Well it's been an enjoyable ride with the ASU Men's and Women's Basketball teams this season. Overall, the Men's Basketball team had a great year, ending with a second round loss to the Syracuse Orange in the NCAA Tournament. The team, who finished the season 25-10 earned many accolades this season including a 3-game sweep of in-state rival UofA, a sweep of UCLA, and the first invite to post-season NCAA Tournament play since 2003. Sophomore James Harden earned the Pac-10 Player of the Year award, a phenomenal individual achievement.
After beating Florida State last night, the Sun Devil Women's Basketball team has earned a trip to the Sweet Sixteen as they face the winner of tonight's Texas A&M/Minnesota game this Sunday in Trenton, NJ. The Women's Basketball team who is now 25-8 on the season, is playing to advance to the regional final for the second time in three years under coach Charli Turner Thorne, after reaching its first Elite Eight in 2007.
In addition to all the ASU Basketball Madness, the Arizona State Baseball team hosted the Wildcats this past weekend in a three-game sellout home-series at Packard Stadium. The Devils swept the 'Cats 4-1, 7-3, and 23-9, with #7 Mike Leake earning Pac-10 Pitcher of the Week and National Player of the Week nods. Baseball heads to LA to face the Trojans this weekend, but will return home next Tuesday and Wednesday at 6:30 p.m. to face the #1 Fullerton Titans in a mid-week series.
The ASU Football team began their spring practice today and will conclude on April 18th with our annual Spring Game at Sun Devil Stadium at 12:30 PM. Season tickets for the 2009 season are on sale now and start at only $99! To find out more about tickets visit thesundevils.com or call our ticket office at 480-727-0000.
As always, be safe, be well and Go Devils!
2009 Sun Devil Men's Basketball Banquet Celebrate the 2008-09 season with the Sun Devil Men's Basketball team! Join us on Wednesday, April 8th as we recognize the outstanding accomplishments of this year's men's basketball team at the 2009 banquet. Tickets are still available and start at $50. Contact Bridget Arenson at 480/727-7709 for more information and to reserve your seat today!
Devilball with Herb Sendek Tune into the final episode of Devilball with Herb Sendek Thursday, March 26, at 6:00 PM on FOX Sports Arizona. Coach Sendek will be recapping the Sun Devils' NCAA tournament performance, the tremendous 2008-09 campaign and discussing the bright future of the program. Additionally, there will be a unique behind the scenes look at the team in Miami and a special guest interviewer will talk with the lone senior on the team, Jeff Pendergraph.
Family: Wife, Berenice; son Kenneth, 14; daughters Andrea 4, and Brianna 2.
Then: Brewer, a swingman, played for ASU from 1993-97. He was on ASU's last team that advanced to the Sweet 16.
Now: In his first season as coach, Brewer led San Bernardino Valley College to a 27-9 record and a Foothill Conference championship. He was named the conference's Coach of the Year.
How did you have so much success in your first season?
"Basically, I was here last year as a fitness coach. The team went 13-15. But basketball-wise, when it's all said and done, it all depends on the players. I dedicated the whole year on finding players who can play."
What's your goal in coaching?
"Obviously, I'd like to get to a Division I school someday. But this is good. We have six guys who are being recruited by Division I schools. Right now my main focus is getting these guys help for next year."
Still keep up with ASU basketball?
"You know what, Herb (Sendek) is doing a phenomenal job. It seems like there is a buzz back in Tempe. It seems like ASU basketball is back. He's done a nice job recruiting these kids, and he's done a nice job of putting a team on the floor. They're not selfish. And it was good to see them beat the (UCLA) Bruins twice, too."
You were on the last ASU team to reach the Sweet 16. How was that experience?
"It was great. The whole tournament is just so exciting, because every game means so much. But the thing I remember most is just the friendships. It was like going on a mission every night."
I'm back after missing most of May. I spent a couple weeks in Germany helping a friend and another week on furlough tending to my yard. It's good to be back on American soil for a lot of reasons, but particularly from a sports standpoint.
