Arizona State Basketball: 2019-20 keys to upset Oregon in Eugene

Stay Hot From 3

One of ASU’s biggest problems this season has been their shooting. They were expected to be a team that would be carried by their guard play this season, but they just have not knocked down their open looks for most of the season. In fact, they have been one of the worst 3-point shooting teams in the country, hitting only 30.3% of their attempts. However, we’ve seen what kind of team ASU can be when they’re knocking down their outside looks.

We saw the 3-ball keep them in a game against Colorado to open the season where they didn’t have Romello White and Taeshon Cherry. It got them the win against Princeton (3 of the last 4 shots they hit were 3s, including the game-winner). It helped them get a dominant win over Texas Southern. Most recently, we saw it help them build a big lead over Oregon State on Thursday.

We’ve also seen what an ASU that can’t knock down 3s looks like it. It’s the team that had no heart in a rivalry game and got absolutely annihilated by the University of Arizona. It was the team that lost at home against Creighton and the team that got embarrassed in what was essentially a home game against Saint Mary’s.

They seemed to have finally gotten their act together against Oregon State. Remy Martin went 3 for 7 from outside. Even Rob Edwards finally found his shot again, knocking down 4 of 5 and scoring his most points since the second game of the season. If he can continue to knock down 3s reliably, it completely changes who ASU is as a team.

If ASU can knock down 3s and stretch the floor, then they’ll give themselves a chance to score a win that would be huge for their resume in March. If they can’t, they might look a lot like the team that played Arizona last weekend.