Arizona State Basketball

Arizona State Basketball opened up Pac-12 Conference play at home hosting the 8-4 Utah Runnin' Utes—and it was ugly.

The Sun Devils needed an extra overtime period to dispatch the Utes 55-54. The Utes came into the game averaging 69.4 points a game—and the Sun Devils 75.2—but those numbers were far from obtained Wednesday night.

The night started off quickly for Arizona State center Jordan Bachynski, who scored the first four points of the game. Then the Sun Devils fell asleep, allowing the Runnin' Utes to score the next nine unanswered.

An offensive struggle by both teams, neither team shot above 40 percent in the first half as the Sun Devils took a 26-25 lead into the intermission. Freshman sensation Jahii Carson struggled mightily from the field, hitting only 2 of 8 shots, including an abysmal 0-of-3 from beyond the arc.

The game was strange all over.

The nation's No. 3 blocker, Jordan Bachynski, who averages 4.5 blocks per game, had a grand total of zero going into the intermission. Another anomaly was that the team's third-leading scorer, Evan Gordon, only took two shots in the first half—missing both of them.

The Sun Devils needed to come back strong in the second half and pull away from the Utes, but instead they performed even worse in the second stanza. They scored 25 points on 9-of-28 shooting, including 1-of-8 from three-point territory. Fortunately, that super shot came when the Devils needed it most—down the stretch from Jahii Carson.

The game was carried in the final minutes by reserve center Ruslan Pateev, who came in for the injured starter, Bachynski. Pateev only scored four points in the game but came up big to block the Runnin' Utes' last-ditch effort to win the game in the final seconds of overtime.

Coach Herb Sendek is not going to be happy when he watches the game tape; on several occasions there was sloppy play, missed assignments and an overall lack of communication.

One play that stands out glaringly was when the Sun Devils inbounded their final possession of regulation with the game tied at 49. Freshman point guard Jahii Carson dribbled down court and did nothing—absolutely nothing—with the ball. He eventually called timeout with three seconds left on the game clock and six seconds left in regulation.

The true bright spot on the team was senior swingman Carrick Felix, who finished with 17 points and 13 rebounds. He added three assists, two steals and a block in key junctures of the game.

One thing is for sure: If the Sun Devils go any farther in conference play with games like they had in their season opener, they can kiss any chances of a winning season goodbye. As it stands right now, they are 12-2 overall and a half-game in first place in the Pac-12.

I hope they enjoy it while it lasts.

Follow me on twitter at @asubasketball and @asudave. 

Arizona State swingman Carrick Felix is having his best year at the best time possible—his senior year.

Felix graduated in the Spring with a B.S. in Communications and was accepted into the Masters of Liberal Studies program, beginning classes this summer. With such a massive improvement over the past year, Felix may be looking into forgoing his studies to pursue a career in basketball.

Felix said the following in the post-game press conference after beating Cal State Northridge:

There's most definitely a sense of urgency. Since this is my last year, I definitely have a lot to play for. I always feel like I have a little chip on my shoulder. I try to be the energy guy for the team and make hustle plays. When it comes down to it, it's going to be the little plays in the game like the tipped balls, the loose rebounds, and offensive rebounds, so we try to do that.

He has been on a tear after a slow start in the season opener. He is averaging 15.1 points and 7.5 rebounds per game. He is shooting 66-of-114 from the floor and leads the team in three-point shooting with 14-of-36 for 38 percent.

His most recent outing marked career-bests with 14 rebounds and five blocks. It also marked his third double-double in six games—he had a grand total of zero in his first two seasons at Arizona State.

Felix added three steals to his total and is leading the Sun Devils with 12.  Also, his monster rebounding game put him in a three-way tie with Jordan Bachynski and Jonathan Gilling, who are both taller than him.

He added in the press conference that he truly loves playing defense, as it allows him to showcase his offense:

The steals were the best. Defense is probably one of my favorite things to do when it comes to basketball. The steals luckily led to some nice dunks.

He was named Pac-12 Player of the Week on Dec. 2 after back-to-back 21-point games against Arkansas-Pine Bluff and Sacramento St. He has eight career 20-point games and three of them came within a 10-day stretch from Nov. 23 to Dec.1 of this year.

