Major Takeaways From Arizona State's Triumphant Big 12 Victory
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TEMPE -- The Arizona State Sun Devils moved to win number 10 on the season with a dramatic 87-84 victory over the Kansas State Wildcats in what was a battle of reeling teams from within the Big 12.
Bobby Hurley's 11th season got off to a promising 9-2 start that was followed by four losses, which was further marred by injuries that have piled up in recent months.
Arizona State on SI provides some key takeaways from the incredible victory over the Wildcats below.
The Sun Devils' Top 2 Players Show Up
Senior point guard Moe Odum and freshman center Massamba Diop have been considered the foundational pieces of this season's team - they backed up the sentiment on Saturday.
There's no denying that Odum struggled with ball security at some points, as he let up a season-high seven turnovers. However, he catalyzed many of the strong stretches of offense as well, particularly in the 51-point second half.
Diop has continued to take strides in his first season of collegiate basketball - his streak of reaching double digit scoring figures is now at seven games. Diop's blend of handle, awareness, post skill, and finishing ability is tantalizing - there's no other way around it. That is why the former Spanish league star has scored 20+ points in three straight games. The Senegalese center's exploits extended to the defensive side of the ball as well, as he totaled five blocks in response to a seven-block performance against Colorado on January 3.
The two stars have fully arrived.
... So Did Rest of Rotation
Anthony "Pig" Johnson has arguably been the third most crucial player to the success that Arizona State has found in 2025-26. The former NAIA star scored 18 points - making eight free throws in the process - while also grabbing four rebounds, dishing out three assists, and blocking two shots. What was true for Johnson at the start of the season still reigns true - the senior is relentlessly aggressive without being reckless, is willing to make the extra pass, and plays a kinetic brand of on-ball defense.
Santiago Trouet was lauded by coach Hurley for putting in work on the glass, finishing inside of the lane, and playing awesome defense in the victory. The 6'11" forward has been lost in the fray at times this season, but his impact in this game was arguably the difference between win and loss.
Allen Mukeba has been one of the most crucial players in the rotation since the December 6 win over Oklahoma. The 6'6" forward scored 10 points, hauled in eight boards, and blocked a pair of shots in what was a large contribution to the stringent interior defense the team played as a whole.
All in all, the Sun Devils played phenomenal team ball on Saturday in the reality of running a seven-man rotation - although the hope is that forward Marcus Adams Jr. and guard Bryce Ford return within the next several games
Arizona State's Season is Still Alive
It's no understatement that this game was life-or-death for the 2025-26 Arizona State season - a loss would have continued the losing streak into road games against top-ranked Arizona, as well as reigning national runner-up Houston.
The win does three things for Arizona State - it puts a band-aid on the incredibly rough stretch, which set the foundation to pick up more wins moving forward. It also gifted them their first Big 12 victory since February 23 - ironically against Kansas State as well.
Most importantly, Arizona State is now halfway to 20 wins on the season - with the benchmark to be selected as an NCAA tournament team being widely considered to be set at 18 or 19 victories.
Arizona State returns to action in Tucson on Wednesday against the Arizona Wildcats.
Read more on why the Arizona State men's basketball team will exceed expectations in the 2025-26 season here, and on why the bright future of the football program isn’t dimmed by the loss to Arizona here.
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Kevin Hicks is an Arizona State alumni and now serves as the Arizona State Beat Writer On SI.