(Photo: Travis Whittaker/WCSN)
If the need for Marcus Bagley wasn’t already clear, Arizona State Men’s Basketball’s 76-63 loss to the University of Texas at El Paso on Wednesday night could not have been more of an indicator.
The 6’8” freshman forward went down with an apparent left calf injury in his Pac-12 debut against Cal on Dec. 3, and the array of offensive skills in his arsenal – floor spacing and slashing with ease – is at times performed at an NBA level. Bagley also adds a physical presence to the Sun Devils, as he was the team’s leading rebounder (5.8) prior to injury.
“Missing Marcus [Bagley] right now is no good for us – he brings a lot,” freshman guard Josh Christopher said. “He is flying around the court all game. A lot of us are missing shots and that’s his strong suit right now: knocking shots down.”
Bagley was not the only thing the Sun Devils missed desperately on Wednesday night. If not for a lone bank-shot three-pointer from junior forward Taeshon Cherry in the first half, ASU would have shot a combined 0-18 from beyond the arc against UTEP.
Shooting was far from the only area in which the Sun Devils needed Bagley’s assistance. The rebounding tally was once again in-favor of an ASU opponent Wednesday. The Miners just kept drilling, and out-rebounded the Sun Devils 46-26. ASU has now been out-rebounded in six out of seven games it has played this season.
“It’s gonna be key to get Marcus [Bagley] back in the fold and [junior forward] Chris Osten is going to get a lot more minutes,” head coach Bobby Hurley said of the struggles on the boards. “Because he’ll [Osten] battle, fight and compete. And he’s got a heart when he plays – he plays with a lot of heart and courage. You’re gonna see more of him and hopefully that’ll help.”
With Bagley’s return still in question and ASU’s front-court struggling mightily on the glass, Hurley will look to shuffle his hand as Pac-12 play starts to heat up.
“We’re gonna have to make some changes to whose playing, particularly [in] our front-court,” Hurley said. “You’re disappointed Remy [Martin] couldn’t play better – but when you look at the stat sheet it’s very revealing what the differentials were between the four and five position.”
Preseason All-American guard Remy Martin wasn’t his usual fiery self. Instead, the Sun Devil was ice cold. The senior finished with nine points on 2-7 shooting and only scored two points in a sloppy second half that saw the Sun Devils get out-scored 43-22.
“[He] just didn’t have the normal look that I am accustomed to seeing from him,” Hurley said of Martin. “You know, just out there with the fire and passion and flying around the court.”
A lack of fire and passion has been a consistent theme throughout this young season for ASU. However, a certain young star has shown consistency in both regards: Christopher.
“We got to get more guys playing up to the level of intensity that he [Christopher] demonstrated in this game,” Hurley said.
Christopher finished with 24 points and a flurry of contact finishes. Christopher, much like in previous games, flashed his defensive prowess, swiping away four steals and collecting two blocks. The 6’5” guard also helped where it hurt for the Sun Devils by snagging six rebounds.
“I thought he did more than just make some shots, he dove on the floor a couple times,” Hurley said. “[Christopher] really mixed it up well on defense. He was really connected to the game.”
Despite all of the turmoil, the Sun Devils led by eight at the half, 41-33. In the second half, undisciplined play that Hurley harped on post-game reared its ugly head. ASU shot 29% from the field, 0% from three and 44% from the free-throw line in the second half.
“Before we knew it, everything we gained we had given away,” Hurley said. “I thought it was more of the spirit of how we competed that was disappointing.”
Christopher believes it is time for the Sun Devils to step their games up.
“At this point ASU basketball just needs to be better at everything,” Christopher said. “As far as pushing the ball up the court, we need to be better. Half-court sets we got to be better. [On the] defensive end we need to be better [and we need to be] rebounding better. And it starts off with practice.
“It’s not over yet, we just have to lock back in.”
The Sun Devils thought they might have had the chance to “lock back in” against Incarnate Word Friday night, but that game has been cancelled due to COVID-19 issues with the Cardinals. Instead, ASU will have to look toward its second non-conference game of the year Tuesday against Utah, a matchup that likely won’t make things any easier for a Sun Devil team still looking to find its way.
