The Big 12 Conference has certainly proven as strenuous as advertised. Four consecutive losses for conference newcomer Arizona State (10-7, 1-5 Big 12) sends it to the depths of the league standings following its 67-60 loss on the road to Cincinnati on Saturday. Now placed 14th in the table, head coach Bobby Hurley’s program will travel to a talented No. 23 West Virginia (13-4, 4-2) team that defeated the No. 2 program in the country on Saturday and thus returned to the AP top 25 poll where they were ranked earlier this season.
“We all knew what we were getting into,” Hurley said. “It was real. Playing at Kansas next, Baylor on your home floor, and then UCF, a hot-shooting team. It doesn't get any easier. As a player and coach, I've been in these situations feeling like the world is coming to an end, like 'are you ever gonna win a game again?'"
Heading into Fifth Third Arena, the Sun Devils were likely confident in their ability to beat the Bearcats, facing an opponent with the second-fewest points per game in the conference (72.4). Yet, the hosts scored 36 first-half points, the most they’ve notched in a first-half in Big 12 play. The second half saw the Devils climb back, scoring 38 points themselves, led by five-star freshman forward Jayden Quaintance, who provided 15 points and 14 rebounds. However, it wouldn’t be enough, as late-game stops proved too little, too late for ASU.
Cincinnati head coach Wes Miller has built a program that prides itself on the defensive end of the floor, holding opponents to under 27% shooting from three-point range, good for second in the country. His team played fortified once again, limiting ASU to just two total fast-break points, 6-of-22 shooting from beyond the arc, and 20 first-half points to go up 16 at the halftime interval.
“I thought we were okay on offense. We had some pretty good looks, just no one could make a shot,” Hurley said. “Whether it was from the perimeter or inside, in the paint. To score 20 points is not good enough on the road, and we have to climb all the way back in it to even have a chance. We have to learn to put 40 minutes together, and we didn’t even close.”
While the Sun Devils look distraught and lost for answers, the Mountaineers are coming off their best win of the campaign, knocking off the apex of the Big 12 in No. 2 Iowa State, 64-57. The Mountaineers were led by former AZ Compass Prep guard senior Javon Small, who scored 27 points. They played lights-out defensively as well, holding the Cyclones to a season-low scoring night. Their previous mark had been set at 74 points scored in a win over Kansas, presenting a concerningly large outlier of 17 points.
WVU has become accustomed to knocking off ranked teams, with wins this season against No. 3 Gonzaga, No. 24 Arizona, and No. 7 Kansas. Its 4-4 record against Quad 1 opponents is the third-best among all Big 12 teams in Quad 1 matchups.
Small is the clear No. 1 option offensively, averaging 19.8 points per game, leading the conference in that category. Using a combination of superb athleticism, elite ball handling, and three-level scoring ability, he has become a matchup nightmare that terrorizes opposing defenders. Don’t think his impact is limited to just scoring, either. Small also leads the team in assists (5.2 per game) and steals (1.9 per game) while recording the second-most rebounds (5.2).
In the absence of senior forward Trucker DeVries, who averaged 14.9 points per game through the first eight games of the season, West Virginia has called upon multiple players to fill the scoring void. Sophomore forward Amani Hansberry, who averages 10.1 points per game, hit four three-pointers against Iowa State and combined that with a 16-point outing against Houston the game before. It appears a confident scorer is emerging ahead of ASU’s visit.
The Mountaineers have objectively struggled to score the ball in the 2024-25 season compared to other Big 12 programs. Averaging just 72.6 points per game, they rank 14th in the league in that metric. However, considering they’ve faced more Quad 1 opponents than any other team in the conference, that figure can appear misleading. An important detail to note is that head coach Darian DeVries's side is 6-0 in games decided by eight points or fewer, proving themselves to be efficient in the later stages of games. Another concerning statistic for ASU fans is that the Sun Devils have lost three straight games by eight points or fewer.
On the defensive side of the floor, the Mountaineers earn their stripes. They check all the boxes on the stat sheet, ranking second in opponent three-point percentage (28.1%) and fourth in field goal percentage defense (39.2%). If the odds didn’t get any worse, WVU would be dominant on home its court with a 9-1 record thus far, while ASU would still be winless in true road games, boasting a 0-4 mark in enemy territory.
So how can the Sun Devils do the improbable and earn their first win since Jan. 4 on Tuesday? Hurley’s team needs to perform consistently on both ends. A pattern has emerged where ASU hits detrimental scoring droughts, as evidenced again on Saturday. The Sun Devils will often play entire stretches, sometimes multiple minutes, without scoring, making them appear discombobulated on the offensive end.
ASU can turn up the heat defensively when asked. Anchored by Quaintance’s 3.2 blocks per game, teams convert just 42% of their field goal attempts against the Maroon and Gold. The issues often lie on the glass, where ASU ranks 14th in combined opponent rebound margin. Fortunately for ASU, West Virginia’s primary weakness is found on the boards, ranking 15th in that same metric and sitting last in rebound margin in the Big 12 (-1.6 per game).
The age-old saying “when it rains, it pours” may be particularly relevant for Hurley, who is already down five-star freshman guard Joson Sanon, who ranks second on the team in points per game (12.8), and his availability for this contest remains unclear. Senior guard BJ Freeman (13.2 points per game), the leading scorer, is also questionable for Tuesday’s game after injuring his knee in the second half against Cincinnati. Freeman left the court for a few possessions before reentering the game, clearly lingering with the injury. He would finish the contest with 12 points. Freeman’s health remains in question, and with ASU already playing a thin rotation—scoring just four bench points on Saturday—any hit to their leading scorer would leave the program in a tough spot.
Hurley’s attention has turned briefly to the midseason acquisition, 17-year-old guard Trevor Best, who is a former high school teammate of Quaintance at Word of God Christian Academy. Best graduated a semester early, allowing him to join the program for the 2024-25 season. If he were to make an appearance, it would mark the beginning of his NCAA eligibility. Although Best has shown flashes of potential, Hurley is unsure whether it's worth inserting him into the rotation just yet.
“We’re really counting on like seven guys right now, and that may not be enough,” Hurley said. “There aren’t many more places we can go. Trevor Best is a guy we really think a lot of, but he’s literally practiced four times. He doesn’t know anything that we’re doing yet.”
The 31-game regular season can fly by in an instant. For the Sun Devils, the magnitude of this four-game stretch feels paramount to the first 13 games of the season. Now past the halfway point, there aren’t endless opportunities for them to change the course of the year, as the Big 12 has proven it can be lethal and demoralizing for any program.
“We thought we were in a pretty good spot, 1-1 going into Kansas. Things can turn fast. I think we’ve underachieved the last nine days,” Hurley said. “We were having a pretty good season when we stepped on the floor at Kansas. Since then, things have spiraled. We have to figure out a way to put two halves together to be good enough to win this league.”
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