ASU downs Kansas State 92-90, moves to 5-0 behind Kodi Justice's 28 points
LAS VEGAS -- Arizona State’s high-scoring offense helped the Sun Devils breeze through their opening four games of the season. On Saturday night, they needed all the offense they could get to win their first tightly-contested game of the season in a 92-90 win over Kansas State.
Coming into the Continental Tire Las Vegas Invitational semi-final, KSU (4-1) profiled as the more physical of the two schools. But the Sun Devils (5-0) out-battled the Wildcats in the paint, outrebounding KSU 29-27 while getting to the free throw line a whopping 44 times.
It was just the latest piece of evidence to suggest coach Bobby Hurley has a different, more complete team at his disposal this year.
“I think you get labeled as a Pac-12 West Coast team, that you can’t stand up to a more rugged opponent from a conference that has physical play,” Hurley said. “[Kansas State] are physical through all positions and very talented and they have a good plan, but I’m impressed with the way our guys stepped up. Especially, with our front court being so young.”
Guard Kodi Justice was ASU’s top offensive producer, scoring a career-high 28 points on just 10 field goal attempts The 6-foot-5 wing was electric from all parts of the floor. He went 4-for-4 from behind the arc, but also scored with some classy finishing around the basket, chief of which was a contested up-and-under scoop shot he lofted high off the glass as ASU pulled ahead in the second half.“I’m not just a shooter,” he said. “People want to pigeon-hole me to just one thing, but I’m a basketball player. I can do anything you ask me to do. If I need to guard somebody, if I need to dive on a ball, if I need to attack the basket, whatever.”
But the play of big man duo Romello White and De’Quon Lake was ASU’s lynchpin to success at Orleans Arena on Saturday. White scored 19 points (15 of which came in the second half) and collected 6 rebounds. Lake contributed 9 points of his own and led ASU with 8 boards (4 on either end of the floor).
Together, they outmuscled KSU, forcing the Wildcats to live-or-die from behind the arc.
“For those two guys to play the minutes they played and sustain a pretty good level of play was very good,” Hurley said. “It’s going to be encouraging as we get more guys healthy and more guys into our rotation.”
In the contest’s opening minutes, ASU traded 3’s with the Wildcats. With the game tied early at 9-9 though, guard Shannon Evans – who finished with 14 points – was sent to the line and made 2 free throws. They were the first of 29 ASU points from the charity strike. KSU’s numbers from the line: 7-for-9.
Despite ASU’s constant parade to the line, 3 missed free throws in the final minute almost costs the Sun Devils, as their once 7-point lead was cut to 2 for KSU’s last possession. The Wildcats couldn’t take advantage of ASU’s sloppy finish though, as Barry Brown Jr. (KSU’s leading scorer with 27 points on Saturday) missed a running lay-up at the buzzer.
With a trip to the tournament’s championship game on the line, ASU’s play inside came up aces in Sin City.
“We’ve been working and we’re a more physical team,” White said. “Just like they are physical, we just out-physicaled them.”
It was a bucket from White that put ASU ahead for good midway through the second half. After a missed Evans 3-pointer from the corner in a 64-64 tie, White used his 6-foot-8 frame to scoop up a contested rebound, pivoted back toward the basket and euro-stepped past his defender to lay the ball in.
Hurley tinkered with his roster to try and breakdown KSU, a team that reached the NCAA tournament last season. ASU’s third-year coach went small in the opening half, putting freshman guard Remy Martin between Evans and senior Tra Holder. At halftime though, KSU had the edge in rebounds, points in the paint and 3-point makes, enough to take a 44-42 lead into the locker room.
So in the second half, Hurley pivoted to a bigger group: for 17 of the final 20 minutes, Lake and White shared the frontcourt while Justice dropped back into his more natural position on the perimeter. The gamble was successful, as Justice exploded for 19 points down after the break, helping ASU overturn a deficit that was as big as 9 early in the half.
“I didn’t want to lose this game, it was a big one for us,” Justice said. “I know it’s early and you say if you lose this, it’s not that big of a deal. But we are trying to build a resume for the future for us; to build this program up to just be a winning program.”
So far, this ASU team has done nothing but win. The Sun Devils will face No. 15 Xavier tomorrow, their first ranked opponent of the season. It will be another opportunity to show off the already notable steps they have taken.
“You’re playing for a championship, it’s a really good field,” Hurley said. “That was a hard fought game and we’ve just got to reach deep for all of our energy, especially with a short bench.”
But even before getting a shot at one of the country’s better teams, Hurley’s squad flashed a new tool against KSU. They have always been able to score – now they have a physical presence to pair it with.
Said Hurley: “That was as hard a game, as physical a game as I’ve ever coached.”
