During this young 2024-25 season, the Sun Devils’ offensive firepower has been fully displayed, and on Wednesday night at Deseret Financial Arena, it needed every one of its points to fend off its opponent. Arizona State (5-1) extends its streak of scoring 80 or more points to five games in a 93-89 nailbiter of a win over Cal Poly.
Due to injuries to guard Austin Nunez and center Shawn Philips, ASU head coach Bobby Hurley ran a seven-man rotation that at times struggled to keep up with the Mustangs’ high-paced offense. The Sun Devils shot 41% from three-point land and 48% from the field, and six of the seven Sun Devils ended their scoring nights in double figures, led by freshman guard Joson Sanon’s 22 points off the bench.
Yet, Cal Poly shot 51% from the field, the highest percentage of any Arizona State opponent so far this year, eclipsing Gonzaga’s 50% shooting in ASU's lone loss of the season. The visitors made 13 three-point baskets, seven of those coming from graduate guard Jarred Hyder, who led all players with 27 points and, at times, was unstoppable.
“Not our finest work for sure,” Hurley said. “Our defense took a step back, and we didn’t really guard them individually off the dribble. They made some difficult shots, but that end of the floor hurt us. I like their team and the different styles of play. The one positive was the rebounding differential, which has plagued us some this year.”
Sanon led the Sun Devils in scoring for the second time in three games. Although 15 of his 22 points came in the first half, he still showed off his ability to beat defenders off the dribble throughout the game, getting to the free-throw line multiple times as well. The freshman has started to solidify himself as the microwave contribution off the bench the Sun Devils need.
Even though Cal Poly converted at a torrid pace, ASU locked down the glass, out-rebounding the Mustangs 44-24 and holding them to just three offensive boards. The Sun Devils themselves grabbed 13 offensive rebounds, six from freshman forward Jayden Quaintance for 12 second-chance points. Quaintance recorded his second straight double-double game, posting 11 points and 13 rebounds to go along with his four blocks.
“Good teams will adjust,” Hurley remarked. “We had a concerted effort to get him (Sanon) the ball, and he had the ball in space. He drove it more, and I think they were really crowding him, knowing what he’s done in the last couple of games, especially hitting threes and shooting. He was able to get by his man and get to the free throw line a little more.”
The only shooting split that the Sun Devils were less than impressive in was free throw shooting. Although they maintained their season average of roughly 70%, the Sun Devils were 27-41 from the free throw line, missing nine from the charity stripe in the second half, a period when Cal Poly outscored the hits by four points. Senior forward Basheer Jihad was 6-9 from the line, while Quaintance was 3-7.
“We have really good shooters,” Hurley noted. “If all those guys just do what they’re supposed to do, free throws shouldn’t be a problem. I think over time, Basheer has proven in some big games that he’s been able to make clutch free throws, and we just have to work a little bit with JQ. He was rushing his free throw a little bit, so I think that’s manageable with him.”
The energy from the seven-man rotation was, at times, down. Hurley cited the extensive travel the team has had over the first six games of the year and even in the preseason, playing an exhibition game on the road against Duke. The next eight days will provide much-needed rest to the team ahead of their matchup on Thanksgiving night against New Mexico in the Acrisure Classic in Palm Springs, Calif., playing another game the next night versus St. Mary’s or USC. The extended rest can hopefully allow Phillips to recover from his calf strain, as well as enable Nunez to return from his Achilles injury.
“I don’t think we had a lot of juice today,” Hurley mentioned. “We didn’t have a lot of pop to how we played. Our shell was broken, and we had to get back to the drawing board. We got spread out, guys were driving to the basket, and at times, there was no recognition on the help side to rotate over at all. I know they had shooters, but we have to be in a good help position.”
While the majority of the scorers were newcomers, one of the few returners, graduate guard Adam Miller, finished with 16 points, shooting 4-for-5 from 3-point range, including 3-4 from that distance in the second half.
“I think we were trying to build off last game,” Miller commented on the win over St. Thomas last Sunday. “We had a lot of assists last game, and when we are sharing the sugar, everybody eats. I think when we continue to understand the pace of the game, everybody has a chance to score, and we’ll continue to get even better.”
The Sun Devils' elevated talent level this year compared to last season is a large reason why they have improved considerably on the offensive end of the court. As younger guys like Quaintance and Sanon continue to develop, they will make nights such as Wednesday a regular occurrence.
As one of the veterans on this team, Miller embraces his role more and more, feeling less of the offensive onus compared to the 2023-24 campaign, when he was one of the few players on the team who could score at will.
“I think I just have to continue to mold the team,” Miller explained. “We got some good cats that are talented, so when those guys are hot, we gotta make sure we find them and build their confidence. Even when it’s not their night, we still have to find a way to keep them involved. I’ve shown them little tricks here and there that’s going to help them evolve their game.”
As one of the returners, Miller has seen the difference between last year’s team and this year in terms of early-season chemistry. Although he didn’t play for the first half of the season due to transfer eligibility issues, Miller still saw firsthand what was building the team up and breaking it down. Now, this year, he’s seen the early success the team has had and what led up to it.
“I think this year we did a good job blocking out the noise,” Miller noticed. “We built a culture early. Coach Hurley did a great job of putting those pillars of being early, vocal, and a good teammate at the forefront and laying down the law, and we followed and abided by it. Now we just gotta go out there and use our talent and effort to win every game.”
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