Spanning from November through the first weekend of April, the college basketball season is a marathon. The opening months are about establishing pace before surging to the finish line.
Sporting a 5-6 record in conference, Arizona State is running out of time to make up ground following a 12-0 start to the year. With their toughest three game stretch of the season opening on Thursday against USC, winning the front end of a Pac-12 weekend is an optimal place to start.
Prior to a loss at UCLA on Feb. 3, the Trojans won six straight games and currently sit a half game above Washington for second place in the standings.