Key national TV matchups for ASU and Arizona basketball
Sep 9, 2016, 7:00 AM | Updated: Sep 12, 2016, 4:36 pm
Arizona State head coach Bobby Hurley, second from right, huddles with members of his team during the first half of an NCAA college basketball game against Stanford Saturday, Jan. 23, 2016, in Stanford, Calif. (AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez)
(AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez)
College basketball doesn’t begin for another few months, but the television schedule released by the Pac-12 gave a glimpse at what games, against which opponents, might draw the most eyes.
In the state of Arizona, ASU coach Bobby Hurley’s introduction to the Duel in the Desert couldn’t have added to the rivalry any more than it did. In Tucson, Arizona basketball head coach Sean Miller has reloaded with another top-notch recruiting class.
Both teams will have their chances to make statements as programs on national television. Of course, their two clashes make this list of the most notable national television games for the 2016-17 season.
Michigan State vs. Arizona (ESPN), 5 p.m. MST, Nov. 11
The Wildcats play the Spartans in Hawaii for the Armed Forces Classic in a game that includes five freshmen ranked in the top-30 of their respective recruiting class: Arizona’s Lauri Markkanen, Kobi Simmons and Rawle Alkins, plus Michigan State’s Miles Bridges and Joshua Langford.
Northern Iowa vs. ASU (ESPNU), 2:30 p.m. MST, Nov. 17
The Panthers might not be recognizable at first glance, but NIU made for one of the most incredible and later one of the most sad moments of the 2016 NCAA Tournament. NIU beat Texas on a last-second heave but blew a 12-point lead with 40 seconds to go in regulation before falling in overtime against Texas A&M in the second round of the Big Dance. That has nothing to do with anything this coming season, but the point here is the Panthers are a legit test for ASU in Puerto Rico.
Kentucky vs. ASU (ESPN2), 5 p.m. MST, Nov. 28
Kentucky’s Kentucky. Two of their incoming freshmen — De’Aaron Fox and Bam Adebayo — are expected to be drafted in the lottery of the 2017 NBA Draft, per DraftExpress. In the Bahamas, can the Sun Devils show better than their last go-around against John Calipari’s crew?
Gonzaga vs. Arizona (ESPN), 3:30 p.m. MST, Dec. 3
Two of the West Coast’s best battle it out once again, this time in a neutral game at Staples Center in Los Angeles.
ASU vs. Arizona (ESPN/2), 7 p.m. MST, Jan. 12
Duel in the Desert, Part I. It is right now listed as having ESPN potential.
Arizona at UCLA (CBS), 2 p.m. MST, Jan. 21
Your annual afternoon UCLA-Arizona matchup on CBS. The Bruins have reloaded with McDonald’s All-American Lonzo Ball, who could be a one-and-done, along with forward T.J. Leaf, a former Arizona commit who Miller perhaps was not happy about losing.
Arizona at Washington (ESPN/2), 6 p.m. MST, Feb. 18
The Huskies lost freshman forward Marquese Chriss and freshman point guard Dejounte Murray to the NBA draft. They responded by adding Markelle Fultz, a combo guard projected to go first overall in next year’s NBA Draft. It could be a key battle for he and Arizona guard Allonzo Trier, who returns for a sophomore season with something to prove on the defensive end. He can do that in this one.
UCLA at ASU (ESPN/2), 7 p.m. MST, Feb. 23
Can ASU show well on national TV against a UCLA team that’s expected to be very good?
Arizona at ASU (CBS), 2 p.m. MST, March 4
A national audience gets to see the more bitter setting of the rivalry and a place that also comes with a better chance of an upset. Plus, there will be Pac-12 standings implications — and the potential for NCAA Tournament ones — heading into the postseason.
