(Photo Credit: Alyssa Buruato/WCSN)
As the old saying goes, to be the best you have to beat the best. Arizona State Men’s Basketball (11-7, 5-2 Pac-12) currently sits in a three-way tie atop the conference standings. They share that peak with No. 10 Arizona and their next opponent, Oregon (13-5, 5-2 Pac-12).
The Sun Devils will be traveling up north attempting to surpass the Ducks atop the conference summit. They will treading waters in Eugene that no team has successfully traversed yet. Oregon is 9-0 at home in Matthew Knight Arena this season, downing opponents by an average of 13.2 points per game.
“They’re a good team,” Hurley said. “They resemble more of the teams I’m accustomed to playing at Oregon. In terms of good teams that Dana Altman has had there since I’ve been in the Pac-12. They check a lot of the boxes. They’re a very good basketball team.”
According to Arizona State junior guard Frankie Collins, mental fortitude has been the theme amongst ASU in preparations for this heavyweight bout. He recognizes this game as a prime opportunity for the Sun Devils to begin setting the pace for the conference.
“Just how locked in we have to be,” Collins said. “This is a huge game for us and for us moving forward. If we can get a win that’s huge because that puts us at the top spot. We’ll have teams chasing from behind.”
Junior big man Bryant Selebangue echoed Collins’ sentiment expressing again that focusing solely on the task at hand and treating this game as any other will be key.
“Just trying to eliminate as much distractions as possible,” Selebangue said. “We’re treating it like another game, you have to come back with the win.”
Hurley believes the Ducks will present one of the stiffest tests in the paint and in overall physicality that ASU will face in conference play.
“They play with a good level of aggression,” Hurley said. “They have a good inside presence. One of the best inside players in the league.”
The inside player in question is Oregon’s senior center N’Faly Dante. The big man from Mali stands an imposing 6 feet 11 inches tall and weighs in at a reported 230 pounds. He emanates physical dominance in stature and in play style as well.
Dante has only appeared in four games this season due to injuries. However, his 16-point, 21-rebound outing vs. Georgia in early November and his most recent 23-point, 10-rebound game against Utah Sunday night prove that when he does play he’s an indomitable force that must be accounted for.
The daunting task of limiting Dante may spell more minutes for ASU sophomore center Shawn Phillips Jr. The seven-footer started games earlier this season before a foot injury derailed his progress. He has since been on a minutes restriction since returning to action in early January against Utah. Hurley recognizes that this matchup will require the size of Phillips to contend down low.
“I think this is a game that we need [Phillips],” Hurley said. “(When) you’re playing a guy like Dante as big as he is. [Phillips] is our most physical presence. So you really need him to step up this game.”
Hurley also conceded it will likely take a team effort to slow down the powerful Malian, meaning Phillips will have support from his team on defense.
“[Phillips] is not going to be on an island with [Dante],” Hurley said. “We have to support him when he’s in there. He needs the help of his teammates.”
Oregon’s second-leading scorer freshman Jackson Shelstad impressed ASU’s bench boss with his outside shooting touch — he’s shooting 40.7 percent from beyond the arc — and maturity beyond his years as a first-year college player.
“[Shelstad] can really shoot it,” Hurley said. “When I watch him (I notice) his composure and poise for, a freshman guard. He really seems to have that personality that he brings to the game.”
While a shot at the top against the Ducks is the premier matchup this week in Pac-12 basketball, it’s not the only game ASU will have during its trip to the Pacific Northwest. It will face Oregon State (9-9, 1-6 Pac-12) on Saturday in Corvallis.
On paper, the game against the Beavers figures to be slightly less titanic of a matchup. OSU has faltered to a 1-6 conference record out of the game but don’t let that record be a facade. They still boast a 9-2 record at home and the Gill Coliseum should prove a second straight raucous atmosphere the Sun Devils enter on the week.
The Beavers are led by preseason All-Pac-12 Second Team sophomore guard Jordan Pope. He’s a talented and complete point guard who leads the team in points and assists with 17 and 3.5 per game respectively.
It will be Collins’ job to nullify Pope’s offensive impact. Lucky for the Sun Devils, the point guard — who ranks third in the nation in steals per game (3.11 per game) — relishes his role of shutting down the opposing team’s most dangerous threat on a nightly basis.
“I take pride in defending,” Collins said. “I always make sure I got the best person on the floor. I want to shut that person down and help our team defensively.”
Oregon State’s starting center KC Ibekwe mans the middle of the Beaver lineup and leads the team in blocks with 1.3 rejections a game. Standing 6 feet 10 inches, he towers just a few inches higher than Selebangue, who will be battling down low with him. Opponents’ heights have never wavered Selebangue’s confidence in his ability to battle with the larger centers of the league.
“The secret is my strength,” Selebangue said. “I feel like that’s one very underrated thing with me. Guys are a couple of inches taller than me but I never let that get to me.”
While the Sun Devils will be entering two notoriously hostile away environments Hurley said it’s only the Thursday night matchup against the league-leading Ducks that he’s focused on at the moment.
“Our general philosophy is to focus on the opponent that’s right in front of us,” Hurley said. “All of our energy and concentration is with Oregon.”
The Sun Devils tipoff against the Ducks at 7 p.m. MST on Thursday night on Pac-12 Network. They will then conclude their trip with a 5 p.m. MST on a Saturday night tipoff against Oregon State, which can also be streamed on Pac-12 Network.
