ARIZONA STATE BASKETBALL

Jahii Carson announces he’ll return to ASU for sophomore season

Apr 10, 2013, 1:30 AM | Updated: 3:24 pm

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Jahii Carson officially put to rest all talk about his basketball future Tuesday night.

The ASU point guard announced that he’ll officially be returning to Tempe for his sophomore season in 2013-14.

“At this time it is in my best interest to continue my career at Arizona State,” Carson said in a press release. “ASU has been very good to me and I enjoy my teammates and coaching staff, and that was a big part of my decision. The option to try the NBA was there, but all my energy is now invested in being the best Sun Devil I can be and lead our team to a great season.”

The co-Pac-12 Freshman of the Year led the Sun Devils in points (18.5), assists (5.1) and minutes (37.2) during his freshman campaign. With Carson at the helm, ASU went 22-13 (9-9 in Pac-12 play) this past season.

While the Sun Devils recorded an impressive 12-win turnaround in 2012-13, having Carson back for a second season will be important for Herb Sendek and Co. because the Sun Devils have notable holes to fill following the departures of Carrick Felix, Chris Colvin and Ruslan Pateev.

“Jahii is a special player and a special person,” Sendek said. “He was excellent in everything he did and is not only fun to watch, but a joy to coach, and we look forward to continue working with him in 2013-14.”

In addition to Carson’s return, ASU is also expected to add freshmen Chance Murray (No. 69-ranked shooting guard by ESPN.com) and Egor Koulechov (No. 69-ranked small forward by ESPN.com) next season.

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