Five Takeaways from ASU's 100-94 win over Washington State

Just as it was on Monday, Arizona State (6-1) trailed for the majority of the contest in the semi-finals of the Maui Invitational, and was able to prevail in a shootout over Washington State (3-4). The Sun Devils will now face another former Pac-12 foe in USC, as they try to capture this tournament crown for the first time since they did so in 1994.

Here are the five takeaways from Tuesday’s victory:

Comfortable closing out the contest

The Sun Devils are 2-0 in the Maui Invitational despite leading for less than 18 minutes across the two games. On Tuesday, they led for just 10 minutes and 24 seconds, proving once again that they are comfortable coming from behind and taking over games in the final moments. In this contest, once they took the lead with 6:05 left to play, they never looked back.

The typical culprits led the way during ASU’s crunch-time run, as senior guard Moe Odum scored 11 of his 26 points during the final six minutes of action, and junior guard Anthony “Pig” Johnson scored eight. The duo produced over 60% of the Maroon and Gold’s points against Texas, and although the scoring load was more spread out tonight, those two took over when needed. 

But closing out the ball game required more than just tickling the twine; the Sun Devils had to slow down a red-hot Cougars offense that shot over 53% from three-point range on 42 attempts.  They did just that, though, holding Washington State to scoring droughts lasting 90 seconds to two minutes on multiple occasions. 

Now winning two games in which it had to scratch and claw past valiant opponents, ASU has shown an ability to come out on top in late-game situations. This is a trait that could prove vital for them during the gauntlet of Big 12 confrence play starting in January.

A shootout in Maui 

The rims were soft, and the jumpshots were smooth on Tuesday as both ASU and Washington State lit it up from the outside. The team from Pullman hit 10-of-15 3-pointers in the first half to score 48 points, while ASU shot 53.6% from the floor in the opening half to notch 42 points of its own. 

The one player who stole the show through all the bucket-getting was Cougars’ freshman guard Ace Glass III, who poured in 40 points, the most by a freshman in program history, and the most points scored by any player in the Maui Invitational since 2005. 

Glass made the Sun Devils pay on all three levels. He converted 9-of-14 shots from the floor, hitting six 3-pointers and 16 shots from the charity stripe. He was able to score in bunches and find teammates as well, dishing a couple of assists. 

Both teams failed to establish any identity on defense, especially on the perimeter. The drive and kick attack worked well for both offenses, leading to many layups and wide-open threes. Both teams shot a combined 25-of-49 from beyond the arc. 

Maximizing the minor details

Abstract stats can come off as tedious or random; however, in a game that hung in the balance for its entire duration, even the smallest discrepancies on the stat sheet paint a vivid picture. For ASU, it held an advantage across many of these categories. 

The Sun Devils bench outscored the Cougars’ reserves 31-24, led by Johnson, who finished with 13 points. Graduate forward Allen Mukeba scored nine, and sophomore guard Noah Meeusen added eight points. The offense didn’t lose much of a beat with them on the floor as all three of them finished the game with positive plus-minus ratios. 

Other aspects ASU excelled in were points in the paint and points off turnovers, leading Washington State 34-26 and 18-13, respectively. Although these numbers may not jump off the page, they do dictate parts of the game that are critical for teams down the stretch. ASU was able to capitalize on interior threats and opponent mistakes when the game hung in the balance. 

A tale of two defensive halves

Before ASU faced off against Washington State, Hurley told the media that Monday night’s contest gave his team a chance to mature together and learn from mistakes. 

“We now have to figure out a way to be mature enough emotionally to come back out again,” Hurley said Monday.

Hurley’s team clearly had some learning to do on the defensive side of the ball after allowing nearly 50 first-half points while the Courgars shot 61% from the field and 67% from three. ASU decided to utilize multiple pressing schemes in the second half, including traps and three-quarters court actions. While these situations didn’t necessarily force turnovers, they sped up the game and made Washington State run and make poor decisions, taking them out of their comfort zone. 

The Cougars scored almost an identical amount of points in each half, but the Sun Devils were limited to just 12-of-27 from the floor and held them to four three-pointers on 11 attempts. 

The starting lineup is set too soon.

It’s hard to justify making changes to the Sun Devils’ lineup whilst they’re in the midst of a four-game winning streak; however, it’s clear their starting five hasn’t been their most productive throughout the season. 

Of the eight players who played over three minutes on Tuesday, starting forwards Andrija Grbovic and Santiago Trouet are the ones who produced the worst plus-minus numbers for ASU. Grbovic was -5 in just 17 minutes, and Trouet was only +2 in 26 minutes. 

Not only is the pair struggling to add consistent contributions on the floor, but neither one has been highly productive all year. The two are the only starters to not average double figures in points per game; they’ve both failed to be consistent from the outside, Grbovic shooting 28.6% from beyond the arc and Trouet a team low 11.1%. 

Nonetheless, both players add value to the team in many ways. The duo stands at 6-foot-11 each and plays team-oriented basketball; however, their similarities in skillset mean the starting lineup often lacks variety. Against both Texas and Washington State, players such as Mukeba and Johnson take on the court over either or both of the two big men. 

There are benefits to having a sixth-man type of player, such as Johnson, on the roster; however, he’s expressed interest in starting in early-season press conferences, and playing one of Grbovic or Trouet off the bench could maximize both of them even more. 

Southern California’s top three scorers average nearly 60 points per game combined, and all three are listed between 6-foot-5 and 6-foot-9 in height, having a player such as Mukeba, who is 6-foot-8 and extremely strong, while making it easier to match up and calm the Trojans’ elite threats.