ASU basketball is in the midst of a three-game winning streak, but the Sun Devils have work to do before securing an NCAA Tournament berth.
If there were any time to peak in a college basketball season, it would be now. March is two days away, and Selection Sunday will soon follow.
After last week’s victories over Stanford and Cal, Arizona State is finding that summit – or so it seems. The Sun Devils have won their last three contests by double digits and are clicking on both ends of the floor.
Offensively, individual contributions from Rob Edwards and Luguentz Dort have paved the way. The pair is combining to average 55 points in the stretch, scoring in a variety of isolations, transition chances and halfcourt sets.
Remy Martin and Zylan Cheatham continue to be the leaders, with the former mentioning at yesterday’s practice that this team is yet to play 40 minutes. Even so, ASU is 19-8 (10-5 Pac-12) with a chance to secure a first round bye in the Pac-12 Tournament this week.
However, not all is set in stone. Each of the Sun Devils’ three remaining games (Oregon, Oregon State & Arizona) are on the road, and they can still affect conference standing and NCAA Tournament prospects.
Consistency has been nonpermanent for ASU, so it remains to be seen if this is really a turning point.
Outside of the Sun Devils – and Washington, who secured a share of the conference title – each team is yet to reach 10 league victories. Utah and Oregon State both have nine, and USC and UCLA are tied in fifth place with eight.
Colorado, Stanford and Arizona – who had lost seven straight – can also still secure a top-four seed at seven wins. That means perfection down the stretch, but it’s hard to see any team lacking confidence.
The Pac-12 Tournament is two weeks away, but the bracket is nowhere complete. After another wild week, let’s take a look at where each team stands in our Conference Power Rankings.