(Photo: Brady Klain/WCSN)
When it mattered most, both Arizona State Men’s Basketball and Grand Canyon turned to its leaders to take the final shot in the cardinal moment of the game between the two schools Sunday night. With nine seconds remaining, the No. 23 ranked Sun Devils looked to senior guard Remy Martin for the winning shot, which fell from the corner behind the three point arc.
“He wants those moments,” head coach Bobby Hurley said. “Some guys thrive in those moments and other guys don’t handle it so well for whatever reason. He’s proven over and over that he’s that type of guy. I think Remy is always going to be targeted late in games, especially the way he was playing in the second half. The timing was good. I liked how we executed on the last possession.”
After GCU senior center Alessandro Lever scored a three-pointer with 30 seconds left in the game, Hurley called a timeout to draw up what would be the ASU’s final play in the cross-town showdown.
“Coach drew up a great play,” Martin said. “I know that he trusts me [with the] late shot.”
The score was 71-70 ASU, and with just six seconds remaining, the Antelopes hoped sophomore point guard Javon Blacksher Jr., who had just come off a career-high 22-point performance against Nevada Friday night, would make the game-winning shot for GCU. However, with tight defense from ASU senior guard Holland Woods, Blacksher Jr. missed from the top of the three-point line and the score held for the Sun Devils’ fourth win of the season.
Blacksher Jr. finished with 21 points followed by Lever, who scored 18 for GCU.
After a tough 80-68 loss to San Diego State University Thursday night, the Sun Devils (4-2) traveled just 14 miles west to face Antelopes in an arena that was filled with rowdy fans Sunday – the perfect environment for the nail-biting contest.
“It made me feel like college basketball was really back,” Martin said. “The fun of college basketball is the atmosphere.”
Though their hustle was questionable throughout the first few games of the season, the Sun Devils highlighted their determination against the Antelopes with savvy second half offense. ASU made 17 of 31 second half shots.
“Remy had a huge spurt there in the second half and really showed why he’s such a big time player,” Hurley said.
Martin scored 23 of his 31 points in the second half.
“I decided to take it up a notch and be myself,” Martin said.
Defense dominated the first half, and although both teams ended the frame shooting just 38% from the field, it was GCU that was able to end the first with a flourish. Blacksher Jr. stole the ball at center court from a distracted Martin and went up for a layup with 13 seconds remaining in the half.
Once again, just seconds later, Blacksher Jr. highlighted his leadership ability by single-handedly snatching the lead back from the Sun Devils, making the score 30-29 as time expired to end the first half.
ASU struggled to generate its typical flashy offense as GCU took as large as a seven-point lead against ASU. With five minutes remaining in the first, GCU led 23-16.
With a defensively dominant first half and an offensive battle in the second half, the local contest proved to be quite an entertaining and perhaps a surprising one. As the two schools haven’t officially competed against each other since 1980, Hurley showed recognition for the challenge the Antelopes’ presented his team Sunday.
“I want to congratulate GCU,” Hurley said. “Their team fought hard and I think Coach [Bryce] Drew is going to do a great job out here in the Valley.”
