If you're going to play a Pac-12 foe just once this season (due to a schedule rotation) might as well make it a thrilling one, right? Arizona State's (18-8, 9-6 Pac-12) 70-62 overtime road win at Cal (3-22, 2-12) should not have been a classic white knuckle victory but still, one that once again this week displayed both its resiliency and its clamp-down defense. Here are our takeaways from this victory.
Brennan gets well deserved first ever start
After his blue-collar effort in the win over Stanford just two nights ago, the true freshman forward was inserted in the starting lineup for the first time in his ASU career. He scored ASU's first five points and played well on defense. Needless to say, he had huge shoes to fill at that starting role with the second consecutive game where Warren Washington had to miss due to COVID, and Brenaan's effort in the second half paled in comparison. Nonetheless, let's not forget that the first half ended with a slim two-point lead for the Sun Devils, so his seven first-half points certainly had a hand in that collective team performance.
"I was really excited," Brennan said when he learned he would be in the starting lineup. "Pre-practice, we found out what the starting lineup was, but I just stayed focused. I realized I needed to step up to the plate with Warren (Washington) out and be a big contributor."
And we would be remiss if we did not mention that his fellow forward Alonzo Gaffney, who Brennan got the starting nod over tonight, led all players with 13 rebounds and was crucial down the stretch for his team.
"This was the best Alonzo Gaffney has played this year," said ASU head coach Bobby Hurley." He was so active, 13 rebounds and, again, that big putback. We were able to switch everything because they were able to hurt us down the stretch from the three-point line.
All in all, the play by this tandem which had to cover up also for the early foul trouble that Devan Cambridge found himself in (seven points in only 24 minutes of play), proved to be a huge part of this precious road victory. And despite all the obstacles the frontcourt had to face tonight, it still had a dominating 56-40 edge on the boards, including doubling up the hosts on the offensive end to the tune of 20-10
Collins once again shows his well-rounded game
Not to take anything away from Des Cambridge's team-leading 24 points, Frankie Collins was just as impressive. Granted, registering nine assists as a team is naturally not a ringing endorsement of your point guard. Yet Collins had a vital double-double of ten points and ten rebounds and had five assists to just one turnover. Moreover, this performance came on a night when Collins seemingly injured his leg in the second half but did not head to the bench for long minutes. He tallied 35 minutes and provided the floor leadership his team desperately needed in such a nip-and-tuck contest.
Look at what a well-officiated game can do for ASU
As closely contested as this game was, It was not one where any head coach would have a plethora of complaints about the three-man ref crew. For the Sun Devils to receive 13 free throw attempts in the second half on the road, even against arguably the worst team in the Pac-12, is not a stat that should be considered a given. And ASU did make good on ten of those free throws, which didn't secure a victory but allowed them to enter into overtime. Another figure which isn't shoulder shrugging is that on the road, and yes, in an environment that was nowhere close to being hostile, ASU on the night converted 18 of 22 charity stripe shots compared to just 10 of 17 by the hosts, who will probably point to that's stat line as one of the significant contributors into defeat. As mentioned, Devan Cambridge was saddled with foul trouble early on but was still plenty aggressive when he played with four fouls and did not get the cheap fifth one, an infraction that could have severely hampered Arizona State in such a tight contest.
And when you have a game that is thankfully devoid of the ticky tack calls, you can see a team like Arizona State hold its opponent to under 34 percent shooting while still committing a total of 18 fouls on the night.
Resiliency and effective defense once again come to the rescue
You can't blame any ASU fan for still being frustrated that a game that did not only see ASU lead for 32 out of the 40 minutes of regulation but also saw Cal leading for less than two minutes still headed into overtime. The glass half full would show ASU limiting the Bears to 36.4 percent shooting and controlling the boards to the tune of 27 to 19. The glass half empty would show the visitors allowing Cal to convert 6-10 three-point shots in the second half (three of them taking place in the last 2:43 of the game ) while on the other end going one of 11 from that range and shooting a dismal 7 of 34 from the field in the second half.
We often claim that the ASU defense is the element that actually fuels its offense, but that theory was disproven at least for one night when you look at the totality of the 45 minutes. However, you absolutely cannot gloss over the fact that the Bears were only 2-10 from the field in overtime, while ASU was a torrid 5-6 from the field, outscoring its opponent 13-5 in extra time. The defense was mostly there all night for ASU, and its offense, which was wildly inconsistent in regulation, was virtually unstoppable in overtime. This win was a resounding show of character for the Sun Devils, in what has been a running theme for most of the season, and is a trait that will definitely have to appear early and often in the last handful of games of the regular season.
A rare second road sweep of the year keeps ASUs postseason hopes alive
Splitting two-game road trips is nothing to be ashamed of, but Arizona State knew very well that their trip to the Bay Area had to produce a sweep in light of the struggles it had endured for the last few weeks. The fact that Stanford, a team ASU was able to overcome just two nights ago, beat Arizona shows that achieving these last two victories was anything but a remedial task successfully completed.
Playing with a sense of urgency may be one of the most overused cliches in the world of sports, but it is also a term that clearly defines how the Sun Devils performed in their last two contests. The win against Cal can only help in their ultimate quest to secure a spot in the top four of the conference standings and earn that first-round bye in the Pac-12 tournament, let alone keep themselves in the conversation to potentially hear their name being called on Selection Sunday.
The fact that this was a successful road trip without their most dominant frontcourt player Warren Washington on the floor perhaps makes this two-game sweep one that is even more meaningful to the staff and its players. ASU is entering its last two regular season games at home against the mountain schools with a good dose of confidence. True, it's not an aspect that guarantees another win or two but certainly an aspect that has to be in place to have a better chance to end this season on just as strong of a note as it began.
Join your fellow Sun Devil fans on our premium message board, the Devils’ Huddle, run by the longest-tenured Sun Devil sports beat writer, to discuss this article and other ASU football, basketball, and recruiting topics. Not a member yet? Sign up today and get your daily fix of Sun Devil news!
