ASU Basketball: Sun Devils look to find their footing against Stanford

As the Stanford Cardinal head into town to face ASU basketball, one thing remains clear. This game has the potential to make or break the season for both teams.

On one side we have Stanford, who enters the game on a tear, having won five of their last six games including a 24-point victory in their last game over UCLA, where they scored a season-high 104 points.

After a slow start to conference play, the tear has the Cardinal back into contention as they inch their way up the standings with a record just over .500 in Pac-12 play at 7-6.

While the team in the opposing corner looks primed and ready to compete for a first-round bye in the Pac-12 Tournament, the team in the home corner, Arizona State, has battled inconsistently throughout the season.

The Sun Devils have seemingly entered a slippery slope where every step forward is met by two steps back. Bursting with talent and energy, the team has the potential to be a top team in the nation and the conference but has struggled to do so.

This is evident as they split their last six games, which has put their potential first-round bye in jeopardy.

In order to get a firm grip on their current position in the Pac-12 at the No. 3 spot, ASU must look to stop the force of Oscar Da Silva and KZ Okpala, who dominated the Sun Devils in the first matchup of the two teams.

Behind a combined 42 points from the duo with 19 of the team’s 37 rebounds coming from the pair, the Cardinal rolled over the Sun Devils at home earlier this season, 85-71.

In the second matchup, ASU will look to take back control.

The first and most important key for the Sun Devils will be to regain control of the paint after being dominated the first time around.

In the first matchup, the Cardinal were able to outscore the Sun Devils in the paint 46-34 while keeping up with them on the glass.

The pair of sophomores in Da Silva and Okpala will be key players the Sun Devils will have to look out for.  The Cardinal’s offensive attack runs primarily through the 6-foot-9 forwards as they sit at No. 3 and No. 1 on the team in scoring, respectively, at 9.9 and 17.5 points per game.

Another key element of success for ASU will be the performances of Zylan Cheatham and Remy Martin, whose poor play in the first matchup led to the defeat.

The duo has been key as of late for the Sun Devils as they look to maintain their success tonight.

In the first meeting, ASU’s two stars combined for a mere 16 points at eight apiece while both struggled to shoot the ball, going a combined 7-of-21 from the field.

Martin also struggled to distribute the ball in the game, which will also be another factor in the tonight’s game.

After turning the ball over five times with only one assist, the Sun Devils will need Martin to hang on to the battle a little more tightly while Cheatham has to focus on staying out of foul trouble after having four in the first meeting.

The second and final matchup of the season for the two teams will either provide Stanford with another step forward in its pursuit of a first-round bye or provide ASU with a sense of stability that has been escaping them lately.