Sun Devil Men's Basketball Draws New Mexico in Acrisure Classic

The Sun Devils take on the Lobos at Acrisure Arena in Palm Springs.

Alston Mason vs Cal Poly

November 27, 2024

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TEMPE - Sun Devil Men's Basketball heads to California to take on New Mexico at Acrisure Arena in Palm Springs on Thursday, Nov. 28 at 9:30 PM MST.

Arizona State (5-1) is 2-0 at neutral sites so far this season and have two more matchups coming up as part of the Acrisure Series. First up, the Sun Devils take on New Mexico in one of two semifinal matchups. Head Coach Bobby Hurley is now the second-winningest coach in program history, collecting his 160th win last time out against Cal Poly. The Sun Devils have scored 80+ points in five straight games and sit Top-40 nationally in blocks and three pointers per game.

The Matchup
Sun Devil Men's Basketball will participate in the second annual Acrisure Classic during Thanksgiving week in Palm Springs. The Acrisure Classic is a part of the Acrisure Series - the country's largest MTE (multi-team event) series - which will be held at the new 11,000-seat Acrisure Arena. The event will feature four prominent programs in the west, as Arizona State will take on New Mexico at 9:30 PM MST on Thursday, Nov. 28 following a matchup between USC and St. Mary's at 7 PM MST earlier in the evening.

"This event will be a fantastic test for our team," Head Coach Bobby Hurley remarked. "We can't wait to play in an exciting environment with these great programs."

On Thanksgiving Day, Arizona State and New Mexico will meet for the 86th time, with this representing the first matchup since 2012. The Sun Devils and Lobos make up one semifinal being played on Thursday, Nov. 28th. The other part of the bracket features USC and St. Mary's in part two of the semifinals. The winner of Thursday's games will meet in the Acrisure Classic Championship Game on Friday, Nov. 29 at 9:30 PM MST. All four teams are guaranteed two games in Palm Springs, with the loser of Thursday's contests competing at 7 PM on Friday, Nov. 29 in the Acrisure Classic third place game.

How to Follow
Arizona State makes their debut on TruTv when they take on New Mexico, scheduled for a 9:30 PM MST tip-off with Chris Sylvester, Steve Smith, and Nkwa Asonye on the call. Make sure to listen to Tim Healey and Kyle Dodd on Arizona Sports 98.7 FM (KMVP).

Quotable
Bobby Hurley on Adam Miller's big shots at the end of Cal Poly game
"It was a veteran thing to do, and I thought in a game where we were in trouble, he came in and made some big shots. He's not 100% right now, so this time off will be good for him."

Last Time Out
Sun Devil Men's Basketball defeated a competitive Cal Poly team at Desert Financial Arena on Wednesday night. Arizona State found themselves in a battle with the Mustangs (3-3), who have proven to be one of the nation's most improved teams under their new head coach Mike DeGeorge. Though the Mustangs continued to find ways to bring the game within their reach, the Sun Devils never trailed and persevered with the help of crucial free throws in the final minutes of regulation.

Six Sun Devils finished with double figures in the matchup, led by freshman guard Joson Sanon coming off the bench with 22 points and five rebounds. Fellow freshman Jayden Quaintance recorded another double-double with 11 points, 12 rebounds while adding a staggering four blocks. Senior guard Adam Miller found his rhythm from beyond the arc and connected 4-of-5 from deep, finishing with 16 points and four rebounds. Senior guard Alston Mason took control at the point, finishing with 14 points and dishing five assists. On top of that, senior guard/forward BJ Freeman recorded 13 points, six rebounds and five assists. Senior forward Basheer Jihad completed the all around effort by chipping in 11 points and seven boards.

5-1 Start
Arizona State has started 5-1 for the first time since the 2022-2023 season and the fourth time under the Bobby Hurley era (2017-18, 2018-19, 2022-23, 2024-25).

Neutralizing the Opponent
Arizona State looks to continue their success under Bobby Hurley at neutral sites. The Sun Devils have defeated two NCAA Tournament teams in neutral settings already in 2024-25 (Grand Canyon, Santa Clara). ASU has now won 15 games overall under Hurley in neutral games. That includes past wins over NC State, Kansas State, St. John's, Mississippi State, Xavier, Michigan, Utah State, and Creighton.