Let me tell you this: Germany isn't big on the NBA playoffs, even with Dirk Nowitzki competing. We caught a few highlights on CNN International, but that was it. Mostly it was just cycling, cricket and a healthy dose of soccer. We could always tell there was a big soccer game whenever we pulled up to a restaurant. The parking lot was crammed and the cheering was loud. By the way, many German restaurants let you bring along your dog while you dine. I didn't have one and kind of felt left out.
Anyway, I missed a few things while I was out, so let's get caught up:
First off, junior forward Kraidon Woods is leaving ASU. (Thanks to Chris Karpman of Rivals for giving me a heads up on this.) If you've paid attention, this shouldn't come as a surprise. Woods was an incredible athlete but he never seemed close to cracking Herb Sendek's rotation. He played 23 minutes last season, scoring six points. His departure will free up a scholarship, but it likely will be saved for the 2010 class.
Secondly, the Weatherup Center -- ASU's new $22 million practice facility -- is close to opening. I'm told there's moving going on this week, and some media tours could be happening in short order.
Finally, the Sun Devils got a commitment from 6-foot-11 center Kyle Caudill out of Brea Olinda High in Brea, Calif. Caudill told The Republic's Dave Lumia that UCLA was a really close second. He averaged 16.3 points, 12 rebounds and 2.7 blocks his sophomore season. He becomes the second touted player in the 2011 class to commit to ASU, joining Sacramento point guard Josiah Turner.
That's all for now. I got a few things working for the near future, and will get back to updating this blog regularly. I'll also be checking in with James Harden and Jeff Pendergraph as the NBA draft approaches.
Ty Abbott was one of the Pac-10's more fascinating stories last season. Two years ago, he had set a school record for most 3-pointers by a freshman in a season, but as a sophomore Abbott lost his touch -- not just for five games or 10, but for most of the season. He missed 51 of 59 from 3-point range during conference action.
And yet, somehow Abbott pulled himself out of it during the season' s most important stretch.
I recently met up with the soon-to-be junior guard, and even though I promised we wouldn't spend a lot of time discussing last season's struggles, the topic pretty much dominated our conversation. Over 45 minutes Abbott explained how he snapped out of his slump, as well as some nasty Facebook messages he received during the process.
When you look back on it now, how do you explain what you went through last season?
"I really can't. I don't know. Compared to what I'm doing now, looking back, I think 'How did it ever get to where it was?' But I got another two more years, so I have a chance to make up for it."
Did you ever talk to anybody about it outside of the team?
"My mom tried to talk to me about it, but the only person I really talked to was (teammate) Derek (Glasser). Derek's one of my good friends. He was one of the first people I met when I came here. I took my unofficial (visit) a couple years ago and since I was from here, I just hung out around campus and Derek and I spent some time together and became real good friends. He's one of the people I trust on the team. I trust his opinion, and I know he's real smart basketball-wise. I don't have a problem asking him questions and he doesn't have a problem asking me questions. We're just real honest with each other."
He said you guys would spend a lot of time talking after games on the road.
"Yeah, we were roommates and after games, win or lose, it was hard for us to just go to sleep. If I didn't really focus on sleep, I'd probably stay up all night. We just talked about the game and what happened, good or bad."
You said your mom tried to talk to you. Did that not work?
"She knows when something's going on in my head, so she'd be waiting for me in the tunnel after the game. She'd always try to pick my brain. I'd walk up to her and she would stare at me right in the eye to see if she could figure out was going on, but I wouldn't open up and spill it all out."
Why not?
"Because I felt like I had to get through it (myself.) I didn't want to rely on other people to baby me and tell me that everything was going to be all right."
So for the most part, you overcame this on your own.
"Personally, I felt like that was the best way for me to not only get through it, but also learn from it."
Was there ever a point when you wondered if your shooting would ever come around?
"I knew it would come back, I just didn't know when. Because there would be times when I'd be doing my workouts or shooting at practice and I would just be running around like it was my freshman year, putting it up and it was going in. But then, I'd get in a game and ... I don't know what it was."
Was it difficult to experience something like that when there was so much momentum going on within the program?
