(Photo: Nicholas Badders/WCSN)
For the first time since conference play began December 30, ASU will be staying home for consecutive weekends.
The Sun Devils get ready to host the USC Trojans tonight, which will be the first of three consecutive home games and five of seven in Tempe to close out the regular season.
Although the Sun Devils are 10-2 at home, they are in for the toughest three-game stretch of basketball they’ve played all season.
As if the schedule needed to get tougher with a 5-6 conference record, ASU hosts a USC team that’s won eight of its last 10, and six in a row before falling at UCLA last Saturday.
Then, they host those same Bruins who ended USC’s win streak. UCLA has won three straight and beaten ASU in their last four meetings, last losing to the Devils in February 2015.
If ASU can win one of this weekend’s games, as they’ve done every weekend of conference season, the rematch against No. 13 Arizona next Thursday could get them back in the rankings.
But keeping the focus on the weekend ahead, ASU is looking at second place USC (8-3) and tied for fourth place UCLA (7-4) in the Pac-12 standings. Overall, ASU still has the edge over both squads though.
The Sun Devils stand at 17-6 on the year, a half game ahead of 17-7 USC and a game in front of 16-7 UCLA.
The size of Pac-12 teams has become the Sun Devils kryptonite though, and it’s something UCLA and USC have an abundance of.
In fact, the Trojans and Bruins each have five players who are 6’10 or taller, tied with each other for most in the conference. For comparison, junior forward De’quon Lake is the only Sun Devil in that category.
Those big men aren’t just props for intimidation, as they’ve been some of the most productive players for their respective teams.
Junior forwards Chimezie Metu and Bennie Boatwright are first and second, respectively, for the Trojans in scoring and rebounding. Metu puts up 15.8 points and 7.5 rebounds per game, while Boatwright averages 14.4 and 6.5.
For UCLA, senior center Thomas Welsh joins consensus 2018 lottery pick DeAndre Ayton as the only Pac-12 players to average a double-double. Welsh is third on the team averaging 13 ppg, and second in the conference at 10.3 rpg.
ASU’s only answer to this, as it’s always been, is their guards. The Sun Devils still have two of the conference’s top 10 scorers in seniors Tra Holder (19 ppg) and Shannon Evans II (16.8 ppg).
This duo along with top big man Romello White have been producing lately, but it’ll be up to the supporting cast to step up its performance this weekend.
Senior guard Kodi Justice, still a top 25 scorer in the conference at 12.7 ppg, has scored double digits once in the last five games, shooting 7-25 from three in that span.
Freshman guard Remy Martin has averaged less than 7 ppg and committed 8 turnovers in his last three games. He scored double-digit points in seven of the eight games before that and committed 6 turnovers in total.
Sophomore forward Mickey Mitchell, normally a solid contributor, has shot 5-16 from the field over his last four contests. Freshman forward Vtaliy Shibel, 6’9, and top-60 recruit Kimani Lawrence both have yet to have an impact performance in Pac-12 play.
However, the most important supporting player ASU will look to is De’quon Lake. The 6’10 forward has shot well the last four games (14-19), but his most important role will be on defense, as his size alone gives him the best chance of any Sun Devil to stop the menacing big men of USC and UCLA.
ASU will need most if not all of these players to step up this weekend with UCLA and USC both being so well-rounded.
The Bruins are the only team in addition to the Sun Devils with three players among the Pac-12’s top 25 scorers. In addition to Welsh, UCLA boasts freshman guard Kris Wilkes (13.8 ppg) and junior guard Aaron Holiday (19.2 ppg).
The Trojans backcourt doesn’t put up the same gaudy numbers, but senior guards Jordan McLaughlin (12.3 ppg) and Elijah Stewart (11.4 ppg) anchor a team that leads the Pac-12 in assists at 16.6 per game, led by Mclaughlin’s conference high 7.7.
Also, it’s worth noting that UCLA has the second highest scoring offense (82.9 ppg) in the Pac-12 behind ASU’s 85 ppg and USC holds the conference’s third-best scoring defense letting up 71.4 ppg.
As USA’s gold-medal winning coach Herb Brooks once said, great moments are born from great opportunity. This weekend, we’ll find out if ASU can shake off a rough conference season to rise to the occasion and get its tournament aspirations back on track.
Thursday’s matchup tips off at 9 p.m. and Saturday’s tilt with UCLA start at 5 p.m.
