Arizona State basketball’s end-of-season recap and Pac-12 tournament preview

TEMPE, Ariz. – Arizona State basketball will be in Las Vegas, Nevada, March 13-16 for the Pac-12 tournament. The tournament is underway, and ASU kicks off its tournament run with a matchup against Utah on Wednesday at 8:30 p.m.

Arizona State basketball struggles late in the regular season

ASU had a rough end to the regular season, losing five of its final six games.

The latest loss was to UCLA, where the Sun Devils led 31-27 at halftime but the Bruins’ second-half comeback earned them a 59-47 victory. UCLA doubled ASU’s points in the second half, outscoring them 32-16. ASU led 42-33 with 13:03 left in the game. The Bruins held the Sun Devils to five points in the final 13 minutes, outscoring them 26-5.

Graduate student guard Jose Perez did not play against UCLA as it was announced before the game, he was no longer a part of the team because he was pursuing professional opportunities. Perez played in his first professional game in the Dominican Republic earlier this week for Plaza Valerio.

Perez is a big loss for ASU. In his final game with the Sun Devils against USC, he led the team in points and shot attempts. The grad student started 27 of the 30 games he played for ASU and scored double digits in 21 of his 30 games. Perez was second on the team in points and assists and led the team in free throws made.

ASU’s offense struggled against UCLA without Perez. The Sun Devils had their second-lowest scoring output of the season with 47 points, and it was just the third time this season they fell short of 50 points.

However, everything resets for the Pac-12 tournament, and the Sun Devils have to play with who they have.

Looking ahead to the Pac-12 tournament

Junior guard Frankie Collins leads the team in points, assists, and steals. Collins was named to the Pac-12 All-Defensive Team and received Honorable Mention All-Conference Honors. Redshirt junior guard Adam Miller and junior guard/forward Jamiya Neal each average more than 10 points per game and Neal leads the team in rebounding.

In the frontcourt, graduate student forward Alonzo Gaffney leads the team with 38 blocks and is the only player on the team with at least 30 blocks and steals. Sophomore center Shawn Phillips Jr. and junior forward Bryant Selebangue have split time pretty evenly down low for ASU. Phillips has provided nice rim protection with his 26 blocks and Selebangue brings an energy resurgence from the bench with his 23 steals. Both are shooting better than 57% from the field.

There was a lot of optimism around a potential deep run in the conference tournament based on the draw ASU got. Without Perez, that journey gets much tougher, but based on the opponents the Sun Devils will face, there’s room for confidence.

Rematch with Utah

ASU’s first game is against Utah. Despite the Utes being the favorite and the No. 6 seed, the No. 11 seed Sun Devils swept the season series with the Utes. Now, it makes it that much more difficult to win a third game against Utah, but it shows ASU knows how to do so. The key in both matchups was 3-point shooting. ASU shot better than 40% and Utah barely shot 30% in both games. However, Perez led ASU in scoring in both games with 21 and 26 points.

If the Sun Devils want to knock off the Utes for the third time this season, accuracy from behind the arc will be crucial.

If ASU gets past Utah, it will face Colorado in the second round.  The Sun Devils split the season series with the Buffaloes with each team winning in their respective home arenas. The Sun Devils scored more than 20 fast break points in each matchup, which will be key in defeating the Buffaloes a second time.

Keys to victory

ASU’s ability to generate blocks and steals to produce quick transition points is when its offense is at its best. The Sun Devils forced 13 Buffalo turnovers in each matchup and generated 11 and 19 blocks and steals. Neal led ASU with 19 points, seven rebounds, and four steals in the first matchup and added 12 points, four assists, and three steals in the second matchup.

ASU’s ability to generate turnovers and fast break points will be the key to success against Colorado.

If Arizona State makes it to the quarterfinals, it will face either Stanford, California or Washington State. The second seed WSU is the most likely opponent, however, ASU split its season series with all three possible opponents.

The Sun Devils had two impressive road comeback victories to open conference play against the Bearcats and the Cardinal. They led nearly coast to coast in their home win over WSU, who was ranked No. 21 in the country at the time.

Regardless of who ASU draws in a potential quarterfinal matchup, the Sun Devils have beaten them all. ASU has shown the ability to win against any opponent it could face, so it will come down to focus, defensive intensity, and the ability to make shots.

If ASU gets past Utah, Colorado, and its quarterfinal matchup, the most likely opponent in the Pac-12 Championship Game is Arizona. The other possibilities are Oregon, USC, UCLA, Washington, or Oregon State. But, if the final came down to ASU against Arizona, it would be the third meeting this season.

A potential rematch with rival

Arizona State was boat-raced in Tucson losing by 45 points. The Wildcats then came to Tempe and pulled away late for an 18-point win. So, just as ASU would have to beat Utah for a third time this season, Arizona would have to do the same to ASU. In the last matchup, the Sun Devils shot just 35% compared to the Wildcats’ 54.2%. However, ASU forced 14 Arizona turnovers, which kept the game close for a while.

Although it may be a longshot, if ASU can catch fire shooting the ball and play its aggressive defense that makes opponents uncomfortable, the Sun Devils could give the Wildcats trouble.

There are a lot of ifs, ands, and buts as you get further into the tournament matchups, but these are some of the most likely opponents if ASU makes a run in the Pac-12 tournament.

It all gets started for the Sun Devils Wednesday night at 8:30 p.m. at T-Mobile Arena.

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