"Not to the point where I was thinking, 'Am I not that important?' It was just knowing how much better we could be if I had been playing well. I can recall so many times when I was almost like a liability on offense. I would see my guy helping ridiculously to double-team James (Harden). They even double-teamed off Derek. I could see (teams) putting someone who wasn't very good on defense on me because they knew I really wasn't a threat."
That must have been hard to deal with mentally.
"I'm harder on myself than anybody could ever be. So I'm sitting here missing shots. The end of the shot clock, the ball's in my hand and I'm thinking, 'Just let me hit this shot.' Or we're down and they leave me wide open and I'm thinking 'Just make them pay.'"
What was the reaction from people outside Wells Fargo Arena?
"I got a nice mix of everything. Some people just said 'What's going on?' Some were encouraging, and then I got some ridiculous stuff. On Facebook, I got random messages like 'I hope you get hurt' or 'We need to get you out of the lineup.' I got my fair share of the sympathetic and the hate mail."
A lot of players in that position would've just said, 'Forget it.' But you not only pulled out of it, you played your best basketball in the Pac-10 and NCAA tournaments. How'd you do it?
"Coach was pretty good about not really pressing me about my performance. I remember one time in particular, we were in Seattle a day before the Washington game. I was the last person to finish eating and Coach walked out of a meeting room as I was leaving. It was just me and him on the elevator and he asked me, 'When are you going to say this is enough and break through this?" He told me I couldn't just chalk it up now. There's no time to say, 'I'll just get 'em next year,' because we still had games to play. He wouldn't let me quit, and Derek wouldn't either. And I knew we were going to make the tournament. I knew there was time."
Didn't you come off the bench at that Washington game?
"Yeah, I didn't know until we were in the locker room before the game started, so there was no time to think about it. And that was probably for the best."
How much did it help finishing the way you did, reaching double figures in scoring in four of your final five games, scoring a season-high 20 points against Syracuse in the NCAA Tournament?
"Coming from what I had been through all season and coming off a pretty productive Pac-10 Tournament, playing on the biggest stage in college basketball, to be play like that was pretty good for me. Even though we lost against Syracuse, I felt like I helped the team. Because during the slump people would tell me that I was helping with my defense or rebounding, but it still doesn't feel right. I feel like in basketball, when it comes to production, everyone always thinks about offense. So for me, it helped to be able to do that."
I didn't cover you as a freshman, but I've seen your numbers. You hit the most 3-pointers for a freshman in school history. You also hit eight in a game against Cal. When you're shooting like that, the way you're capable, are you one of the better shooters in the Pac-10?
"I'd like to think so. My freshman year I was right up there. There's no doubt in my mind that I can still shoot it like that."
Were you known as a shooter in high school?
"No. I mean, I could shoot it. I don't think teams wanted to leave me open, but I was so much bigger (than everyone) in high school. There were power forwards who were my size. I would just run around and go to the basket, just bully my way in, similar to how James played last year. Just drive and draw fouls, things like that."
Did you know you wanted to play college basketball?
"I played football and baseball, too. My freshman year I made the freshman basketball team, and I was the second tallest guy so I was playing (center.) And really, up until that point, on travel teams and everything, I was always the big man on my team. But then I stopped growing and everybody else caught up. Sophomore year I made the varsity team and I was a guard, and that's when I really started focusing on basketball."
Out of everyone last season, you seemed like you had the best grasp of Sendek's matchup zone. You communicated more than anyone, and at times it seemed like you were kind of directing the whole show.
"Coach is always on me about that. I'm supposed to be a defensive leader. That's what he told me at the beginning of last year. That's what he told me a few games into my freshman year. He knew that I understood the zone right away. I had a firm grasp of where everyone needed to be, and it just kind of came natural to me."
Are there times when you guys would rather play man-to-man?
"Definitely. I like man-to-man, especially when you're going against a guy who's really good. Somebody who's shooting from all over the place and no one can really stop him. Personally, with the pride that I have, that's the guy I want to guard."
But I'm guessing you guys won't be switching to man anytime soon?
The Pac-10 just released next season's basketball schedules, although they are still considered tentative.
