The Big 12 was widely regarded as one of the toughest conferences entering the season and has proved to contain competition from top to bottom.
On Saturday, Arizona State will host its final unranked matchup of the season, barely clinging onto the tournament bubble and looking for a season sweep against Utah in Tempe, Ariz.
The newest NCAA NET rankings pushed the Sun Devils (14-14, 5-10 Big 12) down to No. 74, meaning they wouldn’t make the tournament if the season ended today. Losses to programs like Baylor, Oregon State and Colorado will make for a hard case to play in March.
Meanwhile, Utah (10-18, 2-13) has been buried down at No. 116 in the NET rankings, leaving them in a position to play spoiler against a conference foe. Both teams have lost two straight entering Saturday and have failed to find footing through Big 12 play.
Maurice Odum (17.2 points per game) has been the driving force for Arizona State, tallying double-digit points in all but three games this season. However, Utah’s top two scorers overshadow Odum, as Terrence Brown (20.1) and Don McHenry (17.3) can hit the ground running if the Utes play more aggressively.
The two teams faced off previously on Feb. 4, when Arizona State pulled away with a 71-63 win. Brown shot an uncharacteristic 2-for-16 from the field, including 0-for-4 from deep. It was one of just two games this season that Brown failed to record double-digit points.
McHenry led the way for the Utes with 23 points but Utah continued its irresponsible offense, giving up 14 turnovers compared to the Sun Devils’ six. In the bout against Iowa State, the Utes finished with 18 total turnovers, 11 coming in the first half.
“It’s kind of hard to replicate that pressure in practice,” Utah coach Alex Jensen said. “It’s hard to stay in a game with a team like that.”
In Arizona State’s previous matchup against TCU, coach Bobby Hurley was knocked to the ground during a bench-clearing scuffle and didn’t speak to the media after the loss. Hurley, whose contract expires on June 30, could be on his way out of Tempe after 11 years if he fails to enter the tournament.
“I’m just staying in the moment with this team, just trying to do the best job I can for my players that I’m coaching this year,” Hurley told Hoops HQ last week. “A couple of these guys don’t have any eligibility left. So for me to be concerned about my situation or wondering what’s next is kind of a secondary thought right now.”
