Sun Devil Men's Hoops Welcomes St. Thomas

Arizona State and St. Thomas meet for the first time as the Sun Devils return to Desert Financial Arena.

Sun Devil Men's Basketball Team vs. GCU

November 16, 2024

TEMPE - Sun Devil Men's Basketball takes on St. Thomas at Desert Financial Arena on Sunday, Nov. 16 at 6 PM MST.

Arizona State (3-1) will face the Tommies for the first time in program history. It is the second part of a double-header with the Sun Devil Women's Basketball team also competing at Desert Financial Arena in the Briann January Classic against SMU. Head Coach Bobby Hurley's team looks to build off their 3-1 start which includes wins over Grand Canyon and Santa Clara away from home. The game will be broadcasted on ESPN+ on Sunday at 6 PM MST.

The Matchup
The Sun Devils remain in the Valley when they return to Desert Financial Arena for the second time to face St. Thomas. This will be the first meeting between the two sides, as St. Thomas joined the Division I ranks prior to the 2021-22 season. The Tommies won 20 games a year ago as members of the Summit League.

How to Follow
Arizona State is back on ESPN+ when they take on St. Thomas, scheduled for a 6 PM MST tip-off with Cronkite alums Braiden Bell and Eliav Gabay on the call. Make sure to listen to Tim Healey and Kyle Dodd on Arizona Sports 98.7 FM (KMVP).

Quotable
"I told my team, there's nobody in the country through four games that has played a harder schedule than us," Coach Hurley mentioned after the game. "When you talk about playing Santa Clara at a neutral site, a 30-win GCU team with a lot of guys back, and then on the road at Gonzaga. For us to be where we are right now, we're in a really good spot. We gotta keep getting better and get home. We got a couple of home games coming up and we're excited about where things are going."

Last Time Out
Arizona State (3-1) controlled the second half and emerged with a 87-76 win over GCU (2-1) in a neutral-site matchup on Thursday night at Footprint Center. Behind 21 points from freshman guard Joson Sanon off the bench along with 18 from senior forward Basheer Jihad, Bobby Hurley secured the 200th career win of his head coaching career.

Three Sun Devils players reached double figures, led by Joson Sanon, who came off the bench and had 21 points while connecting 5-of-7 shots beyond the arc. Basheer Jihad found his rhythm at the free throw line, shooting 9-11 at the line and finishing with 15 points and five rebounds. Alston Mason operated the offense effectively throughout the contest, adding 19 points while dishing out five assists.

The ~~Grand Canyon~~ Arizona State
Grand Canyon now falls to 131-47 in the state of Arizona since becoming a Division I program (2013-14). Arizona State is responsible for three of those losses. GCU is now 0-3 against the Sun Devils and boast a 131-44 (75%) in other games played in Arizona.

The Jayden Quaintance Effect
Jayden Quaintance came into tonight's game leading the nation in blocks per game thus far in the season. He added two blocks to his total tonight and had an impact on GCU shooting at the rim. The Lopes finished a putrid 13-for-28 (46%) on layups and 19-for-42 (45%) on shots inside the arc in large part due to Jayden Quaintance's presence down low.

Finding our Rhythm
The Sun Devils started off the game against Grand Canyon shooting 1-7 from the field and had just four points four minutes into the game, but settled in after that. Arizona State shot 13-for-21 from the field and scored 37 points the rest of the half to take the lead into the break.

Ba-sheer Force
In his first two games, Basheer Jihad combined for five points on 1-of-10 shooting. Over his past two games, Jihad has accumulated 40 points on 11-of-19 shooting. He is also 16-for-18 (88.9%) from the free throw line during that span.

Jo can Go
Freshman Joson Sanon put on a clinic in the win over Grand Canyon. He came off the bench to score a game-high 21 points, making five three-point field goals. His five three-pointers were the most by an ASU true freshman since December 28, 2019, when Jaelen House hit five against Texas Southern. The 21 points are the most by an ASU freshman since Josh Christopher put up 22 against UCLA on January 7, 2021.

Filing the Stands
Arizona State rose to the occasion in another premiere atmosphere, as 13,705 Valley basketball fans were in attendance to watch the in-state rivals do battle on Thursday.

Empty the Notebook (More GCU Game Notes)
- Arizona State had a staggering 21 points off of turnovers as well as 30 points off the bench
- Arizona State owns a 4-0 advantage in the series (not counting an exhibition victory), including sweeping a home-and-home set in 2020-21.
- GCU had won two of its last three games at Footprint Center before tonight.
- From 13:34 to 8:47 in the second half, ASU went on a 14-4 run in 4:47, shooting 4-of-6 from the field and limiting the Lopes to 1-of-10 shooting, extending the lead to 11. The lead would never get below 7 points for the rest of the game.

