No. 8 Arizona Crushes Arizona State 73-49
Following their first and only loss of the season on December 23, the No.8 Arizona Wildcats have had time to game plan against the Arizona State Sun Devils and that game planning paid off huge with a dominating performance on Sunday resulting in a 73-49 victory.
Arizona came out of the gates slow at first as they trailed the Sun Devils 7-6 at one point. The Wildcats then used a 15-1 lead to push their lead to 21-8 and the blow out was just beginning.
The Wildcats were able to push the lead to 45-25 at the half behind the strong play and sweet shot of Brandon Ashley. Ashley knocked down his first three three-point shot attempts on his way to tying for a game-high in points with 13.
Jan 4, 2015; Tucson, AZ, USA; Arizona Wildcats forward Brandon Ashley (21) signals from the bench during the second half against the Arizona State Sun Devils at McKale Center. The Wildcats won 73-49. Mandatory Credit: Casey Sapio-USA TODAY Sports
Stanley Johnson showed why he is touted as a great NBA prospect as he finished with 13 points on 5-8 shooting and seven rebounds. He knocked down a pair of free throws to set a surprisingly great tone from the free throw line for the Wildcats.
Despite entering the contest shooting 64.9% from the charity stripe (283rd in the nation), the Wildcats were able to knock down 16 of 19 free throws against the Sun Devils. Arizona State also shot significantly better at the line too (entered the game shooting 67.2%), going 16-19 as well.
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There was not many good things to take away from this game from the Sun Devils’ standpoint. Gerry Blakes led the team in scoring with just nine points, but also finished with eight turnovers. As a team, Arizona State committed 21 turnovers and only made 14 shots in the process.
Savon Goodman, who has come on strong as of late, was a non-factor throughout the contest. Foul troubled hindered his playing time, but inconsistent play when he was on the floor kept him in check. Goodman would finish with just two points.
Arizona State and Arizona will travel north to face the Oregon Ducks and Oregon State Beavers this upcoming weekend with the Sun Devils taking on the Beavers and the Wildcats facing the Ducks first.
After upsetting Arizona at home a year ago in double-overtime the Sun Devils will get another shot at upsetting the Wildcats in Tempe on February 7.