Arizona State Takes Down Hawaii Behind Clutch Effort
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TEMPE -- The Arizona State Sun Devils (4-1) earned a tough victory over the Hawaii Rainbow Warriors (4-2) by a score of 83-76 on Thursday night in Honolulu, Hawaii.
The Sun Devils bounced back from a loss to Gonzaga last Friday with a convincing win over Georgia State on Monday - this also marked the second game in which Belgian guard Noah Meeusen played in.
The Rainbow Warriors entered the game with a 4-1 record, with their only loss coming to Oregon by a single point in their season opener.
Arizona State on SI covers major happenings, key performances, and briefly touches upon what is next for Bobby Hurley's squad below.
First Half
The Sun Devils got off to a slow start, as they faced struggles from the field, as well as four missed free throws by Massamba Diop.
The offense came alive in the minutes to come - as reserve guard Trevor Best hit a contested three-point look to tie the game up at 16 when Moe Odum checked back into the game at the 8:34 mark.
Much of the first half transpired with Hawaii holding an advantage between one and two possessions, but a late Arizona State surge gifted them a 34-33 lead in the final minute of the half.
Hawaii regained the lead in the final seconds behind a pair of free throws - the Sun Devils trailed 35-34 at halftime.
Second Half
The second half started with both teams firing on all cylinders offensively - as Bryce Ford took over for Arizona State, hitting a three-point look to tie the game at 47 going into the under-16 minute timeout.
Hawaii managed to make a run in the minutes that followed - taking an eight point lead at various points.
The Sun Devils continued to scrap and stay within striking distance, ultimately tying the game up at 65 with just over five minutes to go in the contest. Arizona State eventually rallied to take the lead, but Hawaii remained in position - that is until the Sun Devils took a six-point advantage with 37 seconds remaining following a pull-up mid range jumper by Odum.
Key Performances
Bryce Ford - 20 PTS, 2 STL, 7-11 FG
Massamba Diop - 10 PTs, 5 REB, 1 BLK
Moe Odum - 15 PTS, 6 AST, 2 STL
What's Next
The Sun Devils are set to play three more games in Hawaii - the first of which is a Monday night battle with the Texas Longhorns in what is the first game of the Maui Invitational.
Read more on why the Arizona State men's basketball team will exceed expectations in the 2025-26 season here, and on how the culture that has been cultivated by coach Dillingham showed up against West Virginia here.
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Kevin Hicks is an Arizona State alumni and now serves as the Arizona State Beat Writer On SI.