ASU Men’s Basketball: Sun Devils to face UCLA without Martin, Graham and others

(Photo: Marlee Smith/WCSN)

Arizona State Men’s Basketball already had a tough task Thursday night against UCLA, as the contest would be the Sun Devils’ first in almost three weeks.

Now, that task will be even tougher. According to multiple reports, ASU will be without senior guard Remy Martin – who is attending his grandfather’s funeral; sophomore forward Jalen Graham, who has mono; sophomore guard Jaelen House and junior forward Taeshon Cherry, whose absences were both described as non-injury and non-disciplinary.

The losses are crushing for ASU, who loses their starting point guard and center against a UCLA team that head coach Bobby Hurley said “is a challenge.”

Senior guard Holland Woods would figure to start in place of Martin, while junior forward Chris Osten could be the replacement for Graham. Behind those two, the Sun Devils will likely need big minutes from senior guard Alonzo Verge Jr. and sophomore guard Caleb Christopher, the brother of freshman starting guard Josh Christopher.

In place of Cherry, senior forward Kimani Lawrence will likely see a bigger role, and freshman forward Marcus Bagley’s return to the court after missing ASU’s last three games with a calf injury will likely provide the depth boost needed while facing the Bruins.

Tip-off is scheduled for 8:30 p.m. M.T. at Desert Financial Arena.