the 24-of-26 mark set on Dec. 19, 1981, vs. Cal State-Los Angeles. ASU is 93-of-123 (.756) from the free throw line in the past five games. In case you were wondering, Coach Hurley made .776 of his free throws while in college (441-of-568).

WHAT WE HAVE LEARNED EARLY: Sophomore Tra Holder (7.0 ppg last year) is at 12.7 this year. He is 25-of-31 (.806) from the free throw line and has led the team in scoring in three games after doing it just once last year..senior Gerry Blakes is averaging 6.2 rebounds (4.2 last year)...senior Willie Atwood averaged 11.6 minutes last year but is at 27.2 this year...junior Savon Goodman has now led the team in rebounding in 16 of his 31 career games...after averaging 2.1 points and 1.8 rebounds in his first two years (64 games), senior Eric Jacobsen is at 8.5 points and 6.0 rebounds past two seasons (40 games)....ASU is 40-of-49 (.816) from the free throw line in the past two games.

OBI ONE TO KEEP AN EYE ON: Junior college transfer Obinna Oleka (Oh-BEE-nah Oh-LEH-ka) 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. Obi had 19 points vs. Kennesaw State on Nov. 18 to get warmed up, and then had 10 points and 14 rebounds (six on the offensive glass) in 29 minutes vs. Marquette on Nov. 24. Since those first two games he is averaging 10.5 points and eight boards.

ROADIES: Kentucky (23,572 average attendance) trailed only Syracuse (23,854) in average attendance last year, while Creighton (17,048) was sixth. In ASU's nine Pac-12 road games last year the Sun Devils played in front of 69,519. Kentucky, UNLV and Creighton, who ASU plays in this 14-day span, combined for an average total of 52,377 last year.

GOOD ON REBOUNDING: ASU is outrebounding its opponents by 10.1 per game and has 39 more offensive rebounds (91-52). Five players have grabbed double-digit rebounds in a game this year, and ASU's rebounding leader in all but one game has notched double-digits. After getting out rebounded by seven in the season opener, the Sun Devils have posted rebounding margins of 14, 29, 12, 10 and three.

TRA IMPROVEMENTS: In his first 15 games last year, Tra Holder averaged 4.2 points per game and made just over 63 percent of his free throws. Starting with the Colorado win on Jan. 17, his play not only earned him Pac-12 All-Freshman honors last year it has carried over to this year, as he is averaging 12.7 ppg and has been ASU's leading scorer in three games (after leading the Sun Devils in scoring just once last year). Tra had a then career-high 17 vs. Sacramento State in the opener, and then led ASU in scoring in both games in the Legends Classic in Brooklyn with 22 in the win over NC State and 15 in the championship loss to Marquette en route to All-Tournament honors. He already has made five three-pointers after making just 12 all of last season.

TRA HOLDER FIRST 15 GAMES OF CAREER
FT: 31-49/.633          PTS: 63/4.2

PAST 23 (STARTING WITH CU WIN ON JAN. 17, 2015)
FTS: 91-119/.765     PTS: 238/10.3

TRA HOLDER TOP SCORING GAMES
22 vs. NC State (11/23/15)
17 vs. Sacramento State (11/13/15)
16 vs. Oregon (1/30/15)
15 vs. Marquette (11/24/15)
15 vs. Stanford (3/5/15)
15 vs. #6 Arizona (2/7/15)
15 vs. Pepperdine (12/13/14)

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.

ASU VS. CREIGHTON: Creighton and ASU have split eight, with the Bluejays owning a 2-1 lead in Omaha. Creighton has won the last two meetings, winning in 2012 in Las Vegas, Nev., (87-73) and in 2013 in Fullerton, Calif. (88-60). It will mark just the sixth time a Pacific-12 Conference team has played in the venue. Creighton never trailed in a 68-54 win over California on Dec. 22, 2013. The game was the first visit by a Pac-12 team in the regular-season since 1978.

SAVON UPDATED: Junior Savon Goodman was bothered by a foot injury in the preseason and missed the team's scrimmage at Long Beach State (Oct. 31) and Nov. 7 exhibition game vs. Western New Mexico. He posted 13 points and 12 rebounds in just 22 minutes vs. Belmont. Against NC State in his first start, he had a monster game with 21 points and 16 rebounds. In the past 18 games he is averaging 12.7 points and 9.1 rebounds and is 96-of-156 (.615) from the field. He has played 31 games at ASU and led team in rebounding in 16 of them.

QUICK FALL SIGNING PERIOD NOTE: 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.

