Arizona St. Sun Devils Basketball Fanatics

Even with a solid effort keyed on its top players, #19 Arizona State had more than enough to get the Pac-10 a win in the series with the Big 12. James Harden, the Sun Devils leading scorer, was held without a field goal for more then 19 minutes but still finished with 20 points, nine rebounds and six assists to lead ASU past Nebraska 64-44 in Tempe, Ariz., on Sunday. The Sun Devils played some impressive defense themselves, holding the Cornhuskers to 29 percent shooting and 20 points under their season scoring average. "I think, obviously, the difference in the game for us was our defense," ASU coach Herb Sendek said. "Even when we weren't scoring at the beginning of both halves, we didn't allow that to carry over to the defensive end of the floor." Rihards Kuksiles added career highs of 18 points and six rebounds and Ty Abbott scored 15 points, including three 3-pointers, and grabbed eight rebounds for the Sun Devils, who are off to their best start since going 7-1 in 1991-92. ASU is 7-1 for the season right now.

Nothing can stop James Harden right now--expect five fouls. Arizona State star guard had 22 points and eight rebounds as the 19th-ranked Sun Devils defeated Jackson State 81-60 in Tempe, Ariz., on Thursday night, despite fouling out with 4:10 to play. Harden led the Sun Devils in scoring for the 31st time in 41 career games. "I'm starting to get back into a groove," said Harden, who has scored 86 points in his last 68 minutes. "I'm playing a lot better and obviously shooting the ball real well. It's just being in attack mode, being more aggressive." Harden has became of one of the nation's hottest  players in collage basketball, earning Pac-10 player-of-the-week honors each of the last two weeks. Jeff Pendergraph had 19 points and Rihards Kuksiks added 16 for the Sun Devils, ASU (6-1) off to their best start since they went 11-1 to open 2004-05. ASU is now 6-1 for the season.

James Harden scored a tournament-record and career-high 40 points to lead #14 Arizona State's 88-58 rout of Texas-El Paso in the third-place game of the 76 Classic in Anaheim, Calif., on Sunday night. Harden made 14 of 25 shots, six of seven from 3-point range, and added eight rebounds and four assists for the Sun Devils. "James had a remarkable game," ASU coach Herb Sendek said. "It was mesmerizing to watch." Harden surpassed the tournaments single-game scoring record for the second successive game; he amassed 32 points on Baylor on Friday night. The sophomore also set a record for most tournament points, 87, and attributed his success to his team's defense. "We had to maintain (focus) on the defensive end because I'm going to get my buckets in transition," Harden said. "That was the most important thing. My teammates did a wonderful job of getting the pass on target". ASU made a season-high 13 shots from 3-point range. ASU is 5-1 for the season.

Jeff Pendergraph had 23 points and 10 rebounds to help #14 Arizona State beat Charlotte 84-56 in Anaheim, Calif., Thursday night in the first round of the 76 Classic. James Harden made 11 of his free-throws and scored 15 points for the Sun Devils, who never trailed and opened with four consecutive wins for only the third time in 22 seasons. ASU shot a tournament-record 61 percent from the field. ASU is now 4-0 for the season.

For most of the game, it looked as if James Harden might personally outscore Pepperdine. Arizona State star guard finished with a career-high 33 points and had 12 rebounds as the #15 Sun Devils shook off a lackluster start to beat Pepperdine 61-40 in Tempe, Ariz., on Sunday. It was the fourth career double-double for Harden, a sophomore who has led ASU in scoring or shared the lead in 28 of his 37 games. ASU is now 3-0 for the season.