(Photo: Nicholas Badders/WCSN)
One could argue that Arizona State Men’s Basketball truly belonged in the 2k Empire Classic to open the 2020-21 season.
The No. 18 Sun Devils, who fell 83-74 to No. 3 Villanova Thursday night, found a commonality with the tournament’s corporate sponsor in its second game of the regular season.
2k’s NBA video game series has drawn scrutiny over the years for its lack of fundamentals. The company has been criticized for focusing too much on the flashiness and graphics of the game rather than the gameplay itself.
On the night of Thanksgiving, the Sun Devils could say the same thing about their play as well.
Opponents and fans are equally aware of the offensive star power or “flashy graphics” ASU possesses. But through two games, those same people are wondering if this team can take care of the essential fundamentals first.
Consistent defense and rebounding is a realm ASU needs to improve upon vastly if it wants to maximize the potential of its group. The Sun Devils allowed 80-plus points for the second consecutive game while getting out rebounded 43-27 Thursday night. The veteran Villanova squad had the clear upper hand over a younger ASU team.
“Once we started gaining momentum we weren’t able to continue to build off that,” head coach Bobby Hurley said. “I felt like we were too up and down throughout the game – we would have a few good minutes and then would have a defensive break down.”
The tortoise and the hare – the cliche story of persistence over pace – was the theme of Villanova’s win over ASU. The less athletic, slower Wildcat crew made the Sun Devils play to their pace, due to a career night from sophomore forward Jeremiah Robinson-Earl.
“They are really good at what they do, they stick to their system,” Hurley said. “They really know who they are – you know, we’re still searching for an identity. We’re playing with some younger guys, we are going to improve as the year goes on.”
Robinson-Earl applied plenty of pressure on the Sun Devils as he tallied a career-high 28 points on 11-17 shooting from the field. ASU senior guard Remy Martin struggled to find his groove, as the Pac-12 1st team All-American was held to five points on 2-8 shooting.
“I appreciated that he didn’t have his best stuff on offense tonight, so instead he didn’t force the action and noticed that Josh and Verge had a game going,” Hurley said. “We have to have multiple guys playing well. We just didn’t have enough offense to beat a team this good.
“Villanova is very methodical. They play together. They move without the ball. They attack matchups very well – they are different because they’ll post their guards and if you over help they are kicking out to a shooter. They put a lot of pressure on your defense in a number of ways.”
With Martin struggling to contribute offensively, freshman guard Josh Christopher began to cook. Christopher scored the first 13 of 19 points for the Sun Devils. The five-star recruit was zeroed offensively and was active all night on the defensive end, finishing with 28 points on 11-17 shooting.
“He looked locked-in,” Hurley said of Christopher. “I think he got in a good groove early in the game. He showed you a glimpse of what he is capable of. A heck of a performance from a freshman playing against one of the best teams in the country. He made some plays at the offensive end to keep us in a position to make a run. I think he is on the right track right now.”
Hurley also turned to senior guard Alonzo Verge Jr. throughout Martin’s scoring drought. The 6-feet-2-inch combo guard poured in 22 points on 50 percent shooting and snagged seven rebounds.
“Josh had a game going and I think Verge did too to some degree,” Hurley said. “He’s just not finishing at the hoop the way I think he’ll be capable of as we keep moving forward. He [Verge] still scored 22 points tonight – he’s getting closer to starting be the guy he was for us last year.”
In a loss where ASU’s typical star had a dim performance, Christopher’s performance serves as one the Sun Devils can build off of moving forward, and could be the highly-touted freshman’s coming out party to those unaware with another contest against Houston Baptist upcoming on Sunday.