80-point Streak
For the first time since the 2017-18 season, Arizona State has reached the 80-point mark in five straight games. That season, Arizona State did it in six straight games, including a win over No. 15 Xavier. That 2017-18 team went on to make the NCAA Tournament.

2024-25 (5 Games)
Arizona State 81, Santa Clara 74
Arizona State 80, Gonzaga 88
Arizona State 87, GCU 76
Arizona State 81, St. Thomas 66
Arizona State 93, Cal Poly 89

2017-18 (6 Games)
Arizona State 94, Idaho State 74
Arizona State 90, San Diego State 68
Arizona State 97, NAU 62
Arizona State 99, UC Irvine 78
Arizona State 92, Kansas State 90
Arizona State 102, #15 Xavier 86

Block Party
Freshman phenomenon Jayden Quaintance has recorded 22 blocks thus far in the 2024-2025 season, surpassing All-American James Harden and Sun Devil career blocks leader Jordan Bachynski on the freshman single-season blocks list. Quaintance already has the eight-most blocks by a freshman in program history.

Sun Devil Freshman Blocks Record (1978-79-present)
55, Mario Bennett, 1991-92
33, Jamal Faulkner, 1990-91
31, Ike Diogu, 2002-03
29, Jalen Graham, 2019-20
24, Shawn Redhage, 1999-2000
23, Romello White, 2017-18
23, Jeff Pendergraph, 2005-06
22, Jayden Quaintance, 2024-25
21, Tommy Smith, 1999-2000
20, Jordan Bachynski, 2010-11
19, James Harden, 2007-08

Quaintance has four or more blocks in four games, becoming the first Sun Devil to accomplish that feat in a season since Warren Washington did it four times during the entire 2022-23 season. Quaintance has matched that total in only six games, joining all-time ASU shot blocker Jordan Bachysnski as the only Sun Devils to record four or more blocks in the first six games to start the season.

Backcourt Takeover
In the first half of the Cal Poly win, guards Alston Mason and Adam Miller combined for seven points on 3-of-6 FG and a 1-of-3 mark from beyond the arc. They took their game to another level in the second half, accounting for 23 points while shooting an efficient 6-of-9 from the field and making 4-of-5 three-pointers. The duo went seven of eight from the free throw line after the break helping seal the victory.

Owning the Glass
Arizona State out rebounded the Mustangs 44-24. It is the largest margin since Arizona State out rebounded Long Beach State 63-30 on November 12, 2018. In the last two games, Arizona State has a 35 margin advantage over their opponents factoring in their +15 rebounding advantage over St. Thomas on Sunday. This is the largest rebound margin for Arizona State in back-to-back games since they out-rebounded McNeese State by 13 and Long Beach State by 33 (+46) back on November 9 & 12, 2018.

Sansational Start
Joson Sanon continues to emerge as one of the premier freshman in the country. He scored a career-best 22 points tonight on 7-of-13 shooting. Over the last three games, Joson Sanon has scored a total of 61 points (20.3 ppg) and grabbed 16 rebounds (5.3 rpg). During that span, he is shooting 21-36 (.58%) from the field and 10-17 (59%) from beyond the arc. He is now averaging a team-best 14.3 points per game this season.

Sanon becomes just the 20th Sun Devil to have two 20+ point games in their freshman campaign.

Sun Devil Fresman 20-Point Games (1972-73 to present)
18, Jahii Carson, 2012-13
16, James Harden, 2007-08
12, Ike Diogu, 2002-03
9, Luguentz Dort, 2018-19
7, Jamal Faulkner, 1990-91
5, Steve Beck, 1983-84
4, Christian Polk, 2006-07
3, Josh Christopher, 2020-21
3, Eddie House, 1996-97
3, Ron Riley, 1992-93
3, Byron Scott, 1979-80
3, Gary Jackson, 1972-73
2, Joson Sanon, 2024-25
2, Remy Martin, 2017-18
2, Jonathan Gilling, 2011-12
2, Ty Abbott, 2007-08
2, Jeff Pendergraph, 2005-06
2, Kevin Kruger (RS), 2003-04
2, Stevin Smith, 1990-91
2, Gregg Goorjian, 1978-79

Comfortable when it is Close
Sun Devils moved to 17-8 in two-possession games over the past three seasons. Arizona State is 59-42 (58.4%) in close games in the Bobby Hurley era.