The energy and tempo have definitely increased in Wells Fargo Arena with the addition of freshman phenom Jahii Carson and transfer student Evan Gordon.

When you throw two new assistant coaches in Eric Musselman and Larry Greer into the mix, you not only have a new Carrick Felix, you might even have a NBA player. 

Arizona State Basketball improved their record to 7-1 on Wednesday night and are looking for their first 8-1 start in 38 years

The Sun Devils were led by freshman phenom Jahii Carson's 20 points, seven assists and five rebounds.

Carson, who had been fighting an illness the past two games, came out on fire against the Hartford Hawks, hitting four of the first eight points and dishing the assist on the other four.

The Hawks were sharp-shooters from long range, hitting their first three baskets from beyond the arc. They continued their barrage hitting 5-of-9 from three-point territory taking a 24-19 lead.

This was frustrating for the Sun Devils, who were shooting an incredible 73 percent from the field and still trailing by five.

The Sun Devils would recoup and go on a 14-4 run to finish the half on 63 percent shooting and leading only by one, 36-35.

The second half was the Eric Jacobsen show. Having only played five minutes in the first half and scoring three points in that span, the 6'10" center from Hamilton High School in Chandler would go on to have a career night.

Starting center Jordan Bachynski got an early foul, and missed a layup within the first five minutes of the second half. Jacobsen subbed in at 14:50 and never checked back out. He finished with a career-high 16 points, and added six rebounds to his total. 

Senior Carrick Felix finished with a double-double with 11 points and 11 rebounds, his second in his career in as many tries. He added three blocks, two steals and two assists to his numbers.

Stat Corner

After eight games, here are the updated stats for the Sun Devils.

• Jahii Carson leads all players in:
  • Total Points—146 
  • Points Per Game—18.3 average (Fifth in Conference)
  • Assists—43 (Second in Conference)
  • Free Throws Made—45 (Second in Conference)
  • Minutes Per Game—34.4 average

• Carrick Felix leads all players with:
  • Field Goal Percentage—.590 percent (Third in Conference)
  • Field Goals Made—49 (Fourth in Conference)
  • Three-Point Percentage—.448 percent (Fifth in Conference)
  • Total steals—16 (Fifth in Conference)

• Jonathan Gilling leads all players in:
  • Total Rebounds—63
  • Rebounds Per Game—7.9 average
  • Three-Point Shots Made—18 (Third in Conference)

•  Jordan Bachynski leads all players in:
  • Total Blocks—38 (Second in Nation)
  • Blocks Per Game—4.75 average (Second in Nation)

• Evan Gordon leads all players with:
  • Free Throw Percentage—.767 percent

Next Up

The Sun Devils take on the 7-2 Cal State Northridge Matadors. Their two losses were to the UCLA Bruins of the Pac-12, and to Brigham Young out of the West Coast Conference.

The Matadors are coming off a 120-point showing over Vanguard University, a small, Christian university in nearby Costa Mesa that competes in the NAIA.

They currently lead the Big West Conference and average 81.2 points per game, good enough for 15th best in the nation. They are led by sophomore point guard, Stephan Hicks with 18.1 points per game and eight rebounds per game.

Where: Wells Fargo Arena, Tempe, Ariz.

When: Saturday, Dec. 8 at 2 p.m. ET

Watch: Pac-12 Network

Listen: 620-AM in the metro Phoenix area or ASU All Access on the web.

Prediction

I expect the Sun Devils will start off quickly in this game at home, with great efforts from Jahii Carson. Look for big man Jordan Bachynski to return to previous form.

I foresee another big game for senior Carrick Felix who has been absolutely on fire the past five games—averaging 18.8 points per game and 9.5 rebounds per game. Evan Gordon will continue his hot hand and contribute with double-digit points

Cal State Northridge 64, Arizona State 79 

Arizona State's Evan Gordon had a career-high 29 points and led the 5-1 Sun Devils to a 90-70 win over the Sacramento State Hornets Saturday night in front of 5,007 fans in Wells Fargo Arena.

Football coach Todd Graham and members of the Arizona State football team were in attendance and showed off the prized Territorial Cup to all in attendance.

The next game for the Sun Devils is against the 4-3 Hartford Hawks of the America East Conference, here is the skinny: 

Where: Wells Fargo Arena, Tempe, Ariz.

