Time for some optimism about ASU hoops

At the outset of this column, let me make an
admission…I’ve been critical of Arizona State basketball
this year.

Gasp!

I don’t think I’ve ever seen a team struggle to pass the
ball as much as this year’s Arizona State squad.
Seemingly
simple perimeter passes have been an adventure for the Sun
Devils and that’s one of the main reasons that ASU ranks
331st out of 338 NCAA Division 1 teams in turnovers per
game (16.6).

Eight points in an entire half of a basketball game?
Against Washington State? Are you serious? While playing
with the Denver Nuggets in 1994, Rodney Rogers scored 9 points in 9
seconds, yet ASU couldn’t do that in 20 minutes
against the Cougars.

The atmosphere for most of the season at Wells Fargo Arena
has been similar to that of a funeral, only with a pep
band and cheerleaders. During their loss to UCLA on
February 23rd, I could hear individual conversations going
on in the crowd while I watched from the media section.

It’s been a tough season for ASU coach Herb Sendek and
company to say the least.

And maybe I’m in the minority, but I think the immediate
future is bright for Arizona State basketball.

Stop laughing, I’m serious.

This isn’t a “win over U of A hangover” talking here.
Sunday’s 87-80 win over the Wildcats was easily the Sun
Devils’ best performance of the year and a highly
entertaining basketball game, but hardly served as a big
enough Band-Aid to cover up the rest of the campaign.

No, this is good, old-fashioned optimism for the future.

And I’m not alone. ASU players believed that beating the
Wildcats was a harbinger of things to come.

“It shows how much guys are improving like J.B. and Jon
from the start of the season,” junior forward Carrick
Felix said. “We’ve got a lot to look forward to for the
rest of this season and actually next year, too.”

J.B. is Jordan Bachynski, the 7-2 Canadian center who saw
his light bulb switch on earlier this year. After finding
only spotty playing time, Bachynski has thrived in his
last 12 games, averaging 10 points, 6.1 rebounds and 2.4
blocked shots during that stretch.

Jon is Danish freshman Jonathan Gilling, a sharpshooter
who connected on 41% of his three-point attempts this
season, and canned at least one trey in 17 straight games.
Playing in only his 29th college game, Gilling delivered
the biggest dagger to Arizona’s NCAA Tourney hopes — a
three that put ASU up by four with :57 to play.

Both players look worlds more comfortable than they did
when the season began back in November. They’ll both be
counted on heavily next season.

The Sun Devils are one of only nine Division 1 teams who
didn’t have to plan a senior day this year, meaning team
leaders Trent Lockett and Felix will be back. And they’re
adding at least six new players to the mix for next year,
including Jahii Carson, a 4-star recruit from Mesa High
School who was ranked as the 8th-best point guard in the
class of 2011 by ESPNU. Carson had to sit out this season
with academic issues, but has been wowing onlookers in Sun
Devil practices.

Also joining the mix for 2012-13 are Evan Gordon, who
averaged 14.4 points per game for Liberty in 2010-11
before transferring, and Bo Barnes, who canned 57 three-
pointers during his freshman campaign at Hawaii. Carson,
Gordon and Barnes have participated in practice all season
long, which leads current ASU players to believe that will
expedite the improvement next season.

“I think it can be pretty fast,” Lockett said. “We have
maroon and gold teams. Maroon is the starting five and
gold is the scouting team. This is the best scouting team
we’ve had, they really knock down some crazy shots and it
makes you frustrated in practice.”

Sometimes, you’ve got to hit rock bottom before you can
rise back up. Twenty-two wins over the course of two
seasons certainly qualifies as “bottoming out.” There’s
only one way for this program to go.

I believe that one year from now, we’ll be talking about a
much different Arizona State basketball team getting ready
for the Pac-12 Tournament.

Follow @Vincemarotta