Double up on Double Doubles
Freshman Jayden Quaintance was a force yet again, finishing with 11 points and 12 boards. It was his second straight game recording a double double after putting up 13 points and 14 boards against St. Thomas. He is the first Sun Devil to record back-to-back double-doubles since Kimani Lawrence, who finished with 19 points and 10 boards against Portland State on November 9th, 2021 and 19 points and 12 boards against UC Riverside on November 11, 2021.

Balanced Attack
The Cal Poly win was the first time the Sun Devils starting five reached double figures in a game since a 91-67 win over San Diego on December 12, 2022.

Player of the Year Watch Lists
Freshman Jayden Quaintance is one of 20 initial candidates for the Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Award, given out annually the nation's best center. Senior BJ Freeman is one of 20 players selected to the Julius Erving Award preseason watch list, which recognizes the top small forward in the country. The duo represent the first Sun Devils to land on a national award preseason watch list since 2021.

Phenomenal Freshman
Head Coach Bobby Hurley put together a Top-10 recruiting class, the highest in program history. It was ranked No. 9 by 247 Sports and No. 8 by Rivals and features a five-star recruit alongside two high four-star prospects.

F Jayden Quaintance

The highest-rated recruit to ever sign with Arizona State.
Ranked as the No. 9 overall prospect in the entire class of 2024 and the No. 2 center prospect by 247 Sports
Rivals tabbed him as the No. 8 overall prospect and No. 1 center in the 2024 class
Consensus five-star recruit and No. 1 prospect out of the state of North Carolina among all the major recruiting services
2024 McDonald's All-American

G Joson Sanon

Third-highest ranked recruit to ever sign with Arizona State according to 247 Sports, trailing only Jayden Quaintance and Josh Christopher
Ranked as the No. 24 overall prospect in the entire class of 2024 and the No. 5 shooting guard prospect by 247 Sports
Identified as the No. 26 overall player and No. 8 shooting guard in the nation by Rivals
ESPN lists him as the No. 23 overall prospect in their Top-100 and the No. 6 shooting guard in the class of 2024

G/F Amier Ali

11th-highest ranked recruit to ever sign with Arizona State according to 247 Sports
ESPN lists him at No. 54 in their Top-100 prospect rankings
- No. 15 small forward prospect in the nation
- No. 3 prospect in the state of Arizona
No. 98 overall prospect in the nation according to 247 Sports
- No. 21 small forward prospect in the country
- No. 5 prospect in the state of Arizona
Tabbed by Rivals as the No. 104 overall prospect and No. 27 small forward in the class of 2024

Impact Transfers
A five-man transfer class immediately bolstered the Sun Devil Men's Basketball roster. It is one of the premier transfer classes in program history. BJ Freeman, Alston Mason, and Basheer Jihad join the fold after leading their teams in scoring a season ago. Brandon Gardner and Austin Nunez return to Arizona State after making strong connections with the connections in their previous recruitment process.

F Brandon Gardner, USC
G/F BJ Freeman, UW Milwaukee
G Alston Mason, Missouri State
F Basheer Jihad, Ball State
G Austin Nunez, Ole Miss

Youth movement
Arizona State freshman forward Jayden Quaintance enters the 2024-25 season as the youngest player in college basketball. He is over six months younger than the second-youngest on the list, which is Duke's Cooper Flagg.

Name	School	Birthdate
Jayden Quaintance	Arizona State	07/2007
Cooper Flagg	Duke	12/2006
Colt Langdon	Butler	11/2006
Bryce Heard	NC State	10/2006
Khaman Maluach	Duke	09/2006

Family Ties
The Sun Devil Men's Basketball roster features several connections through bloodline. Head Coach Bobby Hurley's son, Bobby Hurley, is a senior guard on the team. Senior guard Alston Mason's father, Alton Mason, played at Arizona State from 1998-2001. Senior guard Jordan Williams cousin is legendary Sun Devil guard James Harden.

