Five Takeaways from ASU's 82-79 win over Santa Clara

The Sun Devils were down and out, with four seconds until halftime, when head coach Bobby Hurley received two technical fouls, which led to his ejection, and Santa Clara led by 17 points at the break. 

After Hurley’s ejection, it was the assistant coach Nick Irvin who coached the Maroon and Gold to its largest halftime comeback in program history, tying a program record. ASU (9-2) held the Broncos (8-3) to just 27% shooting in the second half and finished off an 82-79 victory by making five of its last six field goals 

Here are the five takeaways: 

The Momentous Swing of Bobby Hurley’s Ejection

IN the final moments of the first half, Santa Clara guard, sophomore Christian Hammond, drove into the chest of sophomore guard Trevor Best near the free throw line. The bang-bang play could’ve gone either way, but the official called a blocking foul on Best. 

The next moments were bedlam. Hurley was livid, picked up two quick technical fouls for dissent, and was ejected from the contest. Hammond made all four free throws and scored on a backdoor layup at the buzzer; the lead was 55-38 at the break for Santa Clara. 

In the second half, it was special assistant coach Irvin who manned the sideline for ASU. Irvin joined Hurley’s staff in 2022 after spending a year as an assistant at Nebraska. He wasn’t aiming to reinvent the wheel on the sidelines, but the Sun Devils outscored the Broncos 44-26 under his watch.

“I just wanted to bring the energy and bring the pain,” Irvin said post-game. “We gotta be great on the defense’s end, and we just gotta be aggressive on both sides of the floor. Dawgs are gonna show who they are, so just go out there and be a dawg.

“Coach Hurley is my bro, we’re going to share this one together.” 

The Run That Changed the Game 

With 15:10 remaining in the game, junior guard Jake Ensminger scored a layup to put Santa Clara ahead 64-49, which would be the last time the Broncos scored until the 8:26 mark. Nearly seven minutes in between points hosted a 17-2 run that tied the game. 

The run was fueled by the defensive dominance put together by ASU in the second half. Santa Clara’s field goal percentage dropped 31% from the first half, dipping from 58% to 27%. The 3-point shot was a weapon Bay Area schools capitalized upon, hitting 9-of-15 first-half attempts. That mark feels drastically shooting 2-of-17. 

“Get out there on shooters and make them play to the rim,” Irvin said on the message to his team in the second half defensively. “Just be aggressive, pressure bust pipes.”

Pressure on the ball certainly led to a flood on the other side, while the Broncos shot just 1-of-18 during the run, ASU managed to score 11 fast-break points. The defensive intensity also earned eight second-half turnovers. 

Odum carried the first half and gave his teammates time to catch up. 

It took the Sun Devils a few minutes to get settled Saturday night, not leading at any point in the opening 20 minutes. When they have started slow in previous games, it’s been senior guard Moe Odum who’s carried the scoring load. That trend stayed the same at the Jack Jones Classic. 

Odum scored eight of ASU’s first 12 points through eight minutes, and at halftime, he was the only one in double figures. The 6-foot-1 guard bounced back quickly after a two-point night against Northern Arizona on Tuesday. He shot 5-of-6 with three assists and just one turnover in the opening half. 

The second half of action during the Sun Devils’ second-half run, Odum was somewhat of a non-factor offensively; he scored zero points, missing all four of his attempts, and tacked on four personal fouls. All be it, he did have four assists and zero turnovers. 

So who scored the ball in the second half? Pretty much everyone else.

 Senior guard Anthony “Pig” Johnson started for the first time all season as junior guard Bryce Ford missed the matchup due to injury, but Johnson’s microwave spark came in the second half. He scored 14 points in the second period, making him the only player from both programs to score in double figures in the second half. He shot 3-of-3 and hit all seven of his free throws, including a picture-perfect and-1 layup on the fast break using his inside hand and plenty of sidespin to get the basketball kissing off the glass. 

Besides Johnson, five players scored four points or more for ASU. Sophomore forward Marcus Adams Jr scored seven points, continuing his productive play off the bench, and freshman center Massamba Diop hit both of his shots from the field, scoring six of his 15 total points. 

Santa Clara capitalized on Turnovers to gain an advantage

The turnover battle finished nearly even: ASU gave away 16 possessions compared to 15 for the Broncos, but the first-half margin made all the difference. The Maroon and Gold had 10 turnovers and gave up 17 points off turnovers. The Broncos’ offense became free-flowing in transition. 

Hammond scored 18 points off just five shots and hit 9-of-15 3-pointers. Off the bench, redshirt freshman Sash Gavalyugov scored eight first-half points off the bench, and junior Thierry Darlan, but the duo who made the difference in the first half shot just 1-of-9 in the second half. 

Big time Litmus Test

This game could make all the difference for the Sun Devils if they’re in the mix for the NCAA tournament come March. Santa Clara has consistently been on the outside looking in for the 68-team field but ranked No. 51 in the NET, a dozen spots above ASU. 

Unfortunately for the Maroon and Gold, because Santa Clara sits at No.51, Saturday’s victory is not a Quad 1 win; any victory against teams 1-50 at neutral site matchups, such as the Jack Jones Classic in Las Vegas, is considered Quad 1. However, ASU now sits at 4-0 against Quad 2 opponents. That mark is tied for the most success against Quad 2 of any team in the country, making them a key contender for a jump in the rankings. 

The Sun Devils also received two votes in the most recent AP 25 poll, placing them at No. 39. Their final two non-conference matchups before Big 12 play begins are against two former Pac-12 programs: No. 25 UCLA and Oregon State. They’re 9-2 and could be building an enticing non-conference resume with two wins over SEC programs already. 

Not bad for a team picked to finish last in the Big 12 conference during the 2025 Media Preseason poll.