As Arizona State head coach, Bobby Hurley set out to build a roster conducive to winning at the highest levels of college basketball. He visited an April AAU tournament in Rock Hill, South Carolina, where a 6-foot-5 senior rendered a dazzling display of talent and ability. In November, that same prospect scored 21 points, knocking down five three-pointers, demonstrating why he was a bona fide blue-chip recruit in the class of 2024.
On Thursday night in the Footprint Center in downtown Phoenix, Freshman guard Joson Sanon did what he’s done in Rock Hill and, in years prior, scored at will and led his team to victory as ASU beat GCU 87-76.
“[Joson] was just playing with the ultimate confidence, and he's such a gifted kid,” Hurley said. “When he gets in his own like that, he's virtually unstoppable because he could get to the basket. He could shoot right in your face. He could go off into the mid-range. So, we were trying to get him the ball as soon as he was in the game because he had that look like we had ultimate confidence he was going to make a play.”
Sanon came off the bench for the first time in the 2024-25 season after starting the three previous matchups. Hurley made this decision after Sanon didn’t appear in the second half in their narrow loss to Gonzaga; however, the freshman didn’t allow that to affect his play on the court.
“Yeah, it really doesn't matter,” Sanon said. “I feel like it's kind of the same. You just go in and play hard and just help the team in any possible way to win. And yeah, I just came into the game. He ran a play for me and just started off hot.”
In Hurley’s 200th career win as head coach, Sanon and his teammates played with confidence, showing ASU’s exponential improvements as a unit. Scoring a season-high 87 points on Thursday. From a team swirled with concerns due to a sluggish start with lofty expectations. The program has begun displaying signs of a team with its worst basketball in the rearview.
The wheels are beginning to turn in Tempe, with drastic improvement from the Sun Devils' embarrassing 103-47 loss at Cameron Indoor to No.6 Duke in a preseason exhibition just 19 days removed, they’ve scored 80 points in three consecutive games.
“I'm very happy,” Hurley said. “You just don't know when things will click all the time, and until you get tested, you don't clean up a lot of little things that you need to clean up in order to get out of your own way to become a better basketball team. Working with the guys all summer into the fall, I saw the potential of what they could do.”
Arizona State (3-1) bounced back after a valiant effort against No.4 Gonzaga, defeating cross-town rival Grand Canyon 87-76 in a neutral-site affair at Footprint Center in downtown Phoenix, taking part in the Hall of Fame Series Classic. The matchup was a fiercely contested outing with eight ties and seven lead changes.
ASU was able to score the ball consistently, converting 54% of his shots from the field and 44% from the field. The game required a multitude of players to find their rhythm to win. Alston Mason was running the show offensively, scoring 16 points on 5-9 shooting. The 6-foot-2 lead guard played 33 minutes on Thursday, controlling the pace and dishing out five assists as the engine to Hurley’s well-oiled machine.
Senior forward Basheer Jihad’s play is the most tangible illustration of the Sun Devils' growth, from an 0-7 opening night showing against Idaho State, the 6-foot-9 transfer has steadily improved scoring 18 points on 4-5 shooting against GCU hitting 9-11 free throws. When they needed him most Jihad elevated his performance with 13 points coming in the second half while limiting his turnovers with three in the first half and none in the second. Jihad acclaims the strength and size of ASU’s front court made the difference for him.
“I think we have the bodies and the length,” Jihad noted. “Down low, I think we have good size, you know, especially with me and [Jayden Quaintance] starting both 6-foot-9 plus. So, I feel like if we need to go to that, or we can go to the finesse as well with both of us.”
The No.8 recruit in the class of 2024, Quaintance’s impact reaches more than just the box score as the 17-year-old dominated the painted area on defense, blocking shots and contesting everything else. The Lopes shot just 13-28 on layups, in large part due to Quaintance’s presence.
Besting a GCU program that finished 30-5 and made the NCAA tournament in 2024 is no simple feat. The Lopes pandemonium traveled steadfastly on their seven-mile journey from campus to Footprint Center, packing the north section of the arena as if it was a home game. For Hurley, the stout environment affected both teams, igniting everyone's flame to a frantic extent.
“So, I thought it was a really fun game to be a part of,” Hurley said. “I think it's great for the city, for the state of Arizona to see two teams of that caliber just go at each other. I thought it was a quality basketball game. It was a great crowd, and the guys were just excited to play and maybe. We went a little too quick in that first half.”
Thursday was the debutant game of the season for graduate forward Tyon Grant-Foster, the 24-year-old missed the opening stage of the season due to lingering medical reasons making his return to the hardwood against ASU. Winning the 2023-24 WAC Player of the Year, he averaged 20.1 points, 6.1 rebounds, 1.7 steals, and 1.5 blocks per game last year.
“They got some really good pieces,” Hurley said. “And as they get [Grant-Foster] back into the flow of what they're doing, I think they have obviously a big upside to get better as we do. They've arrived as a legitimate threat in college basketball and to go to the postseason.”
ASU’s opening schedule was complicated by design, preparing for a juggernaut conference in its inaugural season in the Big 12, Hurley desired a challenging route forcing his team to face trial by fire. Despite early burns, the team has seen its darkest days before the real battles begin, preparing them for the road that lies ahead.
“I mean, I can't believe how much better we've gotten in less than three weeks,” Hurley said. “To see what we're doing, particularly at the offensive end, I think, has been real positive … I will say this, I don't think, and I told my team this, anybody in the country through four games has played a harder schedule than us. To be where we are right now, we're in a good spot. We've got to keep getting better. We've got a couple of home games coming up. So, we're excited about where things are going. But you have one senior, one freshman, up here.”
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!