Career Games Played (total | @ ASU)
Sun Devils have a combined 664 games of experience at the Division I Level (Includes previous school). ASU has eight players with over 49 games of experience at the Division I level.

The Hurley Era
Bobby Hurley has won 159 games at ASU and is only the second coach in program history to reach the mark. With the win over Cal Poly, he passed Herb Sendek for the second-most victories in program history.

Career Wins at ASU
406, Ned Wulk (1957-82)
159, Bobby Hurley (2015-present)
159, Herb Sendek (2006-15)

About those Sun Devil Wins
Coach Hurley has notched 160 wins at Arizona State and has done it while scheduling aggressively and not being afraid to play on the road. He has won 102 games in Arizona, but also has won at least five games in California (14), Nevada (13), Oregon (six) and Washington (five). Four wins have taken place in Utah, three in New York, and two in Colorado, Nebraska, Ohio and Pennsylvania. Single wins have taken place in Florida, Georgia, Kansas, New Jersey and Texas.

Milestone Complete
Hurley earned the 200th win in his head coaching career between Arizona State and Buffalo in his 12th season at the Division I level. 160 of those wins have come with Sun Devil Men's Basketball. Hurley also earned his 150th career win when ASU beat Grand Canyon back in 2021.

Roster Snapshot (numerical)
#0 Brandon Gardner (Redshirt Freshman/Forward/USC/Waynesboro, GA)
#1 Alston Mason (Senior/Guard/Missouri State/Phoenix, AZ)
#2 Austin Nunez (Junior/Guard/Ole Miss/Garden Ridge, TX)
#3 Joson Sanon (Freshman/Guard/Saxton Rivers, VT)
#5 Amier Ali (Freshman/Guard/Forward/Little Elm, TX)
#6 Connor Braun (Graduate/Forward/Northeastern/Tempe, AZ)
#8 Basheer Jihad (Senior/Forward/Ball State/Detroit, MI)
#9 Shawn Phillips Jr. (Junior/Center/Dayton, OH)
#10 BJ Freeman (Senior/Guard & Forward/UW Milwaukee/Selma, NC)
#11 Bobby Hurley (Senior/Guard/Scottsdale, AZ)
#14 Chianti Clay (Senior/Guard/University of Fort Lauderdale/Milwaukee, WI)
#21 Jayden Quaintance (Freshman/Forward/Raleigh, NC)
#22 Quentin McCoy (Freshman/Guard/Chicago, IL)
#25 Jordan Williams (Senior/Guard/Los Angeles, CA)
#33 Brycen Long (Graduate/Guard/Gilbert, AZ)
#44 Adam Miller (Redshirt Senior/Guard/Peoria, IL)
5 returners; 7 transfers; 4 incoming freshman

Constant Competition
Head Coach Bobby Hurley and his staff have once again constructed an extremely challenging slate that sees Arizona State hosting winning programs and taking on strong competition away from home. The 11-game schedule features seven contests away from home and four at Desert Financial Arena in addition to the exhibition matchup with Duke prior to the season on Oct. 27. ASU has 2024 NCAA Tournament participants Gonzaga, Grand Canyon, New Mexico, and Florida with a showdown against St. Mary's possible as well.

Season Metrics
Ken Pom: 65
Strength of Record: 32
RPI (Warren Nolan): 23
NET: Available beginning in December

AP Top-13 (ASU game)
1. Kansas (Jan. 8 road game)
2. Connecticut
3. Gonzaga (Nov. 10 road game)
4. Auburn
5. Iowa State (Jan. 25 home game)
6. Houston (Feb. 18 home game)
7. Tennessee (Feb. 18 home game)
8. Kentucky
9. Alabama
10. Marquette
11. Duke (Oct. 27 road game; Exhibition)
Arizona State plays six AP Top-11 teams.

