Late game defense leads ASU basketball to comeback win over SMU

TEMPE, Ariz. — ASU basketball held SMU to just 11 points in the final 11:28 of the game last night. The Sun Devils forced 8 turnovers, blocked three shots, and outscored the Mustangs by 15 during that span, leading to their 76-74 victory.

“We were relentless to keep stacking stops and forcing them to turn it over,” head coach Bobby Hurley said. “We just kept feeding off of that, and it was really great to see.”

ASU basketball shows perseverance in comeback

ASU was in control for most of the first half. But just before the half ended, SMU went on a 7-0 scoring run to take a six-point lead with just over 30 seconds left. Graduate student guard Jose Perez made two free throws to end the half, cutting the Sun Devils’ deficit to four points.

The Sun Devils and the Mustangs went back and forth to begin the second half. About six minutes into the half, SMU went on a 12-0 run over a 2:39 span, to take a 13-point lead over ASU.

That’s when the ASU comeback began, jumpstarted by the full-court press. The Sun Devils went on a 22-3 run over an 8:41 span.

“We were at a point where there was no choice,” Hurley said. “We saved it until when we needed it the most.”

Hurley went on to explain that with graduate student forward Alonzo Gaffney’s length guarding the in-bounder and junior guard Frankie Collins’ great instincts of shooting passing lanes, their full-court press makes it very difficult on opposing offenses.

Getting to the line

ASU averaged more than 21 free throw attempts per game coming into Wednesday. The Sun Devils went to the line 43 times against SMU. That is the most this season, and the most since they matched that total in 2021 against Arizona. But it didn’t surprise Hurley.

“We didn’t settle as much for jump shots,” Hurley said. “They’re a very aggressive team on defense, so it’s not surprising that that’s how many free throws we took tonight.”

ASU was able to convert on nearly 75 percent of those attempts, which has not been the case this season. The Sun Devils had shot less than 60 percent from the free throw line coming into Wednesday night and had shot above 70 percent just once this season.

Perez led the way for ASU going 12/15 from the line and Gaffney followed, going 6/6. Gaffney had gone 1/7 from the charity stripe coming into the game.

Rebounding struggles continue

One issue that has plagued the Sun Devils all season is offensive rebounding. Wednesday night they allowed 12 more compared to their five offensive rebounds. The injuries in the interior of ASU are a big contributor to this. It may be a sign that the Sun Devils will have to continue to find ways to overcome this until they get healthy.

The Sun Devils pesky defense is what’s allowed for the other shortcomings to be overshadowed so far this season. Although they allowed SMU to shoot 45 percent from the field Wednesday, they still turned the Mustangs over 15 times.

ASU is holding opponents to 39.2 percent from the field and forcing 14.7 turnovers per game. Although it’s early if the Sun Devils can continue this defensive efficiency, that opponent shooting percentage allowed will be the second lowest in school history, topping the third-best set last season.

It’s no secret that Hurley’s Sun Devils pride themselves on their defensive play. If ASU can continue that trend, continue getting to the free throw line, get healthy on the interior, and knock down some occasional clutch threes; this team could start rolling and make some noise.

Next, ASU heads to San Diego to play the Toreros Saturday night. Then the Sun Devils end their non-conference schedule with two huge tests, TCU and Northwestern. Those two games will be massive opportunities for ASU to make a statement.

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