Arizona State Basketball

Arizona's Caleb Love may have lost ASU head coach Bobby Hurley's All-Big 12 vote after Saturday's mid-game altercation with BJ Freeman.

"I do get a vote for all-conference, and I can tell you who's not getting the vote," Hurley said Saturday, per Arizona Sports.

Both players were assessed technical fouls and ejected from Saturday's rivalry game following a scuffle in the second half that involved Freeman head-butting Love.

Hurley responded by clearing the bench with 30 seconds remaining and forgoing handshakes after ASU's 81-72 loss.

When asked about the decision to not shake hands with Arizona coach Tommy Lloyd after the game, Hurley answered: "If you were right near our bench, it was relentless, constant chatter from a couple of the Arizona players that was not being policed properly."

"And of course, they're going to be happy with winning, but it was done with no class," Hurley said (h/t 247Sports' Chris Karpman.) "And words that were said, back and forth, led to the moment where Freeman lost it, and lost his cool, because of the constant talk that was allowed to go on.

"So, I had to make the tough decision to obviously, in the best interest of our team, to get them into the locker rooms so there would be no further incidents in the rest of the game."

Lloyd meanwhile said the clash at the end of the game was "disappointing, probably on all sides."

"We want to be a program that, when tough things happen, we want to respond with class, and I don't know if we did or didn't," Lloyd said (h/t Mark McClune.) "Just a tough moment in an emotional game."

Love, who is playing in his fifth college season and second with Arizona, was named Pac-12 Player of the Year last season. It looks like Hurley would like to push against him earning more honors in his new conference following the Wildcats' move to the Big 12 ahead of the 2023-25 season.

Saturday's loss marked the fourth straight game the Sun Devils have dropped to their in-state rivals. ASU is now 1-9 in their last ten matchups with Arizona, with their lone win over that streak coming in February 2023.

Hurley and Lloyd's teams will meet again on March 4, when Arizona hosts the rivalry matchup at McKale Center.

Joson Sanon, a 5-star shooting guard in the high school basketball class of 2024, has flipped his commitment from Arizona to Arizona State. Sanon made the announcement on his Instagram page Wednesday.

The 6'5" guard from Vermont Academy is ranked 24th on the 247Sports Composite class of 2024 list.

Arizona State has a loaded 2024 class led by 5-star center Jayden Quaintance. 247Sports ranked the Sun Devils' class third on its composite list. Forward Amier Ali and Sammie Yeaney, ranked in the top 100, also signed letters of intent.

Adam Finkelstein, 247Sports' director of scouting, had this to say in part on Sanon's game in a March 3 scouting report.

"Sanon is a volume scoring wing who is capable of getting his shot at multiple levels. His best weapon over the years has been his mid-range pull-up game, with good lift into his release. Within the last year, we've seen his range extend out to the three-point line with the same ability to rise-up into his shot..."

As for Sanon's decision, he notably posted this in response to Arizona guard Caleb Love right before the switch became public.

Those two were on track to be teammates, but now they will be rivals.

Ultimately, this move is a big win for Arizona State, which could very well have its best season under head coach Bobby Hurley since he arrived on campus in 2015.

Kentucky has lost another recruit in the wake of John Calipari's departure to Arkansas.

Jayden Quaintance, a 5-star center in the Class of 2024, is decommitting from the Wildcats and will instead sign with Arizona State, according to ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski.

He's considered the No. 8 overall prospect in his class by 247Sports' Composite Rankings, the No. 2 center and the top player available out of North Carolina.

Adam Finkelstein of 247Sports described Quaintance as "one of the most naturally talented prospects in the country," noting that he has "massively long arms (7-foot-3-plus wingspan), vertical athleticism, a strong frame, good hands, soft touch, shooting potential, natural face-up skill, and signs of a passing instinct. He also runs the floor well and is a solid rebounder when he commits himself."

For the Sun Devils, his commitment is a huge milestone:

Quaintance decommitted from Kentucky earlier in April, and he isn't alone.

