ASU Goes To Great Alaska Shootout, Takes On Houston Baptist On Thanksgiving

ASU is up in Anchorage, playing in the Great Alaska Shootout. Their competition, Houston Baptist, is already 0-3 on the season with losses to Oklahoma State, Northwestern State and Texas-Arlington. Realistically, this is a gimme win for the Sun Devils, and will be a great gelling experience for the team.

After Houston Baptist, ASU will play Weber State or Alaska Anchorage, the team where Taylor Rohde currently plays. Due to UAA being a Division-II team, Rohde was able to suit up immediately for the Seawolves, where he is a top contributor already.

After that game, ASU has a plethora of possibilities when it comes to opponents: anyone from St. John's to Drake could play the Sun Devils. Take a look at the bracket here. Ideally, ASU would play St. John's, a Big East school that would help out with the RPI situation.

This tournament is filled with lower-level teams, and the Sun Devils truly need to win all three games they play in snowy, cold Alaska. Otherwise, this trip will be quite a negative experience. Despite what the media says about ASU, I think they have a real chance to win 20 games again this year. Beating up on some lesser schools counts just as much as any other win.

By the time Arizona St. hits the court against Baylor, they need to have found an identity and have a 4-1 record. That would be quite pleasant.