2024-25 Arizona State Men's Basketball Non-Conference Schedule
Oct. 27 - at Duke (Brotherhood Run Exhibition; Cameron Indoor Stadium)*
Nov. 5 - vs. Idaho State (Home/Regular Season Opener; Desert Financial Arena)
Nov. 8 - Santa Clara (Lee's Family Forum; Las Vegas, NV)
Nov. 10 - at Gonzaga (McCarthey Athletic Center, Spokane, WA)
Nov. 14 - Grand Canyon (Hall of Fame Series; Footprint Center in Phoenix)
Nov. 17 - vs. St. Thomas (Desert Financial Arena)
Nov. 20 - vs. Cal Poly (Desert Financial Arena)
Nov. 28 - New Mexico (Acrisure Classic; Palm Springs, CA)
Nov. 29 - St. Mary's or USC (Acrisure Classic; Palm Springs, CA)
Dec. 3 - vs. San Diego (Desert Financial Arena)
Dec. 14 - Florida (Holiday Hoopsgiving; Atlanta, GA)
Dec. 21 - UMass (Basketball Hall of Fame Classic; Springfield, MA)
*Exhibition contest

Arizona State makes the transition to the Big 12 Conference and have six conference games scheduled against Top-25 competition. A pair of the Top-10 teams (Iowa State & Houston) will all come to Desert Financial Arena. Of their 20 league games, 15 will come against opponents that made the 2024 NCAA Tournament.

2024-25 Sun Devil Men's Basketball Big 12 Schedule
Dec. 31 (Tues.) - at BYU
Jan. 4 (Sat.) - vs. Colorado
Jan. 8 (Wed.) - at Kansas
Jan. 11 (Sat.) - vs. Baylor
Jan. 14 (Tues.) - vs. UCF
Jan. 18 (Sat.) - at Cincinnati
Jan. 21 (Tues.) - at West Virginia
Jan. 25 (Sat.) - vs. Iowa State
Jan. 28 (Tues.) - at Colorado
Feb. 1 (Sat.) - vs. Arizona
Feb. 4 (Tues.) - vs. Kansas State
Feb. 9 (Sun.) - at Oklahoma State
Feb. 12 (Wed.) - at Texas Tech
Feb. 15 (Sat.) - vs. TCU
Feb. 18 (Tues.) - vs. Houston
Feb. 23 (Sat.) - at Kansas State
Feb. 26 (Wed.) - vs. BYU
March 1 (Sat.) - at Utah
March 4 (Tues.) - at Arizona
March 8 (Sat.) - vs. Texas Tech

Big 12 teams in AP Top 25
1. Kansas (Jan. 8 road game)
5. Iowa State (Jan. 25 home game)
6. Houston (Feb. 18 home game)
16. Cincinnati (Jan. 18 road game)
17. Baylor (Jan. 11 home game)
23. Arizona (Feb. 2 home game; March 4 road game)

Big 12 Matchups
Arizona (1 road; 1 home game)
Baylor (1 home game)
BYU (1 road; 1 home game)
Cincinnati (1 road game)
Colorado (1 road; 1 home game)
Houston (1 home game)
Iowa State (1 home game)
Kansas (1 road game)
Kansas State (1 road; 1 home game)
Oklahoma State (1 road game)
TCU (1 home game)
Texas Tech (1 road; 1 home game)
UCF (1 home game)
Utah (1 road game)
West Virginia (1 road game)

Season Tickets
Season tickets are available starting at just $180. Season tickets include all regular season home games in Desert Financial Arena.
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Mini Plans
6-game mini plans are available starting at just $150. Fans can choose any 6 home games to include in their plan.
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Single-game Tickets
Single-game tickets are on sale now. Visit Sun Devil Tickets for more information on how to purchase. If you are interested in learning more about any of our tickets and experience options, please call or text 480-727-0000 or email grouptickets@asu.edu to contact a Sun Devil ticket sales representative.

Here to Stay
The Arizona State Board of Regents announced in March of 2023 that Sun Devil Men's Basketball Head Coach Bobby Hurley has agreed to an extension that will keep him with the program through the 2026 season.

Sun Devils on Social
For exclusive content, the latest updates, and more information on the Sun Devil Men's Basketball program, follow our X/Instagram accounts (@SunDevilHoops), like our Facebook page (facebook.com/SunDevilHoops/), and visit our website (thesundevils.com). Follow Coach Hurley on X (@BobbyHurley11).

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