When: Wednesday, Dec. 5 at 8:30 p.m. ET

Watch: Pac-12 Network

Listen: 620-AM in the metro Phoenix area or ASU All Access on the web.

The Hawks have a verified stud in sophomore Mark Nwakamma. Nwakamma, the America East Player of the Week is blossoming nicely after being named to the America East All-Rookie team last season.

The 6'6" forward currently leads the team in scoring, rebounds and is second in assists behind point guard Yolonzo Moore II.

The Hawks are riding a three-game winning streak coming into Wednesday's matchup in the desert. This is the first of three trips out west as they visit Houston, Texas next week to take on the Rice Owls and Boulder, Colorado later in the month to take on the reigning Pac-12 Champion Colorado Buffaloes.

The Sun Devils are off to their fourth 6-1 start in the past 20 years and will try to hit 7-1 for the fifth time since they joined the Pac-10 in 1978, 35 years ago.

One of the biggest surprises in the Pac-12 this year, the Sun Devils were predicted to finish anywhere from eighth to 12th from the so-called experts. Granted, their non-conference schedule is light and they lost to the only ranked team they played, but they hung in there a lot better than most would have imagined.

Freshman phenom Jahii Carson scored his career-high 30 points that game and never backed down. 

They will have a tougher time once they enter conference play, but the light scheduling is a great morale booster and confidence builder.

Looking around the Pac-12 at other teams that have lost to lesser non-conference opponents, i.e. UCLA, Washington, Stanford, I would venture to say that Arizona State is going to have a great season down the stretch.

STAT CORNER 

• Points:
  • Jahii Carson —126 total, 18.0 average 
  • Fifth in Pac-12

• Assists:
  • Jahii Carson —36 total, 5.1 average 
  • Third in Pac-12

• Rebounds:
  • Jonathan Gilling —60 total, 8.6 average 
  • Fifth in Pac-12

• Blocks:
  • Jordan Bachynski —35 total, 5.0 average
  • 2nd best in the nation

• Steals:
  • Carrick Felix —14 total, 2.0 average
  • Evan Gordon —14 total, 2.0 average 
  • Fourth in Pac-12

• Field Goal Pct:
  • Carrick Felix —44-of-75 for .587 
  • Fourth in Pac-12

• Three-Point Pct:
  • Carrick Felix —12-of-27 for .444
  • Seventh in Pac-12

• Free Throw Pct:
  • Evan Gordon —20-of-26 for .769
  • 15th in the Pac-12

This season is shaping up nicely for Herb Sendek and the Sun Devils. Two players have cracked the top 10 in scoring since Sendek took the helm in 2006.

The top five spots are held by two current NBA players in James Harden and Jeff Pendergraph, so it is safe to say that that is hallowed ground. Freshman phenom Jahii Carson scored 30 vs. Creighton on Nov. 24 for the sixth spot and Evan Gordon's 29 on Dec. 1 ranks eighth.

The Sun Devils 46 first-half points was the second highest first half on the season and the fourth game with 40+ points raising their first half average from 27.7 to 38.3—an amazing improvement.

THE INDUSTRY BUZZ

Acclaimed sports writer Seth Davis wrote in his Fresh Takes about Jahii Carson for SI.com and had this to say about the redshirt freshman:

Carson stands just 5-foot-10, 175-pounds, so he needs a high-octane offense to be effective. Sendek has made him feel right at home. Heading into Wednesday's game, Jahii was ranked second in the Pac-12 in scoring (21.0 ppg), third in assists (5.0) and eighth in three-point percentage (46.2). Carson also has a bevy of fleet-footed running mates in 6-2 senior guard Chris Colvin, 6-1 junior guard Evan Gordon, and 6-6 senior swingman Carrick Felix. "My teammates have bought into this idea as well," Carson says. "People say that ASU is a slowdown basketball team, but that's definitely something we'd like to change."

Doug Haller who covers Arizona State Football and Basketball for the Arizona Republic likes the play of senior forward Carrick Felix who was recently named Pac-12 Player of the Week:

But flying just under the radar —although over the rim —is Felix, a 6-foot-6 wing who quietly has gotten off to a strong start. In Friday's win over Arkansas, he scored a career-high 24 points on 8-of-10 shooting, a performance coaches think might have been his best at ASU. The next night, Felix had 17 points and five rebounds in the Creighton loss.

