MAUI, Hawaii — Down two, with the game on the line, everyone who crammed into the Lahaina Civic Center on Monday night knew who was taking the shot for Arizona State: senior guard Moe Odum.
With time dwindling, the senior guard took it himself, spun right, spotted up from the top of the key and drilled the go-ahead 3-pointer with a defender in his face with 10.6 seconds to play.
Odum did it all himself for Arizona State in an 87-86 victory over the Texas Longhorns in the opening round of the Southwest Maui Invitational.
For the Sun Devils, their advancement into the semifinals was in large part due to the play of Odum and senior guard Anthony “Pig” Johnson. Odum, usually a pass-first point guard, scored 36 points to lead all scorers. Although he shot just 33.3% from the floor, he shot 6-for-12 from behind the arc and got to the free-throw line eight times, shooting 16-for-18 from the charity stripe.
Meanwhile, Johnson scored 17 points on an efficient 83.3% from the field. He also tallied three steals and shot 7-for-10 from the free throw line.
When ASU needed a spark, Odum spurred the major momentum shift.
In the first half, Odum had 11 points and an assist in the final three minutes to extend ASU’s lead to five heading into the break.
Odum led the Sun Devils on another run late in the second half, ultimately ending in him hitting the biggest shot of his ASU career up to this point.
Both teams were sloppy on multiple levels. For ASU, it turned the ball over 11 times and had 21 personal fouls. On the other end, Texas turned the ball over 19 times and had 28 fouls. Carelessness with the ball has been a constant issue this year, as Sparky averages 10 turnovers per game, ranking 45th overall.
Additionally, the Maroon and Gold seemed to be physically overwhelmed against the Longhorns. The Sun Devils got outrebounded and dominated on offensive glass. Arizona State gave up 12 more rebounds, allowed five more offensive rebounds, and was outscored in the paint by 16 points.
Arizona State also struggled to stop the Longhorns’ playmakers, with junior guard Dailyn Swain scoring 24 points on 10-for-14 shooting. Swain also had five rebounds and assists.
Texas sophomore center Matas Vokietaitis, the prized Florida Atlantic transfer, had his way in the paint. Vokietaitis scored 15 points, collected eight rebounds and was tied second in the game for offensive rebounds with three.
Still, ASU’s efficiency from both the 3-point and free-throw lines proved to be the difference on Monday. Arizona State amassed its season high in 3-point field goal percentage, shooting 50% from beyond the arc. The Sun Devils also tallied their most free throws of the season with 36.
With Odum taking a more aggressive scoring approach, ASU did not generate a ton of assists for the second straight game. Still, Odum accounted for 75% of ASU’s assists with three in total. Moving forward, the Sun Devils will need to generate more assists and have better ball movement in their next matchup.
Coach Bobby Hurley and his squad will look to continue their winning ways when they face off against old Pac-12 foe Washington State in the semifinals of the Southwest Maui Invitational on Tuesday, Nov 25, at 6 p.m. MST at the Lahaina Civic Center.
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