It looks as if the Sun Devils have a chance to secure a few non-conference wins before entering Pac-10 action. They have only one true non-conference road game, at Brigham Young on Dec. 8.
The opponents for the Preseason NIT have yet to be finalized, although ASU will be in a bracket with Texas State, Cal State Northridge and Texas Christian. Duke, LSU and Connecticut are also in the NIT field.
ASU opens Pac-10 play at UCLA on New Year's Eve.
ASU
Nov. 13 -- Western Illinois
Nov. 16 -- Preseason NIT (in Tempe)
Nov. 19 -- Preseason NIT (in Tempe)
Nov. 20 or Nov. 21 -- San Francisco
Nov. 25 -- Preseason NIT (in New York, if eligible)
Nov. 27 -- Preseason NIT (in New York, if eligible)
As you may know, Eddie House recently visited the Weatherup Center to shoot a Cartoon Network show with his son.
Afterward, House relived old times with reporters, expressing disbelief so much time had passed since he wore No. 5 for the Sun Devils.
At one point, a reporter asked House why his number had yet to be retired.
"Ah, I'm not worried about that," House said. "I'm in the Pac-10 Hall of (Honor.) That's the main thing. The school don't want to recognize, OK. But the Pac will."
House didn't mean anything by it. He told reporters to keep pushing for the honor and maybe one day it will happen. (By the way, it's not like ASU has ignored House. The Pac-10 schools select which players go into the conference Hall of Honor. Thus, in 2007, ASU selected House.)
Problem is, ASU doesn't retire numbers. Most schools don't. Since college basketball players can't wear anything higher than 55, eliminating one (and then another and another) could some day become problematic.
But jerseys still can be honored. Many schools hang them from the rafters. To date, ASU doesn't have any hanging in Wells Fargo Arena, but the school plans to come up with a plan soon, and it's a safe bet No. 5 will be among the first honored, mainly because it was worn both by House and former standout Ike Diogu.
House, who played at ASU from 1996-2000, finished his career as the Sun Devils' career scoring leader. On Jan. 8, 2000, he matched a Pac-10 record by scoring 61 points in a double-overtime win against California.
He is eligible to be inducted into the Sun Devil Hall of Fame in 2010 (a player has to wait 10 years after he leaves school,) but that likely won't happen until House's NBA days are over. The university likes to have the honoree attend the celebration, which is difficult to schedule during the NBA season.
Keala King, a 6-foot-5 guard from Mater Dei High in Southern California, told the ASU coaching staff Wednesday night that he intends to play basketball for the Sun Devils.
Recruiting service Rivals ranks King as the 25th overall prospect of the 2010 class and the best in California. ESPN lists King as the 53rd overall prospect and the 17th best shooting guard. King reportedly chose ASU over Stanford and Arizona.
A player evaluation on ESPN.com says King "can play all three perimeter positions due to his skills, savvy and athleticism." An excellent rebounder, King wowed onlookers at July's Nike Peach Jam in South Carolina by scoring 15 points and grabbing 18 rebounds in his first game.
A lefty, King says he can play point or shooting guard. He transferred to Mater Dei after playing last season at Dominguez High in Compton.
Corey Hawkins of Estrella Foothills High also has committed to ASU. The Sun Devils have four scholarships to give in what could shape up to be a defining class for the program.
Here are some highlights of King from a summer tournament in Las Vegas.
The recruiting contact period runs though Oct. 5. Sendek and his staff can visit high school seniors during this time. The early signing period runs Nov. 11-18.
When he was 12, Jordan Bachynski surprised his parents by announcing that one day "I want to play basketball at Arizona State."
Where did this come from exactly? Bachynski's father, John, wasn't sure. The Bachynskis lived in Calgary, Alberta, which wasn't exactly Pac-10 country.
Nevertheless, eight years later, Bachynski, a 7-foot-2, 245-pound center, followed his dream, informing ASU coach Herb Sendek by e-mail Tuesday morning that he intends to play basketball in 2010 for the Sun Devils.
"Herb Sendek and Arizona State were the complete package," John Bachynski said. "Nobody was more prepared than Coach Sendek. Nobody had better vision. No other school had better facilities."
