Blogging with the Devils

Remember back in December when Arizona State’s Jeff Pendergraph was barely getting a half-dozen shots per game?

He’s still third on the team in shot attempts (behind James Harden’s, this week’s Pac-10 player of the week, and Ty Abbott), but Pendergraph’s up to seven attempts per game, and with Harden and Abbott present, that number should increase quickly.

Pendergraph was fed the ball immediately after halftime against both Oregon and Oregon State and immediately expanded the Sun Devils’ leads.

With Harden being a new guy in town (right), basketball life has gotten much easier for the big man on ASU’s campus.  (Lisa Olson/Tribune)

He’s missed two shots in two Pac-10 games. He’s shooting 68.4 percent from the field and 81 percent from the free throw line. In the past five games he’s averaging 19.4 points and 8.4 rebounds.

Between Pendergraph and Haren (and thanks to one another), it’s no wonder ASU has scored 70 points seven times in 14 games. They scored 70 points three times last season.

 it’s good not to be in the Top 25.

ASU is 10-0 at home thus far, compared to 7-11 last season.

According to ASU media relations department, as many as 10 NBA scouts are expected to be in attendance for Wednesday’s tilt with Arizona.

Obviously 3-0 would suit Arizona State just dandy, but even if the Sun Devils lose to Arizona (which is looking like a toss-up game for the first time in years), winning two of three at home to start the Pac-10 slate would be welcome.

In addition to the victory, at least three other positives emerged from Saturday’s 72-53 win against Oregon State, a victory the Sun Devils needed against the one Pac-10 not as highly regarded as the rest of them.

No. 1:  Ty Abbott

Teams are starting to pay more attention to Ty Abbott at the 3-point line, but he had a few open looks he normally makes. He went 3-for-14, including 1 of 12 from behind the arc against the Oregon schools. With James Harden and Jeff Pendergraph and better ball movement displayed by ASU on Saturday, this mini-slump won’t last.

Still, it’s a testament to Abbott and his willingness to keep shooting while do the other things necessary to help win games. In Abbott’s case, defend and grab a few rebounds.

Ty Abbott did this a lot at Phoenix Desert Vista, and he’s done it well enough at ASU to get minutes while the shots won’t fall. 

He did both on Saturday, helping out against Marcel Jones, Omari Johnson and Josh Tarver, the Beavers three dangerous scorers who were non-factors most of the game.

Things like that which don’t show up in boxscores are why Abbott is still getting 35-plus minutes.

No. 2: Eric Boateng

Boateng knew he could do better than Thursday night, and he came back with a couple quick, decisive moves inside against Oregon State on Saturday. With Jeff Pendergraph in foul trouble early, the Sun Devils never lost their lead with Boateng in the middle, which is ultimately what ASU wants to see in games for the immediate future.

“Whatever way an individual player can add value, that’s what has to be done,” Boateng said after Saturday’s game. “We all have to chip in and keep moving forward.”

No. 3: Jamelle McMillan

Derek Glasser has been such a valuable playmaker at point guard the past few weeks that McMillan has gotten squeezed a little for playing time.

When he has played — particularly the past few games — there have been signs of tentativeness. Hardly shocking given he’s a freshman playing at another level (not even his dad as an NBA coach can counter the adjustments most college newbies go through).

He wasn’t making shots, and, more critically in the eyes of coach Herb Sendek, committed turnovers.

McMillan went 0-for-2 from the field in Saturday’s win, but it was his best floor game since before Christmas. He had three rebounds, two assists, was active defensively, and most importantly, zero turnovers.

They’ll need help from this trio on Wednesday. Arizona should be plenty ticked after losing at home to Oregon on Saturday, and though the availability of freshman phenom and former Phoenix St. Mary’s star Jerryd Bayless (knee injury) remains in doubt.

But, as Sendek said postgame Saturday: ”Regardless of who’s coaching them, (Chase) Budinger is still there.”

With or without Jerryd Bayless, the sophomore Chase Budinger (above) and his Wildcats can ball,  but could he pass for a young Bill Walton?

“Arizona is a great program, they’ve dominated this series,” Sendek added. “We know we have to be at a high level to compete against them.”

As has become standard practice, here’s more randomness from Arizona State’s win against Oregon in Thursday night’s Pac-10 opener:

PGA Tour pro Jeff Quinney was in the front row Thursday night. Tough dilemma:  He’s an ASU alumus (2001), but born in Eugene, Ore.

Derek Glasser’s first half:  0-for-4 shooting, no free throws, three rebounds, three assists.

Glasser’s second half: 2-for-4 shooting, 5-of-7 free throws, four rebounds, four assists, two steals.

The freshmen got theirs, but this sophomore point guard made plenty of plays when the going got tough late. 

Must have been something in his Gatorade: Both Jeff Pendergraph and Eric Boateng didn’t look like themselves in the first half; laboring and not nearly as agile.

After halftime, Pendergraph was his normal self again (I still can’t figure out how the bandages he wears on his left wrist don’t bother him). Boateng briefly returned to the locker room during the game.

Later, Pendergraph said he felt weird in the first half, but eight quick points to start the second half and a win can cure many things. With both James Harden and Ty Abbott sick, perhaps Jeff and Eric caught a trace of the germs.

Given some of their non-conference opponents, the Sun Devils weren’t going to keep averaging 75 points per game. The offense was putrid most of the night against a mediocre Oregon defense, but ASU still found a way to win.

Coach Herb Sendek loathes comparing one year’s team to another, and often for good reason, but there’s not a snowball’s chance in you-know-where that the 2006-07 Sun Devils would have won Thursday’s game.

Pity those poor guards.

A McDonald’s All-American, James Harden figured to be an immediate contributor, and he’s done that and more through Arizona State’s nonconference schedule.

He’s seventh in the Pac-10 in scoring (16.9 points per game) and among the top ten in field goal percentage, 3-point shooting and free throw shooting. He’s also No. 1 in steals at two per game.

Those are great, but the remarkable thing about the Pac-10’s youngest scholarship player (18 years, four months) is his 57 percent shooting and 46 percent from the 3-point line.

He’s second among the Pac-10 scoring leaders with 119 shot attempts (Oregon’s Malik Hairston has 120), and he’s a freshman shooting guard (as opposed to 6-foot-10 forward like UCLA’s Kevin Love) which makes his shooting percentage even more ridiculous.

James Harden’s done a lot of driving in his first 12 collegiate baskeball games, and since few have stopped him, he’s had his share of dunks and layups but is a fraction behind Jerren Shipp in 3-point efficiency for the Sun Devils.

“I can’t recall a single time, a single instance so far where he’s been selfish,” ASU coach Herb Sendek said. ”Some guys average 20 points per game but have to ice their arm after games.”

Harden’s ability to drive with either hand and get to the free throw line aids his scoring prowess significantly. He’s taken but a handful of what most people would classify as bad shots this season, but most of those were simply having to beat the shot clock.

Against Saint Francis, he scored 21 points on seven shots attempts. His season-high is 16 attempts.

He’d be over 60 percent shooting if not for a 2-for-9 back in the season opener against Illinois.

We’ll see what happens once the Pac-10 game films get shared (and they will). Adjustments and growing pains are sure to follow, but there’s little reason to believe he won’t counter the counters.