The Arizona State basketball team won 15 games in Bobby Hurley's first season as coach and 15 more in his second.
The difference is in the details, accounting for Hurley's optimistic outlook as he shifts back into full-time recruiting mode for next season – there still is room for one more scholarship player – and beyond.
ASU spurted to a 10-3 non-conference record in 2015-16, creating some buzz about a postseason berth only to finish 11th in the Pac-12 and lose in the first round of the Pac-12 Tournament for 15-17 overall. This season, the Sun Devils were just 7-6 in non-conference but improved to eighth in the Pac-12 – three places higher than forecast in the preseason media poll – and won a Pac-12 Tournament game for the first time since 2013.