Preview: Idaho State at Arizona State

Sunday is the last non-conference game and final opportunity for the Idaho State women to upset a big-time conference opponent.

The Bengals are in Tempe, Ariz., to play the 7-4 Arizona State Sun Devils at 2 p.m. (Sunday, Dec. 30)

So far this year, Idaho State has played and lost to Kansas State, No. 22/20 Kansas and Nebraska (the Huskers have received votes in the latest AP top-25 poll and are ranked No. 19 in the USA Today Coaches Poll). The Bengals are 0-3 and lost by an average of 11 per game.

Can the Bengals finally break through and beat an opponent from a major conference?

Let’s think about this matchup in bullet-form style.

• This game closes out the non-conference portion of both team’s schedules. The Sun Devils — winners of four straight — start Pac-12 action at Washington Jan. 4, and the Bengals return to the Big Sky to play North Dakota in frigid Grand Forks Jan. 3 (seriously, it’s cold there. The high for Monday is minus one).

• Since 2009, ASU is 27-3 against non-conference opponents.

• The Sun Devils and Bengals have met before. Back in 1982, ASU won 98-71 and in 2009 Arizona State won 65-56.

• In that 2009 meeting, Ashleigh Vella had seven points in 21 minutes. Kaela Oakes, who is from Chandler, Ariz., only about 20 minutes outside of Tempe, had six points, five assists and no turnovers. Those are the only two current ISU players that recorded any playing time.

• Breaking down the ASU schedule: Overall record of Sun Devil opponents, 75-51; overall record of teams they’ve lost to, 39-8; overall record to teams ASU has beat, 36-43.

• The Sun Devils have played two teams that are either ranked in the latest AP Top-25 or Coaches Poll or have received votes.

• No. 15/14 and 12-0 Dayton beat Arizona State 65-59 in Tempe in the ASU Classic tournament. And UTEP — who at 11-1 received two votes in one poll and six in another — beat the Sun Devils way back on Nov. 11 in Tempe.

• So, I suppose, in very simple terms, it’s fair to say that the Devils have lost to good teams and beaten OK to bad teams.

• Best ASU win? Probably the 74-58 victory over 11-3 Florida in Las Vegas

• Janae Fulcher is ASU’s leading scorer (11.1 points per game). She’s the only Sun Devil averaging double figures, but eight players average at least five points a game.

• Oakes isn’t the only Arizona native playing in her home state. Abyee Maracigian is from Tucson (about two hours away from ASU), and Lindsey Reed hails from Kingman (a three and a half hour drive).

• Stat bit that’s completely useless: Ashleigh Vella leads the Bengals in free throws, rebounds, steals, turnovers and personal fouls. She’s second on the team in both points and blocks. Oh, and Vella is third on ISU in field goals per game, 3-pointers and assists. In other words, there’s literally nothing she’s not doing on the floor.