Arizona State basketball defeated San Diego, 90-53, at Desert Financial Arena.
This Sun Devils team has definitely grown since last year in all aspects of the game. Fans can definitely see this growth in this game against the Toreros, who beat the Maroon and Gold 89-84 last year. It was the host’s first victory by over 30 points since a home victory over Grambling State 80-49 on Nov. 22, 2022. Five players landed in double figures.
“I think I understand why it happened and I think I’ll be able to make some adjustments in the days leading in to a game like this,” Arizona State head coach Bobby Hurley said about the rough start. “But outside of that, the second half was great. (They) really just sat down and guarded better and played better at the offensive end as well.”
Here are three takeaways from the win.
Takeaway #1: A bad, bad start
Arizona State got the scoring started with a free throw from senior forward Basheer Jihad. After San Diego freshman guard Tony Duckett made a triple, freshman forward Jayden Quaintance tied the game at three apiece.
The Sun Devils get the forwards going early, putting pressure on the visitors. Decent start, right?
But it would take nearly five minutes for the Maroon and Gold to find their second basket of the game. They shot below 20% from the field, with zero buckets from behind the three-point line, a go-to for them this season. Hurley was also called for a technical foul.
“I can’t specifically say without rewatching it,” Hurley said about the causes of the first half struggles. “Those were some pretty clean looks. We had some pretty clean looks, we missed free throws, we turned the ball over, we gave them some transition baskets.”
Hurley called his first timeout with 12:45 remaining with his team down 14-5. The Sun Devils still trailed for a few more minutes. But the team’s gusto and the crowd’s fervor, caused them to take a 40-33 lead over the Toreros into halftime.
“They were playing a 2-3 zone for most of the game,” Jihad said. “Obviously, that made us a little uncomfortable. But once we figured it out, we abused it.”
Takeaway #2: Sanon to the rescue
So, how did the Sun Devils get the lead after a dismal start?
Well, they turned their attention to their freshmen. Quaintance stopped the damage with four defensive rebounds, three blocks, and a steal in the first half.
But guard Joson Sanon gave the fans something to cheer about. He put up 13 points in the opening 20 minutes, including a triple to make it a two-point game. However, seven of his first-half points came in the last four minutes. The five-star recruit also made his presence known later on, with back-to-back triples in the second half.
Sanon has been known for providing a spark before the end of the first half before. But his play on Tuesday turned his team from upset watch to clear coasting against a team that is 290th in the KenPom ratings.
“I’m just trying to win,” Sanon said. “If I’m open, I’m shooting.”
“It gives me more of an opportunity to see the floor,” he said about coming off the bench, which he has done multiple times this year. “The starters, they may mess up here and there. I don’t want to come in and try to do the same mistake. It gives me more freedom.”
Takeaway #3: Second half domination
The Sun Devils have taken some things that they saw at the Acrisure Classic, especially how they have attacked the second half. But they took a late turnaround to a new level on Tuesday night.
While only winning the first half by seven, the Maroon and Gold scored 50 points in the second half, while their opponent had 20. They limited the Toreros to only eight made field goals in the final 20 minutes. At one point, it included denying them a made basket for eight minutes and 20 seconds.
Offensively, Hurley’s side found their spark in the closing period, going 16-for-25 from the field and going 7-for-11 from three-point land after starting the game 0-for-5 in that category. They also out rebounded San Diego 22-12.
Additionally, 11 of Jihad’s 19 points came in the second half, finding various cuts to the basket that he could not find at the start. He co-led the team in points with 19 alongside Sanon. Senior guard/forward BJ Freeman posted 10 second-half points en-route to 14 on the night.
“We wanted to do blitzes and ball-screens, (and) be more aggressive with them,” Jihad said about the second half adjustments. “Other than that, just turn it up, man.”
Up next for Arizona State (8-1): vs. #13 Florida (8-0) – Dec. 13 at 3:30 p.m. EST
Up next for San Diego (3-5): at #24 San Diego State (4-2) – Dec. 7 at 10 p.m. EST