Arizona State Rallies in Second Half, Earns First Big 12 Win
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TEMPE -- The Arizona State Sun Devils (10-6, 1-2 Big 12) secured what might end up being a massively consequential victory over the Kansas State Wildcats (9-7, 0-3) by a score of 87-84 in the third game of league play for both teams on Saturday afternoon in Tempe.
The Sun Devils came into the game short-handed once again, as F Marcus Adams Jr. and G Bryce Ford were both ruled out of action on Friday night.
Follow key happenings from the Saturday contest below with Arizona State on SI.
First Half
The Wildcats ushered in the game with five consecutive points in a less-than-ideal start for the Sun Devils, but Hurley's squad subsequently responded with five points of their own. The two teams remained tied at five going into the under-16 minute timeout.
Forward Allen Mukeba broke the single-digit scoring deadlock with a reverse layup around the 12-minute mark of action, but Abdi Bashir Jr. responded with a corner three to put the Wildcats on top by one as the under-12 timeout came by.
The Arizona State lead stood at 20-16 at the under-eight timeout due to a combination of strong rebounding, relentless attacking inside of the arc, and high-pressure defense - Kansas State remained competitive due to a quartet of three-point connections.
The Sun Devils were relatively foul averse in the first half, only committing 8 in the first 20 minutes of action, while a scoring catalyst was found in Moe Odum - who reached double figures with 11 points. A Kansas State bucket in the final seconds of the half secured a 38-36 lead at halftime.
Second Half
Kansas State came out of halftime firing on all cylinders - connecting on five of six attempts to start the period. The Sun Devils found themselves trailing by a score of 51-45 at the 15:55 mark of the half, which set another come-from-behind scenario up for Bobby Hurley and company.
An open three-point connection from Noah Meeusen at the top of the key brought the deficit back down to a singular point - Johnson tied the game at 52 at the 13:47 mark. Arizona State officially re-took the lead with a potential three-point play from forward Santiago Trouet off of a coast-to-coast drive, although the junior failed to connect on the free throw.
The momentum continued to go the Sun Devils' way - the advantage reached a fever pitch with an alley-oop from Johnson to Massamba Diop to extend the lead to 76-67 with 4:21 remaining in the contest.
Kansas state guard P.J. Haggerty banked in a three-point prayer with five seconds left to shrink the Arizona State lead to 85-84, with Odum heading to the line with 4.3 ticks remaining.
Key Contributors
Moe Odum - 21 PTS, 4 AST, 8-17 FG
Anthony Johnson - 18 PTS, 3 REB, 3 AST
Massamba Diop - 21 PTS, 9 REB, 5 BLK, 8-10 FG
Allen Mukeba - 10 PTS, 8 REB, 2 BLK
What's Next
The Sun Devils hit the road for a daunting two-game slate against in-state rival Arizona and the defending national runner-up in Houston.
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.