Bobby Hurley’s ASU grinds out 73-60 win over Utah
bobby hurley’s Arizona State team used two key runs and strong half-court defense to down Utah 73-60 on Saturday in Tempe, handing the Sun Devils their sixth conference victory and leaving the Utes at 10-19, 2-14 in Big 12 play.
Bobby Hurley on injuries and lineup resilience
bobby hurley said postgame that Noah Meeusen left the game after taking an elbow from Utah’s Terrence Brown near the eye and went straight to the locker room with 9: 54 remaining; Meeusen received stitches and, Hurley said, was ready to return if the situation required it. Hurley also praised Odum for playing through a mid-foot sprain and noted that Allen Mukeba was a game-time decision because of an ankle issue.
Sun Devils’ runs and defensive plan decided the game
Arizona State used a 16-3 run over nine minutes to close the first half and take a 34-24 lead, then pushed the margin late in the second half with a nine-point burst that turned a 59-53 game into a 68-53 advantage with 3: 52 to play. The Sun Devils finished 9 of 17 from 3-point range and shot 49. 1% from the field while Utah managed 39% for the game and 34. 5% in the first half.
Key players and pivotal moments
Massamba Diop supplied momentum with two dunks and two blocks during the decisive stretch and capped ASU’s final possession with a 3-pointer to reach five made 3s on the season; Diop was one of four Sun Devils to finish in double figures. Pig Johnson snapped a four-minute scoring drought with a 3 and his steal led directly to a 3 from Bryce Ford that pushed the lead back to double digits. On Utah’s side, Keanu Dawes finished with 16 points, while Terrence Brown, who started the game hot, was limited by an early second foul and ended with eight points on 4-for-12 shooting.
Utah’s struggles against the zone
Utah opened the game up 14-5 at the 15: 03 mark of the first half, but the Sun Devils’ zone defense forced long shot-clock situations and shut down the Utes for extended stretches — Utah went more than eight minutes without a point late in the first half and had a three-minute drought in the second. Utah coach Alex Jensen called it "one of our more selfish games of the year, " saying the team struggled to move the ball and relied too much on individual attempts to score.
The loss completed a season sweep for Arizona State and left Utah preparing for the final week of the regular season at 10-19 overall and 2-14 in conference play. The Sun Devils (15-14, 6-10) finish the regular season at No. 14 Kansas on Tuesday for senior night and then close the schedule at No. 4 Iowa State on March 7.
