Oregon vs Arizona State Odds and Picks

• Oregon will play its first road game in a month when it visits Arizona State in a Pac-12 game at 8pm ET on Thursday
• Arizona State and Oregon have had 12 games — six apiece — cancelled or postponed because of the pandemic
• Check the odds, analysis and betting predictions below

Oregon will play its first road game in a month when it visits Arizona State in a Pac-12 game at 8pm ET on Thursday.

Oregon (10-4, 5-3) has lost three of its four games since returning from a 13-day stoppage on Jan. 9 because of coronavirus issues in the program. Arizona State (6-8, 3-5) has not played in 11 days for the same reason.

Oregon vs Arizona State Odds

Odds from FanDuel on Feb. 10

The Ducks reached No. 17 in the AP poll after winning eight of their first nine games and were No. 22 in the Jan. 11 poll after moving to 9-2. They have not been ranked since, however, following an upset loss to Oregon State and five postponements.

Oregon, Arizona State Scrambling To Compete

Both Oregon and Arizona State have had two coronavirus-related stoppages in their programs and have played only 14 games, the fewest in Pac-12. Each has played only eight conference games with a month remaining until the scheduled start of the Pac-12 postseason tournament on March 10.

The Ducks played only three games in 32 days following a 79-73 victory at Utah on Jan. 9, and the layoff seemed to take its toll. They suffered home losses to Oregon State and Washington State before beating two-win Washington 86-74 last Saturday.

A home series against the Arizona schools and a road series at the Los Angeles schools were postponed during hiatus, as was a rescheduled game against UCLA.

Arizona State’s herky-jerky season included a 21-day pause from mid-December to early January and the recent 11-day layoff. The Sun Devils lost six straight games in a 42-day span before recovering to sweep California and Stanford at home the last weekend of January, their last two games.

Three ASU players tested positive following the Bay Area sweep and coach Bobby Hurley said he will be without three players against Oregon. ASU is not required to make the names public. ASU has not played a game with its full roster this season.

Injuries Compounding Oregon’s Disjointed Season

Oregon played the first 12 games without nominal starting point guard Will Richardson, who underwent surgery on his left (shooting) thumb after suffering the injury in practice before the Dec. 2 season-opener against Missouri. He had 29 points, 10 assists and 10 turnovers when he returned last week against the Washington schools.

The Ducks lost 6-foot-6 senior guard Chris Duarte, their best player, to a sprained right ankle in the Washington State loss, and coach Dana Altman would only say there was a chance Duarte would play against Arizona State. Duarte is one of five NCAA Division I players averaging at least 17 points and two steals a game while shooting 50% from the field.

Oregon forward Eric Williams Jr, averaging 12.3 points and 6.3 rebounds, is expected to play after missing the last two games while observing COVID protocols. Duarte and forward L.J. Figueroa  missed the Jan. 23 loss to Oregon State because of COVID.

By The Numbers

Oregon is 6-8 against the spread but has failed to cover the last three following its 13-day layoff and four of its last five. The Ducks are 2-1 straight up and against the number in their three Pac-12 road games. The Ducks are 10-4 going over the total. and they have gone over in five straight and six of the last seven.

Arizona State is 3-11 against the spread, although it has covered two of its last four. The Sun Devils are 2-3 at home and against the spread in Pac-12 games.

The Ducks have won 11 of the last 13 in the series, including two meetings in the Pac-12 postseason tournament. ASU has won the last two and seven of the last 11 in Tempe.

Oregon has a decisive edge on the boards. The Ducks have a +3.6 rebounding margin. Arizona State’s margin is minus-9.0, which is 332nd among the 340 NCAA Division I teams. The Sun Devils have out-rebounded only one team, Rhode Island, in their season opener.

Arizona State likes to push the ball — the Sun Devils’ adjusted tempo is 16th in Division I, according to KenPom.

Fresh Faces Complementing Old Hands

Freshman wing Josh Christopher has joined senior guard Remy Martin as the go-to offensive players at Arizona State. Christopher is averaging 15.3 points per game and had 28 in a loss to Villanova, and he is the only Sun Devil to start every game.

Martin (18.0 points per game, 4.2 assists) missed one game while observing COVID protocols.

Unselfishness gets it done every time 💯💯💪🏽 https://t.co/dFggNDRRln

— Lj Figueroa (@Lj_Figueroa) November 25, 2020

Transfers forwards Eugene Omoruyi, L.J. Figueroa and guard Amauri Hardy have made 34 starts for Oregon, Hardy manning the point while Richardson was out. They are averaging a combined 33.7 points and 13.8 rebounds. Hardy has a team-high 51 assists against 23 turnovers.

The 6-foot-6 Omoruyi (17.6 points, 5.1 rebounds), a senior transfer from Rutgers, is averaging almost three offensive rebounds per game.

Arizona State has regained its primary inside presence with the return 6-foot-9 sophomore center Jalen Graham, who missed 35 days because of COVID and mononucleosis. He has scored 48 points since returning the last four games and had his first career double-double against Arizona on Jan. 25.

The pick: Oregon -1.5 (-115)