SCHEDULE: Joe Lunardi released his preseason Bracketology on Nov. 11, and it included 11 teams on ASU's schedule. Belmont, North Carolina State, Marquette, Texas A&M, Kentucky and Stephen F. Austin are the teams in the non-conference slate, while Arizona, California, UCLA, Oregon and Utah were picked from the Pac-12. ASU will play North Carolina State on Nov. 23 and then play either LSU or Marquette on Nov. 24 in the Legends Classic in Brooklyn. ASU will play Arizona, California and UCLA twice in Pac-12 play, but won't host Utah or travel to Oregon. So the Sun Devils are scheduled to play 31 games this year, 14 of them against Bracketology projected NCAA teams.

QUICKLY ON THE SIX RETURNERS: Senior Gerry Blakes had five 20-point games last year and shot .822 (60-of-73) from the free throw line. The Inglewood, Calif., native can score in bunches, as he had 16 straight points in 4:24 at Washington State and 17 at in 5:23 at Washington in back-to-back February games...senior Eric Jacobsen has trimmed down and is ready to have a great senior season. The Chandler, Ariz., product 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...senior Willie Atwood will see quality time in the frontcourt this year. He once made 33-of-37 free throws in a junior college game...junior Savon Goodman in the final 12 games last year averaged 12.9 points and 9.7 rebounds while shooting 66-of-107 (.617) from the field...sophomore Kodi Justice is back after suffering a fractured navicular bone in his left foot on Jan. 25 as he missed the remainder of the season. The injury happened the game following a season-high 16 points at California...sophomore Tra Holder in his first 15 games last year made 15 shots. Two months later, he was named to the Pac-12 All-Freshman Team, as he averaged double digits in the final 14 (10.1).

EJ MAKES SHOTS: He doesn't take a lot of them, but when he does, he makes 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. He is a career .583 shooter (169-of-290) in 104 career games.

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. Pepperdine (12/13/14)
16 vs. UNLV (12/3/14)
16 vs. Hartford (12/5/12)
15 vs. Kennesaw State (11/18/15)

LOOKING AHEAD: The Sun Devils might have the best scout-team backcourt in the nation, Shannon Evans (transferred from Buffalo) and Torian Graham (transferred from Houston) give the regular rotation fits in practice. Evans spent two seasons under Coach Hurley at Buffalo and as a sophomore averaged 15.4 points, 3.2 rebounds, and 4.6 assists helping lead the Bulls to the NCAA Tournament as he earned second-team All-MAC honors. As a true 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). Graham played two seasons at Chipola Junior College and left Buffalo to go with Coach Hurley and was rated as the No. 91 overall prospect by ESPN and No. 67 by Rivals in the Class of 2012.

FINAL FOUR IN 2017: Arizona State and Glendale/Phoenix host the 2017 Final Four, the first Final Four held west of Texas since Seattle in 1995. It will be held at University of Phoenix Stadium, home of the Arizona Cardinals. The 2017 Final Four will also mark the 25th anniversary of Bobby Hurley earning 1992 Most Outstanding Player honors.

WHEN WAS LAST TIME ASU PLAYED THREE NON-CONFERENCE ROADIES? When you toss out neutral site tournaments and talk only true road games, the 2015-16 season will be just the second time since 1989-90 (also in 2010-11) that ASU will play three non-conference road games.

SEASONS OF THREE NON-CONFERENCE ROAD GAMES (1978-79 TO PRESENT)
2015-16 (at Creighton, Kentucky and UNLV)
2010-11 (at New Mexico, Baylor and Nevada)
1989-90 (at San Francisco, Northern Arizona and Kansas)
1982-83 (at DePaul, Ohio State and Kansas State)
1981-82 (at Kansas, Utah and Marquette)
1978-79 (at Purdue, Hawaii and San Diego State)

OOC RANKED TEAM: ASU has hosted the likes of Final Four-bound Kansas in 1990-91, Final-Four bound Oklahoma State in 1994-95, Texas, Georgia, Kerry Kittles-led Villanova, Kenny Thomas-led New Mexico, BYU, 2006 defending Big Ten Tournament champ Iowa and Louisville since 1990, but for whatever reason No. 18 Texas A&M will only be the third non-conference ranked opponent to to visit Wells Fargo Arena in the past 32 seasons (1984-85 to present). No. 17 Xavier is the highest ranked non-conference foe to visit ASU since No. 14 ASU beat No. 7 Ohio State 71-58 on Dec. 20, 1980. ASU defeated the Musketeers 77-55 on Dec. 15, 2007, in James Harden's freshman year. Xavier was the first non-conference ranked foe to visit Tempe since No. 18 UTEP topped ASU 60-55 on Dec. 18, 1983. ASU then beat No. 25 Marquette 79-77 on Nov. 25, 2013, on Jordan Bachynski's walk-off block en route to the NCAA Tournament.

