TEMPE – As Arizona State’s lead slowly narrowed late in the second half, a cloud of uncertainty hovered over Desert Financial Arena as flashbacks from Wednesday night’s loss to West Virginia began to stir.
A 9-0 Cincinnati run brought the Bearcats to within three with less than six minutes to go in regulation. The Sun Devils have let three halftime leads slip over their past eight games, and as deja vu kicked in, the crowd began to deflate.
The light at the end of the tunnel, which ASU coach Bobby Hurley referenced as “hard to see” after the loss to WVU, looked dim yet again. Then a star shone through. That star was Moe Odum.
The senior guard sank back-to-back triples to snap the Bearcats’ momentum and end their run, while igniting the Sun Devil faithful in attendance. Odum scored 11 of his game-high 33 points in the final six minutes of the second half. Yet again proving to be the leader in Tempe.
Odum ended the contest with 33 points, eight assists, five rebounds and three steals as Arizona State (11-9, 2-5 Big 12) took down Cincinnati (10-10, 2-5 Big 12) 82-68 on Saturday night in Tempe.
“I feel with this team, if I’m off, I feel like we’re gonna be off as a team,” Odum said. “I’ve got to be consistent.”
Since the start of conference play, Odum’s play has had its ups and downs, but he found his groove early on Saturday night. He found the back of the net in four of his first five attempts, including a couple of highly contested buckets.
His hot start gave the fans a glimpse into the night he had in store, but when Odum was asked when he knew he was going to have the night he did, he said, “When I woke up.”
The game tipped off with a memorable greeting before a back-and-forth clash.
Sun Devils freshman center Massmba Diop and Bearcats sophomore center Moustapha Thiam grew up just 45 minutes apart in Senegal, and before tip, the two shared a brief moment. While Diop struggled offensively, Thiam kept Cincinnati in the game.
Thiam ended the night with 15 points, six rebounds and two blocks while being a force in the paint all night. On the other side, Diop couldn’t find his touch, but he did help run the floor by grabbing 10 rebounds and blocking four shots.
Even in an underperforming effort to Diop’s standard, Odum was proud of how his big man played.
“I saw fight,” Odum said. “I got on Massamba early, because I felt like he wasn’t playing hard, and he responded in the second half.”
The first half was full of exchanging buckets. The half saw nine lead changes and no significant runs until ASU closed the half on a 12-5 run to give them a five-point halftime lead, which proved to be vital.
Arizona State was tested and fought for all 40 minutes against Cincinnatti and Hurley was proud of how his guys responded considered the schedule they are navigating through Big 12 play.
“We’ve been broken from the losses, but to their credit, they don’t give up,” Hurley said. “They fight, and they battle.”
Senior guard Pig Johnson and redshirt sophomore forward Santiago Trouet both added double-figure points to the Sun Devils win. Johnson tallied 11 points, while Trouet put up 10 points and five rebounds.
Saturday night’s win could turn a new page for Sparky’s season as optimism remains in the air.
“It’s all about maturing through the season,” Odum said. “It’s possible to turn things around. Plenty of teams have done it. That’s what I have been preaching to the team.”
The Sun Devils next take the court across the country in the Sunshine state as they face Central Florida (15-4, 4-3 Big 12) on Tuesday.
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