Heading to McKale Center to face a presumably angry Arizona team coming off a 16-point loss at UCLA might not be all that much fun for ASU coach Bobby Hurley.
But at least heβll be there.
Hurley was forced to watch Mondayβs 78-56 loss to USC from the teamβs Los Angeles hotel thanks to a suspension he was handed by the Pac-12 for a verbal interaction with an official during the Sun Devilsβ 79-76 loss at Stanford two days earlier. He also had to pay a $20,000 fine that will go to the Pac-12βs student-athlete scholarship fund
βFelt surreal, and I felt enormous regret to not be with my team,β Hurley said Thursday, according to video of a media interview posted by Devils Digest. βI loved how hard they were competing, especially in the first 15 minutes or so of that game and the energy we had. I think we were building off how well we played on offense on Saturday night.β
The worst-shooting team in the Pac-12 (39.3%), ASU actually shot 52.5% against Stanford and made 12 more field goals than the Cardinal. But Stanford went to the free-throw line 32 more times than ASU did, and scored 25 more points there.
Stanford hit 32 of 41 from the line, ASU shot 7 of 9 and, well, Hurley didnβt appear too happy. Nor did ASU guard Jay Heath, who was also suspended after the Pac-12 said he was βverbally confronting and making contact with an official attempting to exit the court.β
A third player, ASU forward Jalen Graham, was reprimanded but not suspended for confronting an official, the Pac-12 said.
βThe actions of the head coach and student-athletes were in clear violation of the conferenceβs standards of conduct, and will not be tolerated,β Pac-12 commissioner George Kliavkoff said in a statement.
Hurley was allowed to guide the Sun Devils in pregame shootaround and film review, everything up until 6 p.m. Monday, but then had to settle in at his hotel to watch the game. He was joined by Heath and forward Kimani Lawrence, who was recovering from a non-COVID-19 illness.
βThat whole experience was different, but I had a chance to share it with Jay and Kimani,β Hurley said.
When asked Thursday if he had any additional thoughts about the free-throw disparity at Stanford, Hurley declined.
βEach game is its own,β Hurley said. βIf you look at the stats, thatβs for everyone else to make their own judgments on that, and Iβm not going to go back to that. I got piece of mind, I got peace in my heart and have regret that I wasnβt there Monday night.β
Gaffney questionable
UA forward Azuolas Tubelis returned from his sprained ankle in limited form Tuesday at UCLA, but ASU may be without forward Alonzo Gaffney for Saturday. Hurley said Gaffney was elbowed in the face at USC and has a cheekbone issue.
βWeβre just getting some final word on that to see what his status will be for Saturday, but itβs not looking good at the moment,β said Hurley, who added that Lawrence is still βworking throughβ his illness.
A juco transfer who also played at Ohio State, Gaffney is averaging 4.1 points per game. His 1.69 blocks per game are second-most in the Pac-12 behind Arizonaβs Christian Koloko.
USC game still up in air
Arizona made up its postponed game at UCLA on Tuesday, and is scheduled to face ASU again on Feb. 7 in a makeup of a postponed Jan. 8 game, but the Wildcats still have not been rescheduled to play at USC in a game that was called off on Jan. 2 because of the Trojansβ COVID-19 issues.
A Pac-12 official said the league still intends for all its teams to play the full 20-game conference schedule.
So far, seven of the leagueβs 17 postponed games have been rescheduled and played, another three have been rescheduled for a future date and the UA-USC game and six others have yet to be rescheduled.
Arizona has not yet been approached about a potential rescheduling date, and there are no ideal dates left for the Wildcats.
Their best option might be to play at USC on Feb. 22 before their Feb. 24-26 trip to Utah and Colorado (USC plays on Feb. 20 and 24). If UA played it the week of Feb. 14, the Wildcats would be playing two three-game weeks in a row. Playing the week of Feb. 28 would force UA to play three games the week before the Pac-12 Tournament.
Arizona center Christian Koloko blocks Utah forward Dusan Mahorcic during their Jan. 15 game in McKale Center.
Koloko named to top defender list
Koloko was one of 15 players named to the Naismith Defensive Player of the Year watch list Thursday.
As a junior this season, Koloko has become one of the countryβs top 15 shot-blockers in both raw and tempo-adjusted measures. He leads the Pac-12 and is 13th nationally with an average of 3.11 blocks per game. He has the 15th-best block percentage nationally, blocking 12.4% of his opponentsβ shots when heβs on the floor.
No other Pac-12 players were named to the list. Koloko joins only two others from west of the Rockies: Chet Holmgren of Gonzaga and Nathan Mensah of San Diego State.