Jack MacGruder of Fox Sports Arizona has also taken notice of Carrick Felix and his change in philosophy and how he plays the game:

A senior forward, Felix made it a priority to be more aggressive this season, but he also has found that good things come to those who are patient.

“I am just playing slow and playing my game, waiting for things to come to me," he said. "When you have a point guard like Jahii Carson, he is finding me at good spots, and so is everybody else. We have played together for awhile now. I guess you can say we’ve been used to each other.”

Prediction

I can see that this game may be taken lightly by Sendek's squad, and that would be a huge mistake. The Sun Devils need to start off quick and build up a comfortable lead early in the game.

The fast play of Carson, Felix and Gordon should have no problem hitting their shots early on. Strong defensive play by Gilling and Bachynski will solidify the lead and I predict the Devils will have another 40-point first half in their future.

Coming out of the intermission, the Devils need to continue to wear down the Hawks with their fast play and they will have no problem getting the W at home.

Hartford 61, Arizona State 83

In what has become an alarming trend, the Arizona State Men's Basketball team started off sluggish at home on Wednesday night against the Arkansas-Pine Bluff Golden Lions but finished in grand fashion to reach 5-1 for the fourth time in 12 years and the fifth time in 18 seasons.

In Wednesday night's game, it was senior Carrick Felix who eventually put the Sun Devils on the board with five-straight points after the Devils missed their first five shots, four of them from three-point territory.

Felix ended the game with 21 points, his seventh 20-point game in his career and his second this season. He also finished with six rebounds, four assists, two blocks and two steals.

Arizona State managed only 27 points in the first half with Felix scoring 12 of them. The Sun Devils hit a mere 7-of-23 from the field with 3-of-12 coming from beyond the arc.

The biggest surprise was the NCAA's leading freshman scorer, Jahii Carson. Carson had only two points in the first half, off of 1-of-5 shooting from the field with 0-for-3 from three-point land. The nation's leading blocker, Jordan Bachynski had only recorded one block before the intermission.

That would all change in the second half when the Sun Devils caught fire and went on a 17-2 run with just under 10 minutes remaining.

The big stars of the second half were Jonathan Gilling with 11 points on 4-of-6 shooting from the field, with 3-of-5 from long range. Felix added another nine points on 4-of-5 shooting, and Eric Gordon hit two big three-pointers as well.

Checking back on Carson and Bachynski, it seems as if they had an epiphany in the locker room at halftime. Carson, who didn't visit the free throw line in the first half was able to hit all four shots from the charity stripe and drained a three-ball as well.

Bachynski, who missed both shots he took in the first, hit 3-of-4 and more importantly, blocked five shots and grabbed four rebounds to finish with an impressive 10 points, six blocks and five rebounds. 

Carson still leads all Sun Devil scorers through six games with 114 points and averages 19.0 per game. He also leads the team in assists with 33 and averages 5.5 per game. His 53 free-throw attempts and 72 field-goal attempts are also tops for the Sun Devils.

With six blocks added to Bachynski's career total, his 93 blocks has moved him into a tie for third place on the Sun Devils all-time list with Kurt Nimphius, who played from 1976-1980. Bachynski leads the team in field-goal percentage—hitting 25-of-41 for .610—and offensive rebounds with 13.

Carrick Felix leads the team in three-point percentage with 11-of-23 for .478 and steals with 14. He is second in scoring with 92 points, averaging 15.3 per game.

Jonathan Gilling leads all Sun Devils in minutes played, with a 35.7 average, and leads in free-throw percentage with .833 and total rebounds with 53, averaging 8.8 per game.

Filling out the starting rotation is Eric Gordon, who has been overshadowed by sixth man Chris Colvin through the first six games. Gordon averages 7.5 points per games compared to Colvin's 8.8. Gordon has pulled down 21 total rebounds, averaging 3.5 per game—compared to Colvin's 25 boards and 4.2 per game average. Gordon does lead Colvin in assists (14-13) and steals (11-9).

The next game up for the Sun Devils is the 5-1 Sacramento State Hornets. The Hornets are looking for their first ever 6-1 start, including big wins on the road at Central Arkansas and over the Devils' Pac-12 foe, the Utah Utes.