Jordan joins guards Keala King of Mater Dei High in Southern California and Corey Hawkins of Goodyear Estrella Foothills as those who have committed to Sendek's 2010 class. The Sun Devils have one scholarship remaining.
Jordan, 20, is serving on a mission in Miami and was not available to comment. In 2007, while playing for Centennial High in Calgary, he averaged 20 points, 16 rebounds and nearly 10 blocks, according to his father.
According to Scout.com, Jordan was set to play his junior season at Findlay Prep near Las Vegas, but an ankle injury altered his plans. Jordan originally committed to UNLV, but re-opened his recruitment while serving his mission in South Florida.
ASU had visited with Jordan last week in Miami, along with coaches from Connecticut, Oregon State and San Diego.
In other recruiting news:
*Carson Desrosiers, a 6-foot-10 center from Lawrence, Mass., likely won't announce a decision until he visits Wake Forest. Desrosiers, who visited ASU last weekend, also is considering Marquette.
*Moses Morgan, a 6-foot-5 wing from Palo Verde High in Las Vegas, says he will play for DePaul next season. Morgan had considered ASU along with several other schools.
We are looking for a passionate and knowledgeable ASU fan to become our Arizona State Basketball correspondent on isportsweb.comIf you are interested shoot me an email at contact@isportsweb.com Rob
The college basketball preseason, chock-full of hollow words and unrealistic expectations, often warrants a sickle to clear a path through the thick brush of hyperbole.
As much as you want to quash the grand visions of Arizona State players during Thursday's Media Day, you can't.
It's because of Herb Sendek.
He throws a wrench into the perpetual "ASU revisits mediocrity" story line. His gifts, at game-planning, at developing talent, demand the acknowledgement that the Sun Devils finally have some staying power.
"The culture here is the big difference," senior guard Derek Glasser said. "When I came here it was OK to lose. You're competitive so that was OK. As long as you don't get blown out, it was OK.
"That's what people don't realize. They pick us ninth or 10th but we learned how to win."
The Sun Devils believe they can return to the NCAA Tournament despite losing their top two players, NBA draft picks James Harden and Jeff Pendergraph.
It's because of Sendek.
He is third among active Pac-10 coaches in NCAA Tournament appearances and also the third youngest. We think of him as an old soul because of his experience and accomplishments, but the truth is, at 46, he's just hitting his coaching stride.
Players improve in his program. Glasser has morphed from walk-on to team poster boy. It was Glasser who scored 22 against Temple in last season's NCAA Tournament and Glasser who was one of the dominant players in the Pac-10 Tournament.
Pendergraph went from serviceable big man to the nation's leader in field-goal percentage and NBA draft pick (Portland, first pick, second round).
Don't forget Harden, who leapfrogged from likely mid-first round pick to No. 3 overall in one season. Sure, a down draft helped, but so did Sendek's guidance.
ASU landed guard Keala King, the state of California's top recruit and one of the nation's Top 25 high school players, in September largely because of what ASU did for Harden's game.
"The recruiting is getting better," Glasser said. "Think of it this way: When I came, Arizona had Marcus Williams and Mustafa Shakur (in the backcourt). We had me and Jerren Shipp."
Good point.
For the Sun Devils to become more than a team that shares office space with likely cellar dweller Stanford, Sendek's developmental skills will have to focus on helping 6-foot-10 center Eric Boateng find his feel for the game, instilling confidence in Ty Abbott and developing talented 6-4 freshman Trent Lockett, who could make an immediate impact.
Make no mistake. Sendek will be the first to tell you life is easier with the school's new state-of-the-art practice facility.
"You can go any time you need and just work out," Boateng said in amazement.
It's a recruiting tool, too.
The uncertainty in the Pac-10 this season gives ASU optimism. California and Washington are conference favorites but the race is more wide open than usual, in part because it is void of any impact big men.
The 2009-10 version of the Pac-10 should be renamed the 6-foot-and-under League because its stars are guards: Arizona's Nic Wise (5-10), California's Jerome Randle (5-10) and Washington's Isaiah Thomas (5-8).
