Belief Remains That Arizona State Will Navigate Challenging Big 12

The Sun Devils are positioned to earn a number of victories in Big 12 play.

Jan 14, 2026; Tucson, Arizona, USA; Arizona Wildcats forward Koa Peat (10) looks to pass the ball during the first half of the game against the Arizona State Sun Devils at McKale Memorial Center. Mandatory Credit: Aryanna Frank-Imagn Images | Aryanna Frank-Imagn Images

TEMPE -- The Arizona State Sun Devils (10-7, 1-3 Big 12) are set to take a trek into the home stretch of the 2025-26 season over the next seven weeks after a competitive 89-82 loss at the hands of the Arizona Wildcats on Wednesday night.

The Sun Devils never trailed by more than 12 points in the game, and even took leads at several different junctures of the contest, which has once again gave the fanbase confidence that the team has the ability to compete over the remainder of a brutal schedule.

Arizona State head coach Bobby Hurley still has faith that the Sun Devils will be able to stack up the remaining 14 games of conference play in his postgame press conference - if the team backs up Wednesday's performance with more high-motor showings, that is.

Jan 14, 2026; Tucson, Arizona, USA; Arizona State Sun Devils head coach Bobby Hurley yells towards players during the first half of the game against the Arizona Wildcats at McKale Memorial Center. Mandatory Credit: Aryanna Frank-Imagn Images | Aryanna Frank-Imagn Images

"We still have 14 league games. If we could bottle some of what we did tonight and try and do that game in and game out, we have a chance to win some games when you could come into a place like this, which is top five that I've been in college basketball. And Moe (Odum) could tell you how he feels about the crowd and just the environment, but it's, it's, it's one of the best so the guys to come in and play the way we did, I'm pretty proud of what they did tonight."

There were undeniably several positives to take out of the game, including the bench contributions and three-point shooting efforts - the Sun Devils should be able to carry this into the final stretch of the season.

Jan 14, 2026; Tucson, Arizona, USA; Arizona State Sun Devils guard Moe Odum (5) shoots a three point shot over Arizona Wildcats guard Dwayne Aristode (2) during the second half of the game at McKale Memorial Center. Mandatory Credit: Aryanna Frank-Imagn Images | Aryanna Frank-Imagn Images

Arizona State's Remaining Schedule

• 1/18: @ #7 Houston

• 1/21: vs. West Virginia

• 1/24: vs. Cincinnati

• 1/27: @ UCF

• 1/31: vs. #1 Arizona

• 2/4: @ Utah

• 2/7: @ Colorado

• 2/10: vs. Oklahoma State

• 2/17: vs. #17 Texas Tech

• 2/21: @ Baylor

• 2/24: @ TCU

• 2/28: vs. Utah

• 3/3: vs. Kansas

• 3/7: @ #2 Iowa State

• The Sun Devils play four more ranked teams this season, this includes Sunday's road game against the Houston Cougars - who have posted one of the best defenses in the nation once again.

• Arizona State get opportunities to avenge losses to Arizona and Colorado within a week of each other. They were in a position to defeat both squads the first time around.

• The Sun Devils get two games against a Utah squad that is most widely considered the weakest squad in the league - they need to avoid losing to the Utes.

• The most challenging slate remaining this season is likely the final two games against Kansas and Iowa State - which conveniently closes out the regular season

Read more on why the Arizona State men's basketball team will exceed expectations in the 2025-26 season here, and on why the bright future of the football program isn’t dimmed by the loss to Arizona here.

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