(Photo Credit: Alyssa Buruato/WCSN)
Arizona State (5-2) has an opportunity to move up the NET rankings with a matchup against SMU (5-3) — a familiar foe that the Sun Devils defeated 75-57 last season — on Wednesday at Desert Financial Arena.
NCAA published its first version of the NET rankings on Dec. 4 and the Sun Devils barely cracked the top 100, slotting in at No. 99. ASU hosts the 84th-ranked Mustangs on Wednesday, who represent a potential first Quad 3 victory of the season. The Devils are 5-0 in Quad 2 and 4 games, including a home victory against No. 49 San Francisco on Dec. 3.
All five of the Mustangs’ victories have come against Quad 4 teams, so all three of their losses are against Quad 1 and 2 opponents, which is notable considering this is a Quad 2 game for an SMU squad playing on the road. If the ‘Stangs look to get their first Quad 2 victory in Tempe, they will need their best player to step up.
From past experience, junior guard Zhuric Phelps is a player the Sun Devils know they need to keep an eye on, as the then-sophomore scored a game-high 19 points against ASU last season. The Mustang leads the team in scoring through the first eight games of this season, but was also the leading scorer last year, averaging 17.5 points per game. Phelps is also one of the premier two-way players in the American Athletic Conference (AAC), averaging over two steals a game since the beginning of last season, so he will prove a tough matchup for ASU guards Jamiya Neal and Jose Perez to handle on the wings.
Phelps will be a handful at both ends of the court, but the Sun Devils match up well against the Mustangs because neither team employs a true center. Sophomore center Shawn Phillips Jr. will not play for ASU due to a foot injury, and junior center Mo Nije averages 5.7 minutes on the court for SMU. In fact, the leader in rebounds and blocks for the ‘Stangs is senior forward Tyreek Smith, who has not started a game this season.
Conversely, Neal and Perez are second and third in rebounding for the Sun Devils, only behind junior point guard Frankie Collins. The point guard said “Our identity is just to be dogs” after the win against San Francisco, and that mindset has been required of the guards as the frontcourt continues to nurse injuries. Along with Phillips Jr., senior forward Zane Meeks is also dealing with a foot injury.
Although both teams are similar in that they do not enjoy strong rebounding from their starting forwards, there is stark difference in how both teams have performed offensively. Both ASU and SMU are above 40% from the field, but the Sun Devils shoot 28.5% from behind the arc and 58.7% from the charity stripe whereas the Mustangs shoot 34.4% and 70.5%, respectively. The Devils are coming off a game against USF in which they shot above their team season averages in all three categories, so it will be interesting to see if they can keep that momentum rolling against a better-shooting team.
Not only is ASU coming off a big win against USF, but it has been hot in its last three games, winning each by double digits. The Mustangs also roll into Wednesday’s matchup have some momentum, coming off a 43-point victory over Texas A&M – Commerce with 69.2/53.3/76.9 team shooting splits. SMU has proven that it can defeat a Power 5 school such as West Virginia, but that game was at a neutral site, so the Mustangs have an opportunity to defeat a Pac-12 team on the road.
Wednesday’s tip off is set for 8 pm MST.
