(Photo: Scotty Bara/WCSN)
Those who watch Arizona State (18-6, 7-4) basketball on a regular basis had to have known that an Oregon (15-8, 3-8) comeback in the second half was imminent.
However the Sun Devils pulled out a win and were bailed out once again by the hand of Jordan Bachynski as they defeated the Oregon Ducks 74-72 Saturday afternoon in Tempe.
Oregon guard Joseph Young caught the ball on the baseline for the Ducks with 4.5 seconds remaining and looked to reverse a layup into the bucket when Bachynski’s hand tipped the ball away to give ASU the win.
Following halftime the Sun Devils largely got away from what worked in the first half to give them the 43-23 going into the locker room. What worked was getting the ball to Bachynski.
After scoring 18 points on 5 for 5 shooting from the field in the first half, the seven-footer scored his first field goal of the second half after more than six minutes had ticked away.
“They really started to trap him (Bachynski) so even when we got him the ball, they were bringing the kitchen sink down on him,” head coach Herb Sendek said.
Oregon eventually completed the comeback and gained the lead with 5:18 remaining in the contest.
Along with lack of touches for Bachynski, stagnant ball movement and simply missed shots were among the reasons ASU’s 20-point lead vanished in the second half.
The Ducks looked like a new-born team as the game began to wind down. Their new found swagger was best summed up with 2:18 left when Young attempted a three pointer, posed with his shooting hand up in the air as the ball went through the hoop, and smiled confidently as the game transitioned into a timeout.
“That has to go down as one of the best second half performances I’ve ever seen as a coach,” Sendek said of Young.
Young scored all 29 of his points in the second half of play.
ASU led 71-70 as time wound down and it appeared that Jahii Carson was going to attempt exactly what had not worked the entire half, driving into the interior and attempting an ill-advised layup attempt.
The point guard missed all six of his second half field goal attempts. Despite Carson’s stat line, Sendek commended Carson’s hard earned 12 rebounds in the game.
Instead of continuing with the trend of unsuccessful shots, Jermaine Marshall sunk in a contested floater to put ASU up 73-70 with 13 seconds remaining and it seemed like the Sun Devils had sealed the win.
That outcome was put into question after Young, who again was unconsciously hot in the second half, made two free throws to put the score at 73-72 in ASU’s favor.
Marshall was then fouled by Oregon on the inbound play and missed the first attempt of a double-bonus free-throw visit. The transfer forward made the second free throw to move the Sun Devils’ lead to two points.
After Marshall’s interaction with the free throw line, Bachynski was able to block Young’s shot giving ASU the win.
The first half belonged to Bachynski and because of his possession of the half he transferred that upper hand to ASU.
Bachynski scored seven of ASU’s first 12 points, and the Sun Devils’ commitment to feeding his appetite on the block continued for the remainder of the first half.
That commitment became so stressed that many errant pick-and-roll as well as post-entry passes became turnovers. Eight turnovers in total were registered in the first half after ASU had only eight in the entire game Thursday night against Oregon State.
Although, the majority of those turnovers came at the beginning of the first half, once the Sun Devils settled down they began to run away with the score. Their lead happened to be just enough to help ASU hold on for the win.
Bachynski finished with 26 points, 9 rebounds and 9 blocks. Carson helped with 11 points, 12 rebounds and six assists while Shaquielle McKissic added 15 points and six boards as well.
The Sun Devils shot a miserable 3 of 15 from beyond the arc but shot 46 percent from the field and won the rebounding battle 41-35.
ASU looks to extend their two-game winning streak in one of the biggest games of the year Friday night at 7p.m. at Wells Fargo Arena against the no. 2 Arizona Wildcats.
You can reach this reporter via email caneely@asu.edu or on twitter @CammeronNeely
