In (almost) every other sport, the ever-heated rivalry between Arizona and ASU would top the list, but basketball is a little different. The reason the Sun Devils aren't the Wildcats' chief rivals on the hardwood boils down to one simple fact: ASU has never been that good. In the entire run of the Pac-10/12, ASU is the only squad that failed to win a Pac-12 regular season, conference tournament, or national championship.
Arizona won the first nine matchups between the schools and 25 of the first 30. ASU didn't win more than three straight games — winning eight straight over three seasons in the late 1930s — until Arizona had already amassed 48 wins in the series. While ASU has found wins in spurts from the late 50s to the mid-60s and in the 80s, Arizona has controlled this series comfortably over the last 20-odd years.
Even the recent years have brought some fireworks like the 60-foot heave by Desmond Cambridge to shatter Arizona's hopes at the buzzer and Caleb Love embracing being a Wildcat and throwing up the "forks down" during last season's 40-point clobbering. Matchups between these two bitter rivals will always be entertaining, and it's satisfying to have such a commanding lead in the all-time series.