Arizona State continues its home stand against a familiar foe in San Francisco

(Photo Credit: Alyssa Buruato)

TEMPE — Arizona State men’s basketball (4-2) is back in full tilt, as fans are officially rearing their sporting attention from the gridiron of Mountain America Stadium to the hardwood of Desert Financial Arena for Sun Devil basketball’s second of a three-game home stretch. The Sun Devils are preparing to face what is, as recent history serves, one of head coach Bobby Hurley’s trickiest foes in the San Francisco Dons (5-2) at 1:00 p.m. AZT on Sunday in Tempe.

Two seasons ago, the Dons traveled to the Valley of the Sun and upended Hurley’s Devils 66-65. Last year, then-No. 25 Arizona State journeyed to the Bay Area riding high on a nine-game winning streak, only to be trounced by 37 points in a 97-60 defeat to the mid-major program.

Hurley will likely have to rely on his team’s asphyxiating defense that has propelled them this season up to this point. Through the first month of the 2023 campaign, the Sun Devils have boasted the 39th-best defense in the nation in terms of opposing field goal percentage, holding their opponents to 38 percent shooting from the field. They also rank 89th in points against per game and 81st in forced turnovers so far.

Active hands and aggression in jumping passing lanes have been the hallmark of ASU’s defense. They’re led on that end by junior guard Frankie Collins whose three-and-a-half steals per game is good for third in the entire nation. He sleuthed a program record-tying eight takeaways against UMass Lowell on Nov. 16 in a 71-69 comeback victory where he added the game-winning reverse left-handed layup with two seconds remaining for good measure.

The story of this game will be one of strength-on-strength, as the Dons’ 80.6 points per game is tied for 78th in the country. The team is currently shooting a collective 50 percent from the floor and has a 35 percent mark from deep this season. They’ll wager their high-scoring attack against the Sun Devils’ defense, but should come into Tempe confident as they possess two players averaging over 14 points a game. For comparison, no ASU player averages more than 12.

The Dons are led by junior forward Jonathan Mogbo, who paces the squad averaging 15.7 points per game. Mogbo, a powerful inside force at 6 foot 8 inches tall and 225 pounds, has dominated the paint all season long, collecting a team-leading nine rebounds a contest. He also shoots a lethally efficient 72.7 percent from the field, evidence of his indomitable strength and presence inside which enables him to create easy looks for himself. It will likely be the prerogative of junior forward Bryant Selebangue to battle the Dons’ leading force down low.

On the offensive side of the court, it may be tougher sledding for Hurley’s group. The team has struggled out of the gate to a 66.5 points per game output. That places them in the bottom-third of the nation, ranking 310th in scoring. The Sun Devils have shot 41.4 percent from the field and 27.9 percent from downtown. These low percentages will have to rise if ASU wants to keep pace with the vaunted group led by head coach Chris Gerlufsen coming to their home arena.

The scoring load may fall on graduate transfer Jose Perez who is one of the nation’s most experienced players. Perez is one of only eight players at the NCAA Division I level with 1,500 points, 350 assists and 475 rebounds in their career.

While only averaging 12 points a game so far he’s shown the capability to take over with his scoring. Twice this season the Bronx native poured in 20 or more points including most recently dropping 24 points on 9-13 shooting in the Sun Devils last contest, a 78-61 victory over Sam Houston State.

On paper, the power five Sun Devils should be able to handle most mid-majors. However, if the past is any indicator of the future this matchup with the Dons of San Francisco will prove to be a challenge for Hurley and company come Sunday.