PHOENIX, — Arizona State basketball (6-4) returns to Arizona for a neutral site game at the Footprint Center against Northwestern (8-2) Wednesday evening. The game is part of a quadruple-header at the Jerry Colangelo Hall of Fame Series. The ASU women’s basketball team will play earlier in the day, marking the first time both teams play in Phoenix on the same day since 2001.
ASU is coming off a loss to TCU, that featured a strong season debut from redshirt junior guard Adam Miller. The Sun Devils’ second-half meltdown led to their second straight loss after a four-game win streak. ASU is now 1-3 in neutral site games this season, but they will look to turn that around this evening in the heart of downtown Phoenix.
Northwestern is 1-1 in neutral site games this season. The loss was to Mississippi State, who handed ASU its first loss on a neutral site.
This will be the first meeting between the two teams since 2004, when ASU thumped Northwestern, 90-55. ASU is 2-1 against Northwestern all-time.
Without further ado, here are our Sun Devil Daily staff predictions for ASU basketball against Northwestern.
Arizona State basketball predictions against Northwestern
ASU: 71 Northwestern: 80
ASU hasn’t had that great of a streak lately and now has to face a tough opponent in the B1G. Northwestern is averaging over 70 points per game and the Sun Devils defense is allowing an average 70 points per game. If ASU wants to win, the defense will need to step up. – Truitt Robinson (1-1)
ASU: 68 Northwestern: 62
Northwestern is a very up-and-down team and, right now they are on the down. In the last two games for NU, they have lost to Chicago State and barely beat DePaul. While ASU has not looked much better this is a sudo home game for them in Downtown Phoenix. If Hurley wants to keep his job, he needs to step it up and that begins tonight. – Cooper Burns (7-1)
ASU: 69 Northwestern: 75
Arizona State faces another challenge tonight as Northwestern has shown the ability to compete with any opponent. Despite the game being played in Phoenix, I don’t believe ASU will have a massive advantage in crowd support and will lose a tight game. The Sun Devils need to put together a full 40 minutes if they want to right the ship. – Anthony D’Amato (5-3)
ASU: 72 Northwestern: 66
This is a big game for ASU that will bring a lot of excitement for the players. They came out fired up against TCU in the first half and I think they do the same tonight. I think we see more cohesion and rhythm after another week of practice from Frankie Collins, Adam Miller, and Jose Perez. The Sun Devils take an early lead, Northwestern punches back, and it becomes a back-and-forth game down the stretch. I think ASU will keep it together down the stretch and get a big win tonight. – Douglas Santo (6-2)
Thank you for reading Sun Devil Daily! Follow us on Twitter to stay up to date with Arizona State news! For feedback, questions, concerns, or to apply for a writing position, please email our Managing Editor at brendonpricco@gmail.com. Also, make sure to check out the Sun Devil Daily shop for merchandise! Forks up!