Arizona State basketball defeated St. Thomas 81-66 on Sunday night at Desert Financial Arena.
This had the making of a trap game for the Sun Devils. They were fresh off an 87-76 win against Grand Canyon, who has received votes for the Top 2025. Additionally, St. Thomas has a history of close games against Power 5 teams, with a nine-point loss against another Big 12 side in Oklahoma State.
The Tommies, who came in averaging 89.8 points per game, piled on the pressure early. But the Maroon and Gold stood their ground to pull off the win, which was their third in the past four games.
“There’s an emotion about the last two (games) prior to tonight,” Arizona State head coach Bobby Hurley said. “Just happy to get through the game. Glad we got separation.”
Takeaway #1: Offense continues historic start
For the fourth consecutive game, Arizona State mustered at least 80 points. It accomplished the feat for the first time since the 2017-18 season. In that six-game stretch, Hurley’s side scored at least 90 points in each contest. This included wins over Kansas State, who went to the Elite 8 that season, and then-No. 15 Xavier, who was the No. 1 seed in the West Region of the 2018 NCAA tournament.
Four players reached double-digit point totals on Sunday night. Senior forward Basheer Jihad led the way with 20 points, and freshman guard Joson Sanon followed with 18 off the bench. Freshman guard/forward Amier Ali also provided some depth with 10 points.
“I’m still trying to find a way to be better for my teammates,” said Jihad, who has put up 59 points over the past three games. “I mean, it’s just adjusting. Adjusting to a new environment, a new system. It’s all an adjustment.”
The Sun Devils shot 50% from the field and 40.9% from beyond the arc. Enough to outpace a St. Thomas side that went 30% from three-point land, but logged 11 triples on the night. A balanced attack willed the hosts to victory.
“Our three-point shots relative to our two-point shots is a pretty good ratio,” Hurley said. “We were) doing it in different ways. Not just one dimensional in how we’re scoring.”
Takeaway #2: Quaintance hits career highs
Most Sun Devil fans do not have much to cheer about during summertime, at least when looking at the weather. But they did this year when freshman forward Jayden Quaintance, the No. 1 center in the 2024 recruiting class, announced that he would attend Arizona State.
The 17-year-old had some growing pains to start off the season, especially on the offensive end. But he has started to find his voice in the paint, with his first double-double of the season. Quaintance had 13 points and 14 rebounds, with 11 coming on the defensive end. Both stats were career highs in his young collegiate career.
“Just trying to play a little harder (and) make more of an impact on defense,” Quaintance said. “Rebounding’s a big part of that. That was my mindset going into the game.”
“I was 17 years old coming into college, so I know what that is (like),” Jihad said about Quaintance. “He’s a very good listener. Always open to criticism. He’s very passionate about the game. So, it’s easy to get to him and he’ll make the changes that you ask him to.”
Takeaway #3: Sun Devils attack the rim
The Maroon and Gold outrebounded the Tommies 44-29. 33-20 on defensive rebounds and 11-9 on the offensive glass. Quaintance led the way with 14 total rebounds. Freshman guard Joson Sanon surprisingly followed in that category. His nine rebounds tied his total from the past four games combined.
“We told our guards to rebound because (the Tommies) like to cut and sneak in there (from) the perimeter and get those rebounds,” Hurley said. “A lot of long rebounds. We forced them to take a lot of threes tonight.”
St. Thomas played small ball, getting 16 second chance points. But Arizona State leaned on its aggressiveness, going 18-for-26 from the free throw line. The visitors only had five attempts the entire game. In fact, Hurley’s side only had seven personal fouls, which was tied for least since Dec. 29, 2012, in a 68-52 win over Coppin State.
“They’re gonna run around and we have to chase them around and they’re gonna look to try to find most likely the breakdown to shoot a three,” Hurley said. “That’s why the differential was what it is. They play small lineups too. So, we try to make a concerted effort to go inside and attack the paint. That was one of our points of emphasis.”
Up next for Arizona State: vs. Cal Poly (3-2) – Nov. 20 at 9 p.m. EST
Up next for St. Thomas: vs. Wofford (1-3) – Nov. 22 at 5 p.m. EST