Near the midway point between the start of practice and opening night, the ASU men's basketball team is confident it has caught up with the new systems put in place by coach Bobby Hurley.
A hallmark of the Hurley brand of basketball is speed; something the Sun Devils did not rely much on in seasons past. The result is a new focus on fitness and getting up and down the floor at all five positions on the court.
With the change of style comes an increase in pace and tempo, which has taken some time for the players to get used to. Thankfully for those new to Hurley's system, guard Shannon Evans, who has to sit out the season due to NCAA transfer rules, played under him for two seasons at Buffalo and has helped the team adapt.
"With Shannon and (junior guard) Torian (Graham) helping us get used to what coach wants, we're in a learning period, we're all catching on and learning his style," sophomore guard Kodi Justice said.
Senior forward Eric Jacobsen has seen the most noticeable change in fitness, as the 6-10 bruiser slimmed his physique during the offseason to better fit the uptempo style of his new head coach.
Jacobsen said his quickness has improved since a season ago and has developed a better jump shot to add to his repertoire.
"I feel comfortable picking and popping to the midrange," Jacobsen said. "You might see a few 3s."
Back in action
It is common practice across college basketball for teams to participate in so-called "secret scrimmages" before the season. The industry's worst kept secret is used to gauge where teams are in preparation for the season and determine rotations. Notably, the Sun Devils were "handled" by San Francisco in their scrimmage leading up to their 2013 NCAA Tournament season, according to ESPN's Jeff Goodman.
"After a month of going at each other every day, you want another opponent," Hurley said. "And that's where we're at right now, so it's nice that we get to have a scrimmage this weekend."
Jacobsen echoed Hurley's sentiment.
"It's definitely getting a little chippy in practice," Jacobsen said.
ASU will get its chance to finally face an external opponent on Halloween night when the Sun Devils play at Long Beach State.
Hurley said the goal of the scrimmage for him is to get the players ready for game speed in the new system and see how the rotation will fit together, especially with just nine scholarship players eligible this season.
"It's a learning process for all of us," Hurley said. "We're still trying to figure some things out."
Reach the reporter at mtonis@asu.edu or follow @Tonis_The_Tiger on Twitter.
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