After starting off the year hotter than ever with a 9-2 record with the 62nd hardest schedule in the nation to that point, ASU seemingly face planted into Big XII play. With 20-point losses with Kansas and BYU, Sun Devil fans thought the light at the end of the tunnel was getting further away by the minute. In reality, it was, but we aren't ready to talk about that.
Before the Tuesday night game in Morgantown, the Sun Devils were ranked as one of the first four out for most bracket makers in the game meaning they needed but a miracle to get back into the field. A Q1 road win was just the miracle that the Sun Devils needed as it vaulted them back into the field after their win against No. 23 ranked WVU.
Keys to Success in Morgantown for the Sun Devils?
Coming off arguably their biggest win of the season for the Sun Devils, they have very little time to prep before their next big test. On Saturday 1/25, the Sun Devils will play host to the No. 3 ranked Iowa St Cyclones at Desert Financial Arena.
In the post game presser, Bobby Hurley highlighted the defensive performance from Adam Miller (44). "Adam is a guy that we look to on a night in night out basis to guard the toughest matchup on the floor. Adam is playing at a All-American caliber level right now and he was a big reason for this win".
In addition to Adam Miller's defense, Bobby Hurley commented on Jayden Quaintance (JQ) performance as well. Coming off his sixth double-double of the season, Quantaince also recorded his Sun Devil record breaking 56th block this season. JQ ranks No. 1 in the country for blocks per game at 3.5 blocks per game.
Can the Sun Devils record another upset?
Headed back home after a long stretch of road games is going to be beneficial for the Sun Devils said Hurley on Tuesday night. We have some guys that are nursing some injuries we are hoping to get back ahead of the next game but most of all, we get to get home to the warmer Arizona weather.
The Sun Devils have been playing a seven man deep rotation since the loss of Joson Sanon to a ankle injury. While he has only been out two weeks, it seems like a lifetime that he hasn't been on the court for the Sun Devils. Before he went down with injury, Sanon, led the team with 13.5 points per game.
It is going to take nothing less than a miracle for the Sun Devils to stop the Cyclones on Saturday. It is going to start on the defensive side of the ball! Iowa St ranks No.10 nationally in Adj efficiency, No. 31 in Effective Fg%, No. 21 in Turnover %, and most notably No. 18 in 2-point % coming in at just a hair under 58%. Any team who ranks in the top 30 of all of those metrics are going to be VERY GOOD.
After their road loss to West Virginia, the Cyclones turned around and beat UCF by 25 points just three nights later. They will have four days of rest before headed to the bank. The only other loss that Iowa St has this season is against Auburn where they led by as much as 18 points in the second half before falling at the buzzer by 2. It is going to take a lot to come out of Saturday with a win, but doing so will go a long way when it comes to Selection Sunday.
Keys to the game:
If Arizona State wants to come away with a win on Saturday night, there are three key things that they are going to have to highlight in order to have a shot. Currently, KenPom projects this to be an eight point loss by the Sun Devils. Below, I am going to break down how they can overcome all odds, and come away with a resume defining win.
Limit Keshon Gilbert
This Iowa St team has ways that they can beat you from the guard spot all the way to the center spot and back again. With that being said, Gilbert has been a major contributor to this team. He plays approximately 88% of the teams minutes and averages 14.3 points per game. Now that may not seem like a lot, but he does a lot more than just score. He also very effectively dishes the rock averaging five assists a game on very minimal turnovers. The biggest part of his game, is that he is very efficient, his average offensive rating in conference play is 112 per game, meaning when he is on the court, he is doing things well. Limit Gilbert on the offense and you have a shot.
Make your 3-point shots
Iowa St ranks No.154 in 3-point defense. While that is still considered in the top half of the country, they are significantly better if you try to drive into the paint, No. 34 for that matter. Thus far into the season, the Sun Devils have relied heavily on the 3-point shot, accounting for 35% of all scoring for the Devils. If they want to win this game or at least compete, it is going to come from 3-point land.
Limit offensive runouts
Iowa St ranks No. 29 in the nation for fastest offenses this season. They have an average possession length of just under 16 seconds per possession. They like to run and run fast. When teams try to run with Iowa St, they will gas out and eventually get blown out. If you can slow down the Cyclones and force them to play inside out basketball, our defense will prevail. The Cyclones ranks No. 120 in the nation in 3-point % but rank No. 324 in 3-point shots per game. What this tells me is that they hardly take 3's unless they have a completely wide open chance in transition or they are very confident. Force the team to take "bad shots" and "uncomfortable shots" if you want to win.
A lot of this is truly going to come down to whether or not Arizona St comes to play on Saturday night. There is going to be a lot of media hype around this game as the Cyclones are a Top 5 team in the country, but even more than that, the fans need to show up and be loud. The Sun Devil fans over the last few games have seemed less and less interested in the product being put on the court. A solid home court advantage is one way to give your team a leg up in a game like this one. Regardless of the result, this team needs all the help that they can get from the fans and that starts at home, so get up, get out and pack the DFA!
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