(Photo: Brady Klain/WCSN)
After returning home from Shanghai, China, the Sun Devils expected to rebound. It so turned out that returning to the home confines of Desert Financial Arena was just the spark ASU needed to rectify their non-conference slate.
Arizona State (1-1) defeated Central Connecticut State (0-3), 90-49, in the team’s first home game of the season. From the opening tip on, Arizona State dominated the Blue Devils from the field.
The Devils found success early, as they converted their shots at a 55.2 percent clip. Guard Rob Edwards paced the Sun Devil offense, making five of his seven attempts from beyond the arc, and leading the Sun Devils with 15 points at the half.
“’I’m proud of him. I’m happy for him,” head coach Bobby Hurley said. “He’s worked extremely hard in the offseason, working on getting his back right and he feels great. He’s moving great. And you know, he’s been terrific our first two games. So, his threes in the first half, I thought were very important for us to build a lead that we built.”
Central Connecticut State held tight, withstanding the Devils’ early attack. The Blue Devils cut into the ASU lead with a 9-0 run late in the first half, slashing the Arizona State lead to seven.
ASU fought right back by generating a 9-0 run of their own, spearheaded by easy buckets inside the lane. Of the Sun Devils 90 points scored against the Blue Devils, 42 of them came from inside the paint.
Some of that post scoring came from players who did not play in the team’s season opener in China. After serving one-game suspensions each because of team rules violations, forwards Taeshon Cherry and Romello White saw their first game action of the season.
Cherry and White combined for six points with twenty minutes of game action. White earned a game-high 11 rebounds while down low on the block.
“That brought a lot of energy. That was like our spark that we needed, but they both dominated at their positions,” guard Rob Edwards said of his teammates. “Taeshon… He hits shots and Mello, you know plays down low, but he’s just a beast down low. He gets rebounds, blocks shots. He does everything that we need offense and defense so we can’t ask for that much. We just happy to have him back.”
Bolstered by additions in the frontcourt, the Sun Devils held strong defensively. ASU allowed the lowest total points to an opponent in the Bobby Hurley era. The next closest game was last season when ASU gave up just 52 points in a victory over McNeese State.
The Devils entered the second half with the same offensive prowess they possessed in the first half, outscoring CCSU, 47-26. Edwards collected an additional eight points in the second half, pushing his total to a game-high 23 points.
“I got a lot more confidence, you know, and I’m just feeling good,” Edwards said. “Healthy and trying to help the team win as many games as we can.”
ASU guard Jaelen House performed well on the defensive end of the floor, leading the Sun Devils with four steals. Hurley credits Jaelen’s hustle and motivation as key attributes for his style of defense.
“I feel like you could be good, but I’ve been doing it since I was like a little kid,” House said. “So, I’m just used to playing hard on defense.”
Former ASU player and NBA Champion Eddie House was at Desert Financial Arena Thursday to watch his son play his first collegiate home game.
ASU will need to take that strong will mentality into their next matchup against the Rider Broncs. That game tips off Sunday from Desert Financial Arena at 6:00 p.m.
