Sun Devils secure first Big 12 victory in 81-61 win over Colorado

(Photo: Maya Diaz/WCSN)

Last weekend, the Arizona State men’s basketball team kicked off its inaugural season as a member of the vaunted Big 12 with a disappointing opening showing against BYU, losing by 20 and not displaying any of the characteristics it would take to win in the Sun Devils’ new home.

Now four days later, a familiar opponent came to Tempe for ASU’s Big 12 home opener as fellow Pac-12 migrant Colorado made the short trip to Desert Financial Arena. The Buffaloes have had a fascinating non-conference season as they boast one of the best wins in the conference.

A 73-72 thrilling win over two-time defending National Champions UConn in the Maui Invitational highlighted a 9-2 preseason slate, but it is Colorado’s only win over a power conference opponent. The Buffaloes’ three losses came at the hands of Iowa State, once in the Maui Invitational and once in Colorado’s Big 12 opener, and Michigan State.

In their first home game in over a month, the Sun Devils (10-3, 1-1 Big 12) looked much more comfortable, even without leading scorer freshman guard Joson Sanon, jumping out to an early 23-point lead and riding it to a dominant 81-61victory over Colorado (9-4, 0-2 Big 12).

Here are three takeaways.

No Place Like Home

As mentioned above, Saturday was ASU’s first home game since Dec. 3, when they easily handled a University of San Diego team. Since that comfortable win, the Sun Devils spent most of the month of December not in game-ready mode. Three games from Dec. 4th to today resulted in an average of 10 days in between games.

The extra rest has appeared to be detrimental to ASU as they have suffered slow starts in all three games since San Diego. In two of those games against No.6 Florida and BYU, the Sun Devils were unable to climb their way out of the early double-digit holes, suffering near 20 point losses in both. Across the three games in December, ASU averaged 29.6 first half points.

Returning home for the first time in 31 days, as well as getting back on a normal schedule, worked wonders for the Sun Devils as they matched their first-half total against San Diego, scoring 40 first-half points and entering the break up 13. That 13-point lead was a disappointing result overall after ASU jumped out to a 23-point lead thanks to contributions from a balanced scoring attack.

All seven Sun Devils in the rotation scored at least three points in the first half as they shot 51.9% and 42.9% from beyond the arc. After trading buckets to start the game, ASU was down 6-5 just under two minutes into the game. Over the next 10:24, ASU blitzed Colorado, combining efficient offense with great defense to go on a 27-5 run.

Four different Sun Devils hit a three-point across the stretch as good ball movement opened up open shots. On the other side of the ball, ASU was flying around, forcing Colorado, a 36.7% three-point shooting team, to miss nine of its first 10 shots from deep.

With ASU back on a normal schedule, playing once every three to four days, the Sun Devils should be able to find more of a rhythm as Big 12 play heats up.

“We talked about putting December in the rearview mirror,” ASU head coach Bobby Hurley said when asked what the team worked on since BYU. “We were 7-1 in November and 2-2 in December. … Now we’re going to be in a more regular routine playing games. We’ve got to get back to being the team that we were in November, and I think we showed signs of that on the offensive end.”

– Sammy Nute

No Sanon, No Problem

Sanon has been an integral part of the offense this season. ASU has found a rising star, shooting 48.3% from three and averaging 13.5 points per game. He’s a projected first-round pick according to Sports Illustrated. ASU counts on him night in and night out to ignite the offense. However, due to an ankle issue, the standout ASU freshman was sidelined Saturday.

ASU has lost two of the last three games in which the freshman has averaged 6.3 points per game, and their only other defeat this season came when Sanon scored less than ten points, causing concern for Saturday’s contest.

ASU’s offense, spearheaded by senior forward BJ Freeman’s season-high 19 points, clinched the team’s first conference game of the year in spite of an absent Sanon. The squad also scored the most points in a game since Dec. 3 against San Diego, scoring 40 points in both halves.

“I’m glad to see (Freeman) kind of break out offensively,” Hurley said. “He made shots, he was very impactful at that end, and with (Sanon) out, we definitely needed that from BJ tonight.”

Their ability to get out in transition, make long-range shots, and move the ball offensively was a major factor in their explosive offensive performance. The Sun Devils’ offense can take off when all three of those factors are clicking, as it did tonight. ASU managed to score 19 points on fast breaks, 13 three-pointers, three from Freeman, three from senior guard Adam Miller, and a season-high four from senior forward Basheer Jihad.

Freshman center Jayden Quaintance also continues to progress offensively, as he made three separate jump shots tonight, one of which was his third three-pointer of the season, for 11 points, his fifth double-digit scoring effort in his past six games.

Given the circumstances, an 81-point game is beyond encouraging. Despite rotating just seven players, head coach Bobby Hurley continues to stress how deep their squad is. Tonight’s game featured a seven-man rotation, falling to six when Freeman was ejected midway through the second half, yet at no point did it appear like ASU lacked offense on the court.

Hurley announced after the game that Sanon’s injury was not deemed serious and that ASU could get him back for a pivotal matchup vs. No. 7 Kansas on Wednesday, Jan. 8.

– George Lund

Shut Down Defense

ASU entered this game ranked 14th in the Big 12 in opponent points per game and has struggled to put together a series of stops against higher-ranked opponents such as BYU, Gonzaga, and Florida. ASU failed to record a team block for the first time in the entire season in the last game, despite Jayden Quaitance being second in the country in blocks entering the game.

A matchup against Colorado, who was in the bottom three in the Big 12 in team points per game entering tonight, presented an opportunity to build defensive momentum in their ability to compete with their upcoming schedule while not losing sight of their talent on that end.

Tonight was the third fewest points the Sun Devils had allowed all season, and doing so against a Big 12 opponent makes it all the more sweet. ASU’s standout defense talents, Quaintance and Freeman, were able to force turnovers and make the big play that shifted the momentum for the Sun Devils all night.

“I didn’t think they got a lot of clean looks,” Hurley said. “We really did a good job of playing together at that end of the floor, very active with our hands, especially in the first half to get some deflections, just being on the same page; I said it was like pulling a string, and everybody was connected, especially in the first half it was something I said in the huddle.”

The story of the night tonight was junior guard Julian Hammond III’s scoreless performance. This is the first time in Hammond’s collegiate career that he has gone scoreless in a game in which he has played more than 17 minutes (30 minutes tonight), and the first time he has gone scoreless since Jan. 18th last season against Oregon.

This follows a game in which they restricted BYU freshman guard Egor Demin to just four points, demonstrating the ASU frontcourt’s ability to shut down opposing guards.

Colorado’s poor shooting performance (34.8% from the field, 12.5% from three) and 14 turnovers, combined with the Sun Devils’ ability to block and contest different looks, hindered the Buffaloes from establishing a rhythm and staying in the game. As a starting rotation, Colorado managed only 21 points, and no starter was able to score in double figures.

“We have to commit to playing that type of defense in this league,” Hurley said. “This league, you’re going to play some tough, physical, athletic teams, some nights it’s going to be hard to score, you gotta be able to rely on your defense, and I think we set a good tone, and this is something to build off for us.”

– George Lund