(Photo: Brendan O’Keeffe/WCSN)
Arizona State Men’s Basketball’s (14-16, 10-10 Pac-12 Conference) regular season ended on Saturday with a 65-56 victory over the Stanford Cardinal (15-15, 8-12 Pac-12).
“Well, it’s great closure to the regular season and how we’ve been the last few weeks, ASU head coach Bobby Hurley said. “I’m just happy for [senior forward] Kimani [Lawrence] to win on his last day and [senior guard Marreon Jackson] as well. Both those guys have really given everything they have. And Kimani getting the dunk at the end was fitting and Marreon didn’t make the threes today and it wasn’t his night from distance. But man, did he play hard on defense with six steals and six assists. So he made winning plays.”
Before the opening tip, ASU hosted senior day celebrations for guard Marreon Jackson and forward Kimani Lawrence. Lawrence spent his entire collegiate career at ASU and now holds the record for most games played in the maroon and gold.
“It’s bittersweet,” Lawrence said. “I’ve been here for the last five years of my life, so this is like home now. I just try not to get too emotional and just focus on the game today. But I’m going to miss playing here… I’m going to miss everything about Arizona State.”
Unlike Lawrence, Jackson spent only one season at ASU, and it was a “roller-coaster” of a season.
“Personally, it’s been a roller coaster for me, with me dealing with my hand injury for the 20 games,” Jackson said. “It’s definitely not the expectations I wanted coming in, but it just made me a better player mentally. My mental got way stronger. I had to go all the way back to the basics to get my confidence back.”
It was all about the Sun Devils during pre-game, but when the game started, the Cardinal took over. Stanford opened the game with a three-pointer from junior forward Spencer Jones. Jones helped the Cardinal build a nine-point lead by shooting a perfect three-for-three from distance.
Stanford got hot quickly, but its streak ended just as fast as it started. ASU’s defensive intensity helped get them back into the game by forcing 13 turnovers in the first half. The Sun Devils also increased their defensive effort from behind the arch. The Cardinal started the first half a perfect 4-for-4 from distance but would finish the half going 1-for-8.
The Sun Devils had erased the nine-point deficit and even took a brief 28-26 lead, but the Cardinal battled back to take a 32-30 lead to end the half.
Sophomore guard DJ Horne had a slow first half, shooting just 1-for-5 with two points. He was able to turn it around in the second half. Horne scored 10 second-half points, shooting 3-for-8 from the field. His aggressiveness led to multiple trips to the line where Horne made all four of his free throws.
Horne was able to get junior forward Jalen Graham going finding him on the block for a hook shot. On the very next possession, Graham got the ball on the block again and made another hook shot. Graham also was fouled and converted the and-one opportunity at the line.
Horne, Jackson and Graham fueled a 7-0 run that gave the Sun Devils a six-point advantage. The lead would hold, until Cardinal sophomore forward Brandon Angel started a 5-0 scoring run, getting Stanford within one. A few possessions later, Angel hit a three, giving the Cardinal a one-point lead.
The one-point advantage would be the final lead Stanford would have.
On the other end, Graham rejected a shot, and the ball found its way to Jackson, who finished the fast break with a layup. On the next possession, sophomore guard Jay Heath grabbed a defensive rebounded and found Horne in transition for a jumper. These two plays sparked a 10-0 scoring run and gave the Sun Devils their fourth consecutive win.
Leading the way for ASU was Jackson, who finished with 18 points, six rebounds and six assists. Jackson also made his presence felt on the defensive end with six steals and a block.
“To be honest with you, I don’t like defense that much, but I love scoring so much that I’m going to try to take the ball from you so I can do the easy layup and get myself going,” Jackson said. “I try to make the best reads.”
To cap off Senior Night, Lawrence found himself alone on the offensive end of the floor and threw done an emphatic dunk. Jackson explained the significance of that moment for the team in his presser and even jokingly called Lawrence “Mr. Sun Devil.”
“It was great, as Mr. Sun Devil himself right there,” Jackson said. “For him to get the last bucket on his floor, that was very special, for him and the whole team,”
Shooting from three-point land has been a staple of ASU’s offense, but tonight’s shots were not falling. As a team, the Sun Devils shot 2-for-17 from downtown, but their 42 points in the paint were enough to get the job done.
“It was good drive and closeout, so it wasn’t only Graham and Kimani,” Hurley said. “And our transition offense has been better.”
ASU feels prepared to head to Las Vegas for the Pac-12 Tournament after winning seven of its last eight games down the stretch.
“I don’t know how you don’t feel good about yourself now,” Hurley said. “And again, everyone is zero and zero and everyone has a clean slate. So, it’s just who has the winning attitude, who really wants to advance, who makes the right plays, who executes, and who defends.”
Next up for Hurley and his squad is the Pac-12 Tournament in Las Vegas, where ASU will face the Cardinal once more on Wednesday as the No. 8 seed. Last season, ASU beat Washington State in the first round but lost to Oregon in the second.