RANKED NON-CONFERENCE OPPONENTS AT WELLS FARGO ARENA
(REGULAR SEASON SINCE JOINING PAC-10)
ASU VS. #18 Texas A&M (Dec. 5, 2015)
ASU 79, #25 Marquette 77 (Nov. 25, 2013)
ASU 77, #17 Xavier 55 (Dec. 15, 2007)
#18 UTEP 60, ASU 55 (Dec. 22, 1983)
#14 ASU 71, #7 Ohio State 58 (Dec. 20, 1980)
ASU 96, #12 Iowa 88 (Dec. 6, 1980)

GERRY: Southpaw and Inglewood native Gerry Blakes averaged 11.1 points and 4.2 rebounds last year after playing two seasons at San Bernardino Valley College (2012-14)...SBVC coach was ASU alumni Quincy Brewer, who played on the Sun Devil 1994-95 Sweet Sixteen team...had career-high 24 at WSU on Feb. 13 (including ASU's final 16 in 4:24)...in the Feb. 15 win at UW, he had 17 points in 5:23 of the second half (11:05 to 5:42) and ASU needed every bucket to stop an eight-game skid against UW and give ASU its first win in Seattle since another southpaw (with a small beard) was doing his thing in 2008.

GERRY BLAKES CAREER 20-POINT GAMES (6)
24 at Washington State (2/13/15)
23 at Washington (2/15/15) and vs. Colgate (11/29/14)
22 vs. Belmont (11/16/15)
21 vs. Alabama @Kansas City (11/25/14)
20 at Marquette (12/16/14)

COULDN'T PLAY THE FIRST NINE LAST YEAR: After not playing in a college hoops game for 635 days and missing the first nine games last year after transferring, Savon Goodman in the final 12 games averaged 12.9 points and 9.7 rebounds while shooting 66-of-107 (.617) from the field. At WSU he had season-high 14 rebounds, and then he went bonkers at UW 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 at Richmond he notched 14 points and 17 rebounds, including eight on the offensive end, in the NIT overtime loss.

SAVON GOODMAN CAREER DOUBLE-DOUBLES (7)
21/16 vs. NC State (11/23/15)
13/12 vs.Belmont (11/16/15)
14/17 at Richmond (3/22/15)
20/12 vs. UCLA (2/18/15)
19/13 at Washington (2/15/15)
22/11 vs. Detroit (12/23/14)
24/12 vs. Lehigh (12/20/14)

TRA'S SEASON: Back on Jan. 15, ASU had just lost to Utah 76-59 to drop to 8-9 overall and 0-4 in the league. Freshman Tra Holder was averaging 4.2 points (tied for eighth on the team) in under 20 minutes per game, had not played in two tilts and had made 15 shots. Nearly two months later, he earned Pac-12 All-Freshman honors. After not making a shot in his first four Pac-12 games, he averaged double digits in final 14. He set career-best with eight assists (and 15 points) vs. #6 Arizona on Feb. 7 in the 81-78 win going against arguably the nation's best point guard in T.J. McConnell.

TRA COMPARSIONS FIRST FOUR PAC-12 GAMES/FINAL 14
POINTS PER GAME: 1.5/10.1
MINUTES PER GAME: 20.5/33.4
FIELD GOALS MADE: 0/35
THREE-POINTERS MADE: 0/10
FREE THROWS: 6-10 (.600)/62-82 (.756)
ASSIST-TURNOVER: 8-9/68-41

TRA AGAINST NBA PLAYER T.J.: How good was Tra's 15 points and eight assists vs. Arizona in the Feb. 7, 2015, ASU win vs.#6 UA and T.J. McConnell? Jahii Carson was one of the best freshmen guards in the Pac-12 the past decade. He did that in a Pac-12 game once in his freshman year (21/8 vs. USC). Derek Glasser, a four-year starter at point guard who set Sun Devil career records for games (131), assists (551) and free throw percentage (.838) and is the only Sun Devil with 1,000 career points and 500 assists, never had eight assists in his freshman season (2006-07) and scored 15 points twice all season.

BEAT LEAGUE CHAMPS: ASU is the only team to beat Pac-12 champions in each of the past three seasons. ASU and OSU beat UA in 2014-15 (16-2). In 2013-14 only Cal, 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.