Game Time for Bubble Team

All the talk about Brackets and such will be interrupted for a while tonight in the PAC - 10 Tournament at Staples Center in Los Angeles.

If the NCAA selection committee needs some convincing before it meets Sunday, this is the time and place for three PAC - 10 teams --  Arizona State University, Oregon and Arizona -- to close the sale with a victory.

Arizona manhandled Oregon State last night to move on in the tournament.  In today's quarterfinals, #5 ASU faces #4 USC at Noon,  #6 Oregon plays #3 Washington State at 6pm and Arizona gets another 8:30 pm start against #2 Stanford.

Conclude whatever you want from the ever-changing names in the various projections, but the best guess is that at least one victory is the best way that Arizona State, or Oregon, or Arizona  or all three can ensure themselves of a couple of nights of sleepand an at-large berth in the 2008 NCAA Tournament.

"This is the biggest game we've had so far," ASU sophomore playmaker Derek Glasser said of the rematch with USC, which split two games with the Sun Devils in the regular season.

For ASU, it's been a season full of big games, each bigger than the last one. None is more significant than a third game against the Trojans because of the tournament implications.

In large part, that's why Jeff Pendergraph sounds a little bit like a prize fighter.  He wants to beat the trojans, knock them out and eliminate some of the subjectivity that is hard to calculate in formulas that dictate the selection committee's scorecard.

"Even if what we've done is enough, we still need to win today just to make sure," said Pendergraph, who also summed it up for Oregon and Arizona.

ASU's strength of schedule is among the PAC - 10's worst. It's RPI, higher than 70, also is a negative.

In comparison, Arizona has the second - best strength of schedule in the Nation and a solid RPI which continues to be among the top 30 in the country.  Oregon's RPI and strength of schedule are both better than the Sun Devils as well.

"We can only help ourselves by winning as many games as possible," Arizona State Head Coach Herb Sendek said.

L E T S  G  O   S U N  D E V I L S ! ! !

I took today off to watch this game, it's game time, it's Devils time.  This is one of the biggest games in recent Arizona State University basketball history.  Hopefully, an early start won't hurt the Devils -- I think they'll come out and play an even game, and win it!  Let's go ASU, take it to the Trojans!

So far looking good.  21 -19 ASU after withstanding a 10 - 0 run by USC.  Sun Devils look calm and poised from the opening tip, but got to challenge inside, grab some offensive rebounds and continue with the good D.

LETS GO DEVILS!!

What a game, the intensity was so high inside the Staples Center today, and we were rewardsd with one heck of a performance by both teams.

Sure ASU came out on the short end of the score, but i'm proud of the way the team played together, hanging tough with USC.  Evenly matched throughout, this will most probably be the best game of the day in the tournament.  I am skipping the UCLA -  California blowout, I mean contest , that's being played right now -- and I'm returning to the Staples Center for the remaining two games this evening.

GOOD JOB DEVILS!!!

Well, the news is out and NIT here we are.  You are correct, at least in my opinion, that was a call that should'nt have been made.  Who know, the Sun Devils' fortunes could have changed if the call had not been made and they could be looking at a first - round game at the NCAA's.  Oh well, a good season to build on, and there is more basketball to played!

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NIT Tickets Go on Sale at 1:00 p.m. Monday!

ASU vs. Alabama State
March 18, 2008
8:00 p.m. at Wells Fargo Arena

Head Coach Herb Sendek and the ASU Men's Basketball team finished the regular season 19-12 overall and 9-9 in the Pac-10, earning an invititation to the NIT. Your Sun Devils host Alabama State this Tuesday, March 18th at 8:00 p.m., at home at Wells Fargo Arena.

Your support of the Sun Devils was instrumental to their success, and we need you there, loud, and in gold, as they begin the postseason.  The Sun Devil Ticket Office will be offering tickets to the general public tomorrow, Monday, March 17th, at 1:00 p.m.  Tickets are $15 for the lower level, $10 for upper level and $5 for students. To purchase tickets for Tuesday night's game, visit the Sun Devil Ticket Office between 1 and 5  p.m. Monday or starting at 9:00 a.m. Tuesday, or call the Sun Devil Ticket Office at 480/727-0000.

Thank you for your avid support of Sun Devil Men's Basketball during the regular season, we encourage you to continue that support and join us at Wells Fargo Arena this Tuesday! 

This event is going to be good, and the word that I am hearing around the campus is that this will be an annual event.  The weather is usually beautiful and the Spring Game is a good time to meet the players and find yourself a seat for the upcoming season.

Arizona State University Hosts Gridiron Bash this Spring

3 Doors Down will perform at Sun Devil Stadium

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March 17, 2008

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Arizona State University and New York City-based MSL Sports and Entertainment today announced that the university will host Gridiron Bash^TM The Ultimate Fan Competition^TM the day before the Spring Game. The event -- the first of its kind at Sun Devil Stadium -- will take place during the afternoon and evening of April 18 and include a live performance by 3 Doors Down, as well as a giant pep rally featuring the ASU Marching Band, Cheerleaders, Sparky,, a retrospective of the past season and a recap of spring football and a 2008 season preview. Tickets go on sale Friday March 7th at the Arizona State University box office and online at sundevils.com.

After selling 12 million albums since their debut in 2000, 3 Doors Down is considered one of the top bands in the US today. No stranger to hit singles, 3 Doors Down have had six #1 singles - "Kryptonite," "Duck & Run," "Loser," "Be Like That," "When I'm Gone" and "Here Without You," making them one of the most popular and consistently successful rock bands in recent history. According to Billboard Magazine, they were the first debut act to ever have had a #1 single at four different radio formats simultaneously with "Kryptonite" and the quintet went on to win the 2003 Billboard Music Awards for "Best Pop/Rock Group" and "Best Hot 100 Single," as well as earning the distinction of seeing "When I'm Gone" become the most played song in 2003 according to the Nielson Vegas for Artist of the Year: Modern AC Radio. In the past four years, 3 Doors Down have moved from accomplishment to accomplishment, clearly establishing themselves as an exceptional band, both in the studio and on stage.

"Similar to the excitement surrounding Midnight Madness, there's also excitement around football in the spring, when schools hold practices and Spring Games to showcase the following year's roster," says Steve Hank, Asst. Athletic Director at Arizona State University, which is one of about 20 Division I universities nationwide selected by MSL (the event's creator and producer) to serve as a Gridiron Bash host site. "Thousands of spectators come out each spring to watch our football scrimmages, but that's typically where the `fan experience' ends. Gridiron Bash extends the experience and enables fans to support their team, give back to their university and have a great time doing so." <!-- STORY AD BEGINS HERE -->

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<!-- STORY AD ENDS HERE --> At the core of Gridiron Bash^TM is a fan contest --The USA TODAY Bash for Cash Ser