(Photo: Scotty Bara/WCSN)
Kicking off conference play against an in-state rival is as intense of a start to the Pac-12 schedule as a team could hope or dread, and that is exactly the situation presented to Arizona State and No. 8 Arizona.
The first of two Territorial Cup tilts between the teams will tip at noon in Tempe, and both teams look to ride the momentum of strong nonconference wins and the return of leading post players.
Arizona boasts wins over then-No. 13 Gonzaga on the road and UNLV at home, and its lone loss came in a nail-biting finish against Providence, whose senior point guard Kris Dunn willed his team to a win over the Wildcats.
The Wildcats recovered from losing senior center Kaleb Tarczewski on November 26 to a foot injury but nearly suffered what would’ve been a demoralizing loss to Santa Clara in overtime. After missing eight games, Tarczewski expects to play but more than likely will contribute limited minutes as he works his way back into the lineup.
And while Arizona was once again expected to finish in the top-3 of the conference and is playing as such, ASU turned heads after a strong showing in its nonconference schedule.
Slotted to finish eighth in the Pac-12, the Sun Devils performed well in the midst of a brutal schedule. Wins over North Carolina State, Creighton, UNLV and then-No. 18 Texas A&M have caught the attention of some as Pac-12 play begins, and ESPN’s Joe Lunardi has the Sun Devils in his early field for the NCAA Tournament.
The Sun Devils welcome back junior forward Savon Goodman, who missed the last four games due to what the team called “personal reasons.” He will be a welcome sight for the scrappy yet thin ASU squad that only has eight scholarship players available.
The Sun Devils will be looking to take down a ranked Wildcats squad for the third-consecutive season, but this will be the first Territorial Cup matchup for ASU head coach Bobby Hurley.
Keys to the game
Perimeter shooting
Considering the identities and tendencies of the two teams, this game has every reason to be a defensive battle or offensive struggle. ASU has gotten away with shooting 43 percent from the floor (223rd in the country) and 31.7 from three (277th) by playing strong defense and consistently outrebounding its opponents.
With that in mind, both teams will look to control the tempo of the game. ASU and Arizona both rank outside of the top-175 in possessions per 40 minutes, and they both get to the free throw line at a high rate.
Arizona shoots just 32.6 percent from beyond the arc (241st), but whichever team can find its perimeter stroke will make the difference in pulling away from the other. Senior guard Gabe York is the only Wildcat who pulls the trigger from distance more than four times per game, and he connects on 42.3 percent of them.
On the other end, ASU guards Kodi Justice, Gerry Blakes and Andre Spight all launch triples over four times per contest. However, only Justice has shown reliability as he hits 38.9 percent of his attempts. Senior forward Willie Atwood is ASU’s most accurate shooter, sinking 40 percent from three-point land.
Who shakes the rust off faster?
With two defenses who take pride in grinding out game, opportunities for rebounds should come frequently for the big men down low. Goodman, ASU’s leading rebounder, will have his hands full with Arizona redshirt senior forward Ryan Anderson, who is averaging 10.3 rebounds per game, and Tarczewski, who was averaging 7.2 boards per contest before going down with his injury.
While Tarczewski will likely have a harder time coming off an injury whereas Goodman missed games for non-health-related reasons, finding their way into the rotation will still be a point of emphasis as the game progresses.
Anderson should combat whatever rust Tarczewski may have, but ASU has six players on its roster who snag more than four rebounds per game. It is that gang-rebounding mentality that has allowed the Sun Devils to stay alive despite being vastly undersized more often than not.
Guard play
Last season, ASU sophomore guard Tra Holder squared off against Arizona’s T.J. McConnell and posted one of his best games of the season with 15 points and eight assists. A similar output will be required from the ever-maturing guard this season, and thus far, Holder has thrived on answering the bell.
Holder leads the Sun Devils with 14.5 points per game and has raised his three-point shooting percentage from 25 percent as a freshman to over 30 percent in year two.
However, York and freshman guard Allonzo Trier will present problems of their own to the Sun Devil defense as both average over 13 points per game. Trier in particular has made a splash in debut season, shooting 63.5 percent on two-point attempts. With a lack of rim protection in the ASU frontcourt, senior guard Gerry Blakes will likely be tasked with guarding the Seattle-native.
You can reach Zac Pacleb on Twitter @ZacPacleb or via email at zacpacleb@gmail.com
