Amongst a raucous crowd at Desert Financial Arena, Arizona State (4-6, 1-3 Pac-12) outlasted Grand Canyon 67-62 in a hyper-defensive cross-town matchup which never saw them concede the lead.
Across 40 minutes of basketball at DFA, the ASU defense held the GCU offense to 31.5 percent from the field, the Antelopes second-worst shooting performance of the year. The Tempe hardwood also turned into an all-out block party for the home team in white and maroon, as ASU racked up 13 blocks, tying a program record.
The Sun Devils also had an all-time performance from the free-throw line, something that they couldn’t boast as a positive trait last season. ASU’s 26 free throw makes on 28 makes is the highest percentage in school history with a minimum of 25 attempts.
It was a gutsy win,” ASU head coach Bobby Hurley said postgame. “Overall, I think the blocks were significant. Our length around the basket and our ability to alter and block those shots as well as the free throws – to shoot those percentages, that was really the difference.”
Arizona State’s defensive wall commenced action just two minutes into the game when redshirt junior guard Luther Muhammad swatted a GCU shot near the basket. Next came the effort of super senior forward Kimani Lawrence, who swatted the attempt of junior point guard Jovan Blacksher Jr. away with ease, an effort for which Hurley and his staff were uber prepared for.
“We knew Blacksher was really good at going off the dribble and getting by guys and (senior transfer guard) Holland (Woods) the same thing,” Hurley explained. “We wanted to have guys that would challenge those shots. (Junior transfer forward Alonzo) Gaffney has that timing and length and how quick he jumps and (junior forward) Jalen Graham and Kimani had huge blocks (also).”
Lawrence finished with three blocks, while Graham and Gaffney each had a pair of swats. Despite the 13 blocks, two truly stand out amongst the rest.
ASU graduate transfer guard Marreon Jackson dribbled the ball into the ASU half of the DFA hardwood about seven minutes into the contest. Former ASU guard turned GCU senior transfer Holland Woods picked his pocked and flew into open space on the fast break. Jackson cut back with Woods, matching feet and Woods’s pace as he took a wide line to wind up and contest the shot. Jackson flew into the air as Woods rose to the cup. Jackson won the battle and swatted the ball back off the glass, bringing Sun Devil faithful in attendance to their feet.
The biggest deny of the second half came with just over 13 minutes to play. GCU sophomore guard Chance McMillian grabbed an ASU miss from sophomore transfer guard DJ Horne and broke out down the floor at full speed. He stepped left past Jackson at the top of the key and rose for a two-handed slam. Lawrence stalked the GCU guard all the way down the floor and jumped to the cup with him, emphatically smashing the ball out of McMillian’s hands and off the glass. The ball bounced back to GCU’s three-point line due to Lawrence’s power.
Lawrence had a classic performance against the Lopes on Thursday night, as the super senior finished with 14 points on 6-10 shooting, 14 rebounds, and three blocks. Hurley, who is in his fifth year coaching Lawrence, praised his forward for his performance, growth, and loyalty after the game.
"He's a kid that's worked extremely hard and is extremely loyal to the program and really has grown to know who he is as a basketball player," Hurley explained. "He's really efficient and doesn't try to do things he's not capable of doing. He was a rock for us tonight in this game."
"He's a great leader; he's been in the program the longest," DJ Horne said of his teammate. "I feel like that's somebody you can go to ask anything about the program, and he's going to give you the right answer. For him to have a night against a team like this with all the fans and everything, I feel like that was good for him."
While the Arizona State defense flexed its prowess with 13 total blocks, the offense continued to work through its growing pains on Thursday night. The Sun Devils shot 31.1 percent from the field and were just 3-20 from three-point range. Horne tied Lawrence's point total with 14 points of his own.
"We had to shoot some bombs because we were against the shot clock a few times," Hurley said. "I think our offense has to get better, and I hope it does, and I hope guys that I know can make shots start doing it with a little more regularity. 3-20 from three and 31 percent (from the field), it's crazy that you can win a game like that against a good team."
ASU faced off against two former Sun Devils on Thursday in Woods and senior forward Taeshon Cherry. Woods finished with 20 points on 7-18 shooting, with seven rebounds and a pair of assists to boot. Cherry, on the other hand, fouled out with four points, two makes on 11 shots, six rebounds, and two assists. He was assessed a technical foul after jawing at the ASU bench following a dunk right in front of the Sun Devil group. It was the first time Hurley has faced former collegiate players he has coached.
"It was everything I thought it would be," Hurley said. "You feel conflicted because you had so many games with those guys… Holland fought by my side through one of the toughest years in the history of sports… I was waiting for the other shoe to drop with those guys, the revenge. Taeshon took two charges, and I remember him doing that for us when he played here, and he was probably on the floor about ten times tonight, at least with that type of hustle he has… I wanted (them) to have as good of a game as (they) possibly could have."
Thursday night's crowd met the hype that had been building since former ASU guard Remy Martin made the game-winning shot to knock off GCU last December 361 days ago. GCU students showed up on an armada of seven buses, not to mention the ones who arrived via individual transportation. The ASU students matched the GCU efforts, loading the student section to the top of DFA. All in all, attendance was 11,391.
"I thought it was a fun game to be a part of, and it was a lively building," Hurley said. "I think our fans showed up. It was so it was terrific to see that kind of support in a season where we've had some tough outcomes but to see our crowd with that type of life and that kind of response tonight was great. I think it was great for the kids to play in that environment."
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