Arizona State basketball returns home to face St. Thomas on Sunday evening at Desert Financial Arena.
After a crucial three-game stretch of games on the road or at a neutral site, the Sun Devils (3-1) are back in Tempe to take on St. Thomas (3-1). It will be the first all-time meeting between the two sides.
General Information
Teams: Arizona State (3-1) and St. Thomas (3-1)
Tip Time: 6 p.m. MST (8 p.m. EST)
Watch: ESPN+
Listen: Arizona Sports 98.7 FM (KMVP)
What to know about St. Thomas:
St. Thomas has been pleasing basketball fans in the Twin Cities for 120 years. It was a stalwart at the Division III level, winning the national championship in 2011 and 2016, before making the transition to Division I play in 2021. Because of this, the team will be unable to qualify for the Division I NCAA Tournament until the 2026-27 season.
After going 10-20 in their inaugural season in a new division, the Tommies managed a .500 record over the past two seasons in the Summit League. However, they fell in the conference semifinals to the top seed in both campaigns.
St. Thomas is a team known for scheduling and competing against tough Power 5 teams. It lost 84-79 to a then-No. 7 Marquette last season and fell 80-71 against Oklahoma State last Sunday. Both games were on the road. It comes into Tempe fresh off a 102-54 win over St. Norbert on Friday.
Head coach John Tauer is in his 14th season as head coach and his 25th with the program. His team has three players averaging double-digit point totals. Junior guards Miles Barnstable and Kendall Blue average 14.0 points and 12.8 points respectfully. Graduate guard Drake Dobbs, who averages 12 points, and freshman guard Nolan Minessale round out the backcourt.
Tauer has rotated the starting forward role between redshirt sophomore Carter Bjerke and graduate Rich Byhre this season, with both players starting two games. He also has two guards–senior Ryan Dufault and redshirt freshman Ben Oosterbaan–that average 9.3 points off the bench.
Latest on Arizona State basketball:
The Sun Devils return home after beating Grand Canyon 87-76 at Footprint Center in the Jerry Colangelo Hall of Fame Series on Thursday. It was the third victory over their crosstown rivals.
Freshman guard Joson Sanon, who has talked about being a one-and-done product, had a career-high 21 points off the bench. Senior forward Basheer Jihad followed with 18 points following his double-double at No. 4 Gonzaga. Senior guard Alston Mason scored 16 points.
The Maroon and Gold shot 54% from the field and 44% from three-point range. They were also more clinical on the defensive side, as the Lopes went 13-for-28 on layups. It was also a foul-filled game, with 41 between the two sides.
After some tough trips away from Desert Financial Arena, the Sun Devils are back at home, taking on two opponents outside the Top 150 according to KenPom.
“For us to be where we are right now, we’re in a really good spot,” Arizona State head coach Bobby Hurley said after his team beat GCU. “We gotta keep getting better and get home. We got a couple of home games coming up and we’re excited about where things are going.”