(Photo: Joshua Eaton/WCSN)
TEMPE – Something between a sigh of relief and a cheer of elation was felt throughout Desert Financial Arena when the final buzzer blared Saturday afternoon, signifying Arizona State men’s basketball’s win over Kansas State.
The Sun Devils got themselves a game-high nine-point lead with less than 4:30 of game action remaining, but the Wildcats refused to go down quietly. From that point on, they scratched and clawed their way back into the game, outscoring the Sun Devils 17-11 down the stretch.
ASU, luckily, just managed to hold them off.
KSU had banked in 3-pointers from nearly 30 feet out, got inside the paint and got itself to the line, but the Sun Devils sank their free-throw attempts, giving them the cushion they needed to secure a much-needed win.
Arizona State’s (10-6, 1-2 Big 12) 87-84 victory over Kansas State (9-7, 0-3) was just what the doctor ordered. The Sun Devils were facing the threat of five straight losses – dating back to Dec. 17 against UCLA in non-conference play – with No. 1 Arizona and No. 7 Houston on the horizon. Five straight losses that could easily turn into seven would’ve derailed their season, but with their backs against the wall, the Sun Devils managed to stay alive.
“We had to win this game,” Senior guard Anthony “Pig” Johnson said. “It was no other option. Either we was going to win this game, or we was going to be in a dark place and we was going to have to try to crawl out.”
With how close the game got at the end, ASU’s 18-3 lead-stealing run in the back half of the second half was imperative.
The Sun Devils found themselves behind KSU for most of the second half, up until their run. They had a chance to tie up the game at 56 apiece when redshirt sophomore forward Santiago Trouet went to the line to try and sink an and-one opportunity. Unfortunately for the Sun Devils, Trouet missed, and they fell down by six before embarking on their impressive stretch.
ASU pierced the interior, scoring 10 straight points inside the painted area or at the free-throw line before the Wildcats managed to interrupt with a singular free-throw. The Sun Devils didn’t slow down, however, managing to score eight more points with only a KSU layup ruining the perfect run.
The last of those eight points came in dramatic fashion, with Johnson finding freshman center Massamba Diop by the basket for a powerful alley-oop slam, sending the building into a roar of excitement as the Sun Devils secured their nine-point lead.
“It seems like (Diop’s) picked it up over the past few weeks, being aggressive,” senior guard and unofficial team captain Moe Odum said. “I’ve been telling him that, ‘you’ve got to hurt somebody. They’re trying to hurt you every play, they’re pushing you, they’re undercutting you, they’re elbowing you, why can’t you do it to them?’ … not hurt somebody, but try to make somebody feel your pain.”
Increased aggression helped Diop lead the way on the run, scoring eight of his 21 points, which, along with Odum’s 21 points, led the team during that section of the game.
Trouet was also key in the team’s second-half success, scoring four points during the 18-3 run, and using his 6-foot-11 frame to be a force inside.
“He had some really blue-collar plays, getting the offensive rebounds, driving the ball,” Sun Devils head coach Bobby Hurley said. “We had an advantage over them around the basket, and we were able to take advantage of it.”
The themes of ASU’s run were prevalent even outside the near six-minute span that the run lasted.
The Sun Devils converted more free throws (24) than the Wildcats shot (21) and outscored them 50-28 in the paint, a shocking figure that was helped by 18 offensive rebounds and 24 second-chance points. As a whole, they out-rebounded KSU 48-34, moving them to 4-0 when they secure 40+ rebounds.
ASU excelled in those areas, but played far from perfectly as a whole. It shot just 40% from the field in the first half, the bench was lifeless, scoring just seven points, and it needed interior dominance in response to shooting a measly 3-of-22 from beyond the arc (14%).
The Sun Devils also committed 15 turnovers, tying the team’s last game against BYU for the second-most turnovers in a single game. Odum, who entered Saturday averaging just three turnovers per game, led the way in that department with seven.
“I really don’t have no excuse,” Odum said. “I’ve got to think about it, never do it again. That simple.”
Defensively, the Sun Devils struggled with closeouts and putting pressure on shooters, something that’s been somewhat of a recurring issue this season. Junior KSU guard Abdi Bashir Jr. hit 6-of-12 shots from beyond the arc, while the Wildcats’ leading scorer, junior guard P.J. Haggerty, converted 3-of-7.
“I feel like we was giving them too many open shots,” Johnson said. “They just made open shots, and if we contest most of those shots, they wouldn’t go in.”
ASU will need to clean up some of its sloppiness in order to run with two of the programs currently running collegiate basketball in Arizona and Houston. Reinforcements in the form of junior guard Bryce Ford could make an impact as soon as Wednesday, returning some quality depth to the squad, but it’s not a guarantee.
The Sun Devils have shown an ability to work on their deficiencies in practice and carry over improvements into gameday, but they haven’t faced a challenge like what lies ahead just yet.
The team isn’t going to throw in the towel, but if they do end up falling to either Arizona or Houston – or both – it won’t be for a lack of confidence.
“We feel like we can beat anybody we step on the floor with,” Johnson said.