The Hornets are led by senior forward John Dickson, who averages 17.3 points and 5.8 rebounds per game. Sophomore guard Dylan Garrity, coming off being named the Big Sky Freshman of the Year, is also contributing 15.2 points and 3.7 assists per game along with an amazing 31-of-32 from the charity stripe. The sharp-shooter also leads the team in field-goal and three-point percentages.

The Sun Devils have struggled in the the first half in three of the last four games and in the second half in two of their first three games. Coach Sendek needs to revisit the games against Florida A&M and Arkansas when they scored 40 or more points in both halves. This is the type of consistency that is needed if the Sun Devils are to compete or at least stay out of the cellar in the ultra-competitive Pac-12 Conference.

The Arizona State Sun Devils are now 4-0 for the fifth time in the past 28 years and are looking to start the season at 5-0 for the first time since the 1985-1986 season. 

The Sun Devils currently lead the series against the Creighton Blue Jays 4-2, but they haven't played in nearly 40 years. The Blue Jays are sitting at 5-0 and ranked No. 12 in the USA Today/Coaches Poll and No. 14 on the AP Poll.

Where: Orleans Arena, Las Vegas, Nevada.

When: Saturday, Nov. 24 at 9 p.m. MST

Watch: ESPNU

Listen: 620-AM in the metro Phoenix area or ASU All Access on the web.

Arizona State coach Herb Sendek has 36 wins against ranked teams in his 20-year career, but only seven wins in the past seven seasons with ASU, and five of those were at home. In the 11 seasons prior to Sendek's arrival, ASU went 5-66 against ranked teams.

This Creighton team is going to test the Sun Devils in a way they haven't been tested in a while. The Blue Jays have won all five games this year by double-digits, including last night's game against the Wisconsin Badgers, who were ranked No. 24 on the USA Today/Coaches Poll.

The Blue Jays are one of only five teams that are 5-0 with all victories by double-digits; the others are Indiana, Northwestern, Mississippi and Florida. 

The Sun Devils are clicking and running on all cylinders with freshman phenom Jahii Carson and junior center Jordan Bachynski leading the way.

Carson is leading the team in scoring with 75 points and is averaging 18.8 per game. He also leads the team in assists with 18 and free throw attempts at 38. His 22 field goals lead the team, and he is second on the team in three-point percentage, hitting 4-of-9 from beyond the arc.

Bachynski continued his dominance and notched his third double-double in four games with 14 points and 13 rebounds yesterday. He leads the team in blocks with 26 and rebounds with 43. Although he hasn't posted a triple-double in his career, he is averaging double-digits in points (13.3) and rebounds (10.8). He averages an amazing 6.5 blocks per game. He also leads the team in field goals hitting 20-of-31 for a .645 percentage.

The senior captain Carrick Felix had a monster game yesterday against the Arkansas Razorbacks with a career-high 24 points as well as four three-pointers in 27 minutes. Felix is second on the team in total points and points per game. He leads the team with 11 steals and three-point percentage, hitting 7-of-13 from long range.

Chris Colvin has been a shining star off the bench and exemplifies the sixth man role for the Sun Devils. Averaging fewer than 25 minutes per game, he is fourth on the team with 43 total points and 10.8 per game. He is also averaging four rebounds and three assists per game and has the third most steals on the team with seven.

Sophomore Jonathan Gilling, the "Great Dane" continues his spectacular play at power forward, grabbing 13 rebounds yesterday to bring his average to 10 per game. He is averaging a team-high 36.5 minutes per game and leads the team in free throw percentage. He has four blocks and six steals while averaging just under 10 points per game. Gilling is one of the most well-rounded players on the team.

The matchup this evening will be tough with new Creighton point guard Austin Chatman hitting career-high stats in his last three games: 14 points last night preceded by seven rebounds and 11 assists prior to that. 

The Blue Jays have been sharp-shooters from the charity stripe, hitting 22-of-25 from the line against Wisconsin last night, and are hitting 78.6 percent for the season and outscoring opponents 92-40. 

The superstar of the Blue Jays is without question Doug McDermott, who is averaging 23.7 points a game with his 30-point effort last night. McDermott has scored 30-plus points in eight games and has notched 20-plus in 33 games, with his career-high at 44 points.