Former Kentucky commits Karter Knox, Billy Richmond, Boogie Fland and Somto Cyril are no longer joining the Wildcats, while D.J. Wagner, Aaron Bradshaw and Jordan Burks each entered the transfer portal. Add in Rob Dillingham, Justin Edwards, Ugonna Onyenso and Reed Sheppard declaring for the NBA draft, and Kentucky's cupboard is currently bare.

As for Arizona State, the Sun Devils now ranks No. 6 in the Class of 2024, per 247Sports' Composite Rankings, with Quaintance joining 4-star small forward Amier Ali, 4-star power forward Sammie Yeanay, 3-star shooting guard Bo Aldridge and 3-star center Jaden Smith.

The school also has four incoming transfers—power forward BJ Freeman, point guard Alston Mason, center Basheer Jihad and point guard Austin Nunez.

Head coach Bobby Hurley hasn't rested on his laurels after a disappointing 2023-24 campaign.

Marcus Bagley has appeared in just two of Arizona State's seven games this season, and the forward apparently cost himself some more playing time by explaining the situation on social media.

On Sunday, Bagley tweeted that he wasn't playing because he "made a mistake and said some things to Coach [Bobby] Hurley that I shouldn't have said. Me not playing is 100% punishment for what I said that day."

He then provided an update Tuesday and said he was suspended for that tweet:

Hurley addressed the situation prior to Bagley's latest update during an appearance on Arizona Sports' Bickley & Marotta.

"I think it's a byproduct of other guys playing well and just not having the opportunity to get him out on the floor," Hurley said while revealing he planned to discuss the situation with the player. "That's all it comes down to. ... We have a stacked perimeter and right now there's just no minutes for him."

The junior played against Tarleton State on Nov. 7 and Northern Arizona on Nov. 10, averaging 12.5 points, 4.0 rebounds and 1.5 assists in 28.5 minutes per game. He also connected on 33.3 percent of his three-point attempts.

Bagley, who is the younger brother of Detroit Pistons forward Marvin Bagley III, appeared to be well on his way to playing major minutes this season considering those were the first two games but then didn't step on the floor at all in any of the next five.

It is notable that he explained he is healthy because injury concerns limited him to just 15 games during his first two seasons. He arrived at Arizona State as a highly regarded 4-star prospect in the class of 2020, per 247Sports' composite rankings.

There may be some regrets regarding his decision as a recruit at this point considering he also tweeted: "ATHLETES please please please make a well thought through decision where you go to school. These people will tell you anything to build you up just to tear you down."

While Bagley has not been a major contributor, Arizona State is off to a 6-1 start and counts a win over Michigan on its early resume.

Next up for the Sun Devils is their Pac-12 opener against Colorado on Thursday. They are attempting to make the NCAA men's tournament for the first time since the 2018-19 campaign, which was Hurley's fourth season as the head coach.

The No. 3 UCLA Bruins were upset by the unranked Arizona State Sun Devils 87-84 in triple overtime on Saturday at Desert Financial Arena for just their fourth loss of the season. 

However, Saturday's loss was the second straight for UCLA after falling to the No. 7 Arizona Wildcats 76-66 on Thursday. The Bruins have also lost to the Gonzaga Bulldogs and Oregon Ducks this season. 

The Bruins needed to avoid a loss in Saturday's game against the Sun Devils to avoid falling further away from winning the regular-season conference championship. The Wildcats are first in conference play at 9-1, while the Bruins are tied for second with the Ducks at 8-3.

While junior guards Jaime Jaquez Jr., Johnny Juzang and Tyger Campbell had solid performances for the Bruins, senior forward Cody Riley put up 10 points, and senior guard Jules Bernard put up just six points against the Sun Devils. 

And while the Sun Devils are typically paced by Illinois State transfer DJ Horne, Marreon Jackson was the hero for the team on Saturday night. The senior finished with a whopping 24 points, four rebounds, three assists and three steals off the bench.

Junior forward Jalen Graham also had a solid night for Arizona State, finishing with 16 points, 10 rebounds and six assists. 