The country is noticing. Beating Arizona in your past five meetings will do that for you. Beating UCLA twice on national television will do that for you, too.
Can ASU really find its way back into the NCAA Tournament this season? Who knows? In the past, we wouldn't have even considered it.
Now? Sendek, despite what we see on paper, forces us to revisit that question.
Gary Franklin, a scoring point guard at Mater Dei High in Santa Ana, Calif., decided Friday night that his future will unfold at California.
"He looked really hard at Arizona State, Baylor and Cal," Franklin's father and travel team coach, Gary Franklin, Sr., told recruiting service Rivals. "He struggled with the decision."
Franklin, the No. 72 overall prospect of the 2010 class, according to Rivals, is a teammate of Keala King, who committed to ASU last month. But the guard told Rivals that he liked the family atmosphere at Cal. He also compared his skills to current Cal point guard Jerome Randle.
In addition to King, who is ranked by some as the best prospect in California, ASU has 2010 commitments from guard Corey Hawkins of Goodyear Estrella Foothills and 7-foot-2 center Jordan Bachynski, who is serving an LDS Church mission in South Florida.
Arizona State junior guard Ty Abbott had arthroscopic surgery on his right knee Tuesday and will be out at least a month.
Abbott, expected to contribute more this season with James Harden's departure, had battled swelling the past few weeks. He likely will miss four games, including the Nov. 16 NIT Season Tip-Off opener against Texas State.
After a promising freshman season, Abbott struggled with his shot for most of last year, shooting 28.5 percent from 3-point range. In one stretch, he didn't score more than five points in 11 games. In another, he didn't hit a shot in four contests.
Still, Abbott showed his worth in other ways. He rebounded well for his size and defended the top wing of Herb Sendek's matchup zone better than anyone in the rotation.
In the season's final month, Abbott finally found his shot. He hit 16 of 28 3-point attempts, scoring in double figures in four of his final five games. He scored a season-best 20 points, drilling 6 of 10 from deep, in ASU's season-ending loss to Syracuse in the NCAA Tournament's second round. He finished the season with averages of 7.1 points and four rebounds.
SEATTLE - Former Phoenix Suns player and successful Seattle-area high school boys basketball coach Phil Lumpkin has died. Lumpkin was the boys basketball coach at O'Dea High, which announced his death Monday on its Web site.
Arizona State junior guard Jamelle McMillan, who won three state titles under Lumpkin at O'Dea, was saddened.
“It's obviously a very tough situation,” McMillan told the Seattle Times. “Way too young for something like this to happen. It really makes you think, really makes you value your relationships with people. It makes you value your health. It really puts in perspective what's important, because life is short.”
The Times reported that the 57-year-old Lumpkin didn't come to school or answer phone calls Monday morning. He missed work last week after being diagnosed with pneumonia.
Lumpkin won five championships.
Lumpkin played two seasons in the NBA after being a second-round pick of the Portland Trail Blazers in 1974. He played 48 games for the Blazers in 1974-75 and 34 games for the Suns in 1975-76.
Come on Pac10Ball, thats not a very in-depth analysis is it?
ASU loses those 2 dudes and you make that observation?
Of course ASU id going to have a rough time filling their spots on the roster.
Sendek is no idiot, he has recruited his sack off and as we all know, it usually is by season 2 that things start to pay off with the freshmen you sign.
If ASU rises up to the top 5 of this conference we'll all be pretty impressed, right?
That would mean Sendek is a magician of some sort.
I am anticipating watching this ASU develope this season into something to really look forward to in 2010.
Anyone else expecting something along the lines of last season is freeking dreaming.
Ty Abbott just told me that he hopes to play in Monday's NIT Season Tip-Off opener against Texas State.
The ASU junior guard had arthroscopic surgery to repair torn meniscus in his right knee Oct. 20. At the time it was thought Abbott, a two-year starter, would be out 4-6 weeks, so his recovery seems slightly ahead of schedule.
Abbott struggled with his shot for most of last season, but he averaged 11.7 points in the Pac-10 Tournament. He is also the Sun Devils' best perimeter defender.
