Arizona State point guard Frankie Collins sets school record for most steals in a season

Point guard Frankie Collins etched his name into the record books for Arizona State men’s basketball after he collected his 77th steal on the season Thursday night against Washington. Collins topped Fat Lever’s previous record of 76 in the 1981-82 season.

Collins entered the day fourth in the nation in total steals on the season with 74 steals needing two more to catch Lever — whose No. 12 jersey hangs in the rafters at Desert Financial Arena — and three to pass him.

He surpassed the record with less than one minute left in regulation.

That effort helped spark a 25-point comeback by ASU to force overtime. The Sun Devils would eventually fall by a final of 84-82 to the Washington Huskies.

The point guard has started every game this season for the Sun Devils and has played at least 30 minutes in all but three games. He nabbed a career-best eight steals in ASU’s third game of the season and tallied six in three other games, including six in one half against USC.

“I’m pretty close, I know where I’m at, I’m not out there chasing it … I’m just playing,” Collins said prior to a recent home game against Oregon State.

He added that he would love to become the fifth player in Pac-12 history to reach 100 in a season (Matisse Thybulle twice, Jason Kidd and Gary Payton).

The 77 steals this season gives Collins 123 on his two-year ASU career after playing his freshman season at Michigan. If he returns to Tempe for his senior season, he is on track to become the fifth Sun Devils player to reach 200 in a career (Eddie House, Stevin Smith, Lever and Ron Riley). House has the record at 258.