Five days can make a difference in college basketball.
On Tuesday, Arizona State’s season opener against Idaho State, the Sun Devils struggled to just get by an Idaho State team that finished with an under .500 record in 2023.
Sunday proved to be a different story. After getting a difficult non-conference win over WCC foe Santa Clara in Las Vegas on Friday, the Sun Devils headed north to face No. 6 Gonzaga.
With just over five minutes to go in the second half, ASU found themselves tied with the Bulldogs on the road 71-71.
The Sun Devils went wire to wire with the Bulldogs but ultimately came up short as the Zags pulled out an 88-80 victory.
Although the maroon and gold ran out of steam late, the Sun Devils now seem to leave Spokane with more clarity and confidence going forward.
ASU senior guard Alston Mason exuded confidence in the second half. With his play late, he established himself as a potential go-to guy late in games for head coach Bobby Hurley.
Mason relentlessly attacked the paint and fearlessly challenged the interior giants of Gonzaga down the stretch to come up with clutch bucket after clutch bucket.
He ended with 19 points on 61.5% from the field and scored nine of ASU’s last 13 points.
Yet, he wasn’t even the Sun Devils’ leading scorer in the game.
Senior forward Basheer Jihad broke out against the Zags to the tune of a 22-point outing on 50% shooting.
Still, the Sun Devils’ youth and inexperience showed itself down the stretch.
Despite putting together a solid showing, starting freshman forward Jayden Quaintance battled foul trouble late, eventually fouling out.
Additionally, Gonzaga converted on four of their last five field goal attempts. The Sun Devils simply could not muster a stop when they needed it most.
Late in the game, the environment proved to be too much for the young squad who succumbed to a late 7-2 run that propelled the Bulldogs to a narrow victory.
However, ASU found something in the loss that the team lacked in its early showings: chemistry.
The Sun Devils looked more cohesive in their second game–an 81-74 win over Santa Clara–but took it to another level against the Zags.
Players seemed to know when to pick their spots to be aggressive. Also, Hurley’s lineup rotations are beginning to round into shape after deploying a few different combinations in the first week.
Perhaps it was only a matter of time, but the Sun Devils appear to be gelling much earlier than anticipated.
The Sun Devils will look to get back in the win column on Thursday, Nov. 14, when ASU takes on Grand Canyon University at the Footprint Center at 7 p.m. MST.
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