Arizona State had entered Saturday's game having lost their last four games, while UCLA had won eight of their last 10.

As for what's next, UCLA will trip to snap its two-game skid on Tuesday when the Bruins travel to face Stanford. Arizona State, meanwhile, will look to upset another ranked opponent in the Arizona Wildcats on Sunday. 

Arizona State head coach Bobby Hurley and guard Jay Heath were suspended for Monday's game against USC for their actions toward an official after Saturday's 79-76 loss to Stanford.

"The actions of the head coach and student-athletes were in clear violation of the conference's standards of conduct and will not be tolerated," Pac-12 Commissioner George Kliavkoff said in a statement. "The Pac-12 and its membership has established regulations requiring all institutional personnel, especially head coaches, to conduct themselves in a sporting manner, and those involved in this situation failed to meet those standards."

Hurley and Heath both verbally confronted an official who was exiting the court. That came after Stanford's Brandon Angel got sent to the free-throw line and drained all three of his shots with 1.1 seconds remaining to give Stanford a one-possession victory.

Stanford shot 41 free throws to Arizona State's nine, and the Sun Devils were called for 29 fouls overall.

Hurley, who received a technical early in the second half, was also fined $20,000 for his actions. Forward Jalen Graham received a public reprimand but was not suspended.

Heath, in his first year at Arizona State after transferring from Boston College, is averaging 9.9 points and 3.9 rebounds per game this season.

Arizona State has dropped four of its last five games and is sitting at 6-10 on the season. Hurley, in his seventh season with the Sun Devils, has not led his team to the NCAA tournament since 2018-19 and could be facing the pressure of an increasingly hot seat. Going on the road against No. 16 USC without their head coach and a starting guard will be a challenge.

Each of Arizona State's next four games comes against ranked opponents (at USC, at No. 3 Arizona, vs. USC, vs. No. 9 UCLA). Hurley and Heath will return for Saturday's game at Arizona.

The UC Riverside men's basketball team earned an improbable upset road win over Arizona State on Thursday, as J.P. Moorman II drilled a game-winning buzzer-beater from beyond half court for a 66-65 victory.

Moorman finished with 14 points and 11 rebounds as UC Riverside improved to 1-1. Flynn Cameron had a team-high 18 points. It's the Highlanders' first-ever win over the Sun Devils, ending a three-game losing streak.

UC Riverside hosts La Sierra in its home opener on Nov. 14. Arizona State (1-1) will remain at home for a game against 0-2 North Florida on Nov. 15.

Former Arizona State official David Cohen has filed a civil lawsuit against the school alleging that his termination was as a result of insisting the school investigate sexual assault claims against a booster, per Pete Thamel of Yahoo Sports.

Cohen was fired from his position as senior associate athletic director in December 2019, which he saw as "clear retaliation" for his role in pushing for an investigation against prominent donor Bart Wear.

The lawsuit comes after a notice of claim filed in February, which stated Arizona State athletic director Ray Anderson and other officials waited almost five months to begin an investigation into claims from three women of "assault and sexual harassment" against Wear, per Thamel.

ASU eventually canceled the booster's season tickets and determined he is no longer welcome at events after determining he "subjected the three women to 'unwelcome comments and physical contact,'" per Thamel.

Cohen's wife, Kathy, was one of the accusers, stating Wear touched her breasts at a Pac-12 tournament basketball game. Leslie Hurley, wife of men's basketball coach Bobby Hurley, also said Wear "inappropriately put his hand on her leg while talking with her."

Bobby Hurley blasted Anderson in an email last December, stating the athletic director "disregarded the safety and [has] shown no sensitivity towards the women that have experienced sexual assault," per Thamel.

The latest lawsuit alleges Cohen was fired only for pushing for an investigation and that he otherwise "received glowing reviews for his performance and the highest bonuses in the ASU athletics department."

There is no specific dollar amount called for in the lawsuit, but it states he is seeking "past and future wages and benefits, pre and post-judgement interest, compensatory damages, and mental health anguish and emotional distress."

Anderson received a contract extension in February that could keep him at the school through at least 2026.