Defense comes up big in Sun Devils’ 76-74 win over SMU

(Photo Credit: Alyssa Buruato/WCSN)

Arizona State men’s basketball (6-2) continued its high-pressure system Wednesday night against Southern Methodist University (6-4) that helped it cap off a 17-2 second-half run to climb back into the game.

“We just keep fighting,” Coach Bobby Hurley said. “We were able to regain momentum in the game and [Alonzo Gaffney] was the point of that.

Gaffney did not fill up the box score with defensive stats, only rejecting a single shot. However, his ability to initiate the Sun Devils’ diamond pressing scheme worked like magic against the Mustangs.

“When we are in our diamond, with Gaffney on the ball, the inbounder doesn’t even know if he can get the ball inbounds,” Hurley said.

The Sun Devils blitzed an increasingly frantic SMU squad into numerous turnovers and forced bad shots in the latter stages of the game, holding them off the scoresheet for five of the game’s final eight minutes.

Hurley utilized guard Frankie Collins — one of his best defenders — in a “centerfield role”, and the junior excelled. Collins ended the game Wednesday with four steals, keeping him in possession of the third-most steals per game in the NCAA.

“Sometimes when teams are outscoring us I feel like it’s because we’re not turning them over enough,” Collins said. “With [Gaffney] up top and me as the steal guy, that turns the whole game around.”

ASU pulled out a 76-74 victory over SMU at Desert Financial Arena, but the added pressure was not the sole reason for the narrow victory, as home-court advantage played a key role down the stretch as well.

“It was good having a crowd,” graduate guard Jose Perez said. “I feed off energy, I know my teammates do as well, the louder it is the more energy we’ll have.”

The Sun Devils ranked 348th out of 351 NCAA programs in free throw percentage going into Wednesday’s game. Despite these woes, they shot an improved 32-for-43 from the free throw line — almost a 75% clip for the night.

Perez knocked down 12 of his 15 shots from the charity stripe, making free throws a staple of his offensive game. However, free throws have been a part of his skillset for most of his collegiate career.

“I’ve just taken notice of [my free-throws] since I was a freshman, getting to the free-throw line,” Perez said. “I did it at a very high level.”

ASU freshman point guard Braelon Green played big minutes Wednesday night, including down the stretch during that crucial 17-2 run.

“I liked that he was a part of the end result,” Hurley said. “He had a positive impact defensively when we were making that surge. Even though he’s a freshman it was tough to take him out of the game and that’s to his credit.”

The Mustangs will head back to Dallas disappointed, letting a 64-53 lead slip away with about 10 minutes left to play, only hitting four field goals in the final quarter and mounting 11 second-half turnovers. SMU was led by junior guard Zhuric Phelps, who paced all scoring with 24 points and finished one rebound short of a double-double.

The Mustangs have proven to be a competitive opponent for teams around the country, only losing by eight points two weeks ago to now-No. 23 Wisconsin and knocking off a Big 12 squad in West Virginia two days prior.

While waiting for some of its players to get healthy, ASU is becoming more confident as the wins start to pile on. Now on a four-game winning streak and still undefeated at home, Hurley was pleased with how his team managed to come away with another victory.

“They’ve got some good players, that’s a good team,” Hurley said. “So to get that victory, it’s really good.”