Hit the Mark
The Sun Devils shot 53.7% (29/54) from the field tonight. ASU is 48-4 (.923) when it shoots 50 percent or better from the field under Bobby Hurley.
2024-25: 1-0
2023-24: 4-1
2022-23: 6-0
2021-22: 2-1
2020-21: 5-1
2019-20: 4-0
2018-19: 9-0
2017-18: 10-0
2016-17: 4-0
2015-16: 3-0

Dialed in from Deep
ASU made 15 three-point field goals in the win over Santa Clara earlier in the year, tied for the third-most three pointers made in a single-game in the Bobby Hurley era. The last time they made 15 three-pointers was at the Pac-12 Tournament against Stanford back on March 9, 2022). ASU also hit double-digit three-pointers (11) in their win over Grand Canyon on Thursday.

Most Three Point Field Goals Made in Bobby Hurley era (since 2015-16)
18 - vs. UNLV, 12/3/16
18 - vs. Central Arkansas, 12/22/16
15 - Santa Clara (Las Vegas), 11/8/24
15 - vs. The Citadel, 11/23/16
15 - Stanford (Las Vegas), 3/9/22
15 - Syracuse (Atlantis), 11/25/21
14 - at Kansas, 12/10/17
14 - vs. UCLA. 2/23/17
14 - vs. San Diego, 12/18/22
14 - USC (Las Vegas), 3/9/23
14 - vs. UCLA, 2/6/20

Getting Defensive
The Sun Devils held Idaho State to 48 points the last time they played at Desert Financial Arena, tied for third-lowest points scored by an opponent since 2000. Arizona State also held Idaho State to a 25.4 FG%, marking the lowest FG% by ISU since Montana held them to 24.6 FG% on Feb. 6, 2012. The Bengals finished with the lowest FG% by an ASU opponent since Oregon State (24.6%) on Feb. 11, 2010. It is the lowest an opponent has shot against a Bobby Hurley-coached ASU team. The 14.3% shooting from beyond the arc by the Bengals was the lowest percentage by a Sun Devil opponent since Grambling shot 7.7% from deep on Nov. 22, 2022

Fewest Points Allowed by ASU in Home Opener (Since 2000)
35 – Western Illinois (Nov. 13, 2009)
41 – Cal Poly (Nov. 26, 2007)
48 – Idaho State (Nov. 5, 2024)
48 – Jackson State (Nov. 21, 2004)
49 – Central Connecticut State (Nov. 14, 2019)
50 – Chicago State (Nov. 14, 2014)

ASU Best Defensive FG% under Hurley (2015-PRESENT)
.254/17-67 by Idaho State (Nov. 5, 2024)
.266/17-64 by Grambling (Nov. 22, 2022)
.271/19-70 by Alcorn State (Nov. 27, 2022)
.274/17-62 by Long Beach State (Nov. 12, 2018)
.286/18-63 by San Francisco (Dec. 2, 2017)
.298/17-57 by Central Connecticut State (Nov. 14, 2019)

Block Party
Jayden Quaintance is second in the NCAA in total blocks (14) and leads the Big 12 in blocks per game (3.5). He has at least two blocks in all four of his games so far. He was credited with six blocks in his collegiate debut, the most in a single game by a Sun Devil since De'Quon Lake had seven against Pacific on December 22, 2017. As a team, ASU ranks Top-50 nationally in blocks per game (5.5).

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 649 games of experience at the Division I Level (Includes previous school). ASU has eight players with over 48 games of experience at the Division I level.

Don't Count us Out
Arizona State has come back to win a game when trailing at halftime 44 times during the Bobby Hurley era and five times last season, three of which came on the road. Since 2015-16, the Sun Devils are Top-25 in the nation with their 44 halftime comeback victories.

The Hurley Era
Bobby Hurley has won 158 games at ASU and is only the third coach in program history to reach the mark. He trails Herb Sendek by only one win to tie for the second-most in program history.

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

About those Sun Devil Wins
Coach Hurley has notched 158 wins at Arizona State and has done it while scheduling aggressively and not being afraid to play on the road. He has won 100 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. 158 of those wins have come with Sun Devil Men's Basketball. Hurley also earned his 150th career win over 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.

AP Top-12 (ASU game)
1. Kansas (Jan. 8 road game)
2. Alabama
3. Connecticut
4. Gonzaga (Nov. 10 road game)
5. Auburn
6. Duke (Oct. 27 road game; Exhibition)
7. Iowa State (Jan. 25 home game)
8. Houston (Feb. 18 home game)
9. Arizona (Feb. 2 home game; March 4 road game)
10. North Carolina
11. Tennessee
12. Baylor (Jan. 11 home game)
Arizona State plays seven AP Top-12 teams a total of eight times.

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. Four of the Top-10 teams (Iowa State, Houston, Baylor, Arizona) 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)
7. Iowa State (Jan. 25 home game)
8. Houston (Feb. 18 home game)
9. Arizona (Feb. 2 home game; March 4 road game)
12. Baylor (Jan. 11 home game)
17. Cincinnati (Jan. 18 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 and the Duke exhibition matchup, 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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