Playing in the Big 12 is a huge advantage for Bobby Hurley and the Arizona State Sun Devils.
Because of the strength of the conference, ASU can jump right back into the NCAA tournament picture with a couple of victories. They got the ball rolling on Tuesday night with a scrappy 65-57 road victory over West Virginia.
The Mountaineers came into the game ranked No. 30 in the NCAA NET Rankings, which the NCAA Tournament Selection Committee uses as the primary sorting tool for selection and seeding for the NCAA tournament.
The victory over the Mountaineers bumped Arizona State eight spots in the updated NET Rankings — from No. 64 to No. 56. It counted as a Quad 1 victory, which is a home win over a top 30 team in the NET, or a road win over a top 50 team in the NET. Arizona State (11-7, 2-5) is now 2-6 in Quad 1 games. Their other Quad 1 victory came over Saint Mary’s in late November.
The Sun Devils have at least six Quad 1 opportunities remaining, starting with Saturday’s home game vs. Iowa State. The Cyclones are currently ranked No. 6 in the NET and are projected to be a No. 1 seed in the 2025 NCAA Tournament in the latest ESPN Bracketology update.
A win over Iowa State would vault Arizona State into the top 50 in the NET and set them up for a run at a March Madness berth.
Joson Sanon’s Status
Getting freshman shooting guard Joson Sanon back will be key for the Sun Devils. He suffered a high ankle sprain against BYU on New Year’s eve and has missed five of the last seven games.
Sanon was ASU’s leading scorer when he went down with the injury. He was also in the top-3 in the country in 3-point field goal percentage.
Hurley has called Sanon the best shooter he’s ever coached, and he’s projected to be a first-round pick in the 2025 NBA Draft. If ASU can get him back for the stretch run, they’ll have a shot to get back to the NCAA tournament.
More Arizona State & Big 12 Analysis
This post was originally published on this site be sure to check out more of their content.