If the Sun Devils can contain McDermott and avoid sending the Blue Jays to the line, they can win this game and thus their first in-season neutral tournament since the 1994 Maui Invitational. Coach Bill Frieder led his team past Texas A&M, No. 16 Michigan and No. 7 Maryland.

This team has a lot more talent than the 1994 team, so I don't put it beyond the realm of possibility, I just don't see them beating this tough Creighton team.

Creighton: 84, Arizona State: 73

Arizona State Basketball (2-0) returns to the hardwood tonight after a convincing 97-70 win over the Florida A&M Rattlers.

The Sun Devils once again started with an up-tempo game leading by as much as 22-7 in the first half and never relinquished the lead.

They came out sluggish in the second half and allowed the Rattlers to claw their way back into the game trailing by only five points within the first seven minutes of the second half. 

ASU then shifted into overdrive and went on a 20-4 run and finished with a 40-18 run after Florida A&M's comeback. The victory gave the Sun Devils their best start since 2009-10 when they started 4-0.

The win also notched coach Herb Sendek's 100th victory with Arizona State. Sendek is now the fourth coach in ASU history in the Century Club joining Rob Evans, Bill Frieder and legendary coach Ned Wulk, who coached for 25 seasons and compiled 406 wins. 

The Sun Devils face the Cornell Big Red tonight for the first time in school history and are a combined 5-0 over the Ivy League with wins over Brown, Dartmouth, Harvard, Penn and Princeton. 

Where: Wells Fargo Arena, Tempe, Ariz.

When: Tuesday, Nov. 20 at 7 p.m. MT

Watch: Pac-12 Networks

Listen: 620-AM in the metro Phoenix area, Sirius 92/ XM 207 or ASU All Access on the web.

Tonight will be the second game of the Continental Tires Las Vegas Invitational, and the Sun Devils look to go 3-0 heading to their toughest non-conference games on the schedule. The day after Thanksgiving has ASU against the Arkansas Razorbacks in the first round and then facing either the No. 24 Wisconsin Badgers (2-1) or No. 12 Creighton Blue Jays (3-0) on Saturday.

Stat Corner

The Sun Devils are spreading the love with five different players in double digits in the first two games of the season. If this trend continues, ASU will truly learn the benefits of team play versus singular star power. 

After two games, freshman sensation Jahii Carson leads all scorers with 35 points followed by Jordan Bachynski with 31, Chris Colvin with 26, Jonathan Gilling with 24, Evan Gordon with 22 and Carrick Felix with 20. 

Jordan Bachynski has cracked the career blocks record books tying Shawn Redhage and Jim Deines for the 10th spot with 76. The next best are Sam Williams and Mike Batiste who are tied with 83. I see Bachynski passing them after tonight's matchup.

Gilling leads all players with rebounds at 21 including a career-high 15 on Sunday while Bachynski has 20 and Felix has 14. Like a true point guard, the assist category is led by Jahii Carson with 12 while Colvin has eight helpers.

Up-tempo Games

The new era of quick attack and keeping the pedal to the metal is already making an impact for Herb Sendek and the Sun Devils. The 97 points scored on Sunday was the third most in the Herb Sendek era. The 45 first-half points ranks as the ninth-most and the 49 points against Central Arkansas last Saturday was the fifth-most in Sendek's six year tenure.

Key Bench Players

Chris Colvin has provided a spark while allowing starters to catch a breather. The sixth man has shown a vast improvement beginning in the second half of last season and isn't looking back with double-digit scoring in the first two games while averaging just 23 minutes per game.

Backup center Ruslan Pateev has been sharp in his 15 minutes of playing time this year hitting 3-of-4 shots from the field and 2-of-2 from the charity stripe. He has also grabbed six boards in limited playing time.

Prediction

Cornell (1-3) had lost two consecutive four-point games to St. Bonaventure and Saint Peter's College scoring 64 and 68 points respectively. They traveled to Madison, Wisconsin and were blown out by the Badgers 73-40.

The Sun Devils will have no problem with the Big Red if they continue their high tempo game and continue what they have been doing in the first half the past two games. Coach Sendek needs to motivate these guys at halftime as they have been slow to get started after the intermission. While this may not be a problem this evening, it will be huge next Saturday when they play Wisconsin or Creighton.

Cornell 65, Arizona State 84