Despite a dismal record, the ASU men's basketball team still has a reason to keep playing.
A postseason berth for the Sun Devils (10-15, 4-12) is not entirely impossible, now that every team is guaranteed a game in the Pac-10 Tournament this season for the first time.
"[The conference tournament] keeps teams that might have had some injuries or might be a young ballclub playing hard all the way through the season, because they're playing for something," ASU coach Rob Evans said. "If we win four games, then we get the same bid as Duke."
Last year, Michigan's Oakland University won its conference tournament to earn a trip to the big dance, despite finishing the regular season with a 12-18 record.
But before the Sun Devils can think about doing some damage in the Pac-10 Tournament, they have to right the ship that went horribly wrong in Tucson. ASU will attempt to bounce back against Washington and Washington State this week and gain some momentum heading into the tournament in Los Angeles beginning March 8.
"It's going to take a couple days to get that taste out of our mouth," ASU guard Kevin Kruger said. "We'll just have to wait until Thursday, because it still sits pretty heavy on my mind."
Leading the pack
ASU freshman center Jeff Pendergraph has emerged as a frontrunner for Pac-10 Freshman of the Year.
He is second in scoring among conference freshmen at 10.8 per game and is averaging 14.3 points and 10.7 rebounds in the last three games.
Pendergraph went head-to-head Saturday with another candidate for the award, UA's Marcus Williams, who leads all Pac-10 freshmen with 12.3 points per game. Williams had nine points and four rebounds while shooting only 2-for-9 from the field, while Pendergraph racked up 10 points and 12 rebounds despite taking only five shots.
"We didn't get the basketball to him enough because we didn't get enough possessions," Evans said. "You don't get a chance to get the basketball to somebody when you turn it over 26 times."
Pendergraph will face off with another top freshman performer Thursday, when Washington forward Jon Brockman (nine points and seven rebounds per game on the year) visits Wells Fargo Arena.
Free Throw
Kruger played his 10th 40-minute game of the season Saturday. He is second in the nation, averaging 39 minutes per game, and has played in 95.6 percent of all possible minutes. Kruger averaged 40.7 minutes per game in February.
Reach the reporter at derrik.miller@asu.edu.
"[The conference tournament] keeps teams that might have had some injuries or might be a young ballclub playing hard all the way through the season, because they're playing for something," ASU coach Rob Evans said. "If we win four games, then we get the same bid as Duke."
Last year, Michigan's Oakland University won its conference tournament to earn a trip to the big dance, despite finishing the regular season with a 12-18 record.
But before the Sun Devils can think about doing some damage in the Pac-10 Tournament, they have to right the ship that went horribly wrong in Tucson. ASU will attempt to bounce back against Washington and Washington State this week and gain some momentum heading into the tournament in Los Angeles beginning March 8.
"It's going to take a couple days to get that taste out of our mouth," ASU guard Kevin Kruger said. "We'll just have to wait until Thursday, because it still sits pretty heavy on my mind."
Leading the pack
ASU freshman center Jeff Pendergraph has emerged as a frontrunner for Pac-10 Freshman of the Year.
He is second in scoring among conference freshmen at 10.8 per game and is averaging 14.3 points and 10.7 rebounds in the last three games.
Pendergraph went head-to-head Saturday with another candidate for the award, UA's Marcus Williams, who leads all Pac-10 freshmen with 12.3 points per game. Williams had nine points and four rebounds while shooting only 2-for-9 from the field, while Pendergraph racked up 10 points and 12 rebounds despite taking only five shots.
"We didn't get the basketball to him enough because we didn't get enough possessions," Evans said. "You don't get a chance to get the basketball to somebody when you turn it over 26 times."
Pendergraph will face off with another top freshman performer Thursday, when Washington forward Jon Brockman (nine points and seven rebounds per game on the year) visits Wells Fargo Arena.
Free Throw
Kruger played his 10th 40-minute game of the season Saturday. He is second in the nation, averaging 39 minutes per game, and has played in 95.6 percent of all possible minutes. Kruger averaged 40.7 minutes per game in February.
Reach the reporter at derrik.miller@asu.edu.
