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Game recap, analysis: Arizona State basketball nearly upsets No. 8 Gonzaga

The Sun Devils push Gonzaga to the brink in an electric atmosphere in Spokane, Washington

Ben Sherman

Arizona State Sun Devils guard Adam Miller (44) reaches for the ball against Gonzaga Bulldogs guard Ryan Nembhard (0) in the first half at McCarthey Athletic Center.
Arizona State Sun Devils guard Adam Miller (44) reaches for the ball against Gonzaga Bulldogs guard Ryan Nembhard (0) in the first half at McCarthey Athletic Center. / James Snook-Imagn Images
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SPOKANE, Wash. — The Arizona State Sun Devils made a huge leap forward on Sunday, going toe-to-toe with the No. 8 Gonzaga Bulldogs in an 88-80 loss.

Arizona State (2-1) came into the game as 22.5-point underdogs after losing 104-47 to Duke in an exhibition and barely beating Idaho State.

Gonzaga (2-0) opened its season with a resounding 101-63 victory over No. 6 Baylor on Monday, and came into Sunday's game looking for another blowout. But it never happened.

Read our full game recap and analysis below:

Final Stats: Gonzaga 88, Arizona State 80

Basheer Jihad led Arizona State with 22 points and 10 rebounds. He went head-to-head with Gonzaga's Braden Huff in the second half, trading baskets down the stretch. Huff led Gonzaga with 21 points and 4 rebounds off the bench.

Alston Mason was a steady hand for ASU, scoring 19 points and dishing out 3 assists. BJ Freeman had 12 points off the bench. ASU shot 47.6% from the field and 31% from the 3-point line (9-of-29).

Second Half Updates

Gonzaga 88, Arizona State 80, final: Tremendous effort by Arizona State in a hostile environment. The Sun Devils came in as 22.5-point underdogs and led the No. 8 team in the nation for long stretches of the second half. Bobby Hurley's team has improved significantly in the past week.

Gonzaga 82, Arizona State 76, 35 seconds left: Gonzaga's Braden Huff throws down an alley-oop dunk in transition and ASU misses a 3-pointer on the other end. ASU is going to have to play the foul game. This one is all but over.

Gonzaga 80, Arizona State 76, 45.5 seconds left: Alston Mason drives the lane and scores on a layup to cut Gonzaga's lead to four. Timeout Arizona State. Mason has 17 points and 3 assists.

Technical foul: Gonzaga's Michael Ajayi is whistled for a technical foul for hanging on the rim after a missed dunk attempt. Alston Mason sinks the technical free throw. Gonzaga 78, ASU 74.

Gonzaga 78, Arizona State 73, 2:09 left: Khalif Battle banks in a 3-pointer from the corner (yes, you read that right) to give Gonzaga a five-point lead. Battle has 15 points and 6 rebounds.

Arizona State 69, Gonzaga 69, 5:53 left: It is so loud in here you cannot hear a thing. The atmosphere is off the charts. Basheer Jihad leads all scorers with 20 points and 9 rebounds. Braden Huff leads Gonzaga with 15 points.

Battle dunk: Gonzaga's Khalif Battle just brought the house down with an epic alley-oop in transition. Arizona State responds with a dunk from Shawn Phillips.

Arizona State 63, Gonzaga 59, 9:20 left: Adam Miller drills a 3-pointer to give Arizona State a four-point lead and Mark Few calls timeout. This ASU team is unrecognizable.

Gonzaga 56, Arizona State 55, 11:24 left: The Zags made a mini run to go up 53-47, but Basheer Jihad answered with a 3-pointer. Jihad now leads all scorers with 18 points.

Basheer Jihad vs. Braden Huff: Jihad is attacking Huff off the dribble and in the paint, and he's putting up points, He now has 18 points and 7 rebounds. Huff is playing extended minutes with Graham Ike in foul trouble.

Graham Ike foul trouble: Gonzaga's big man picks up his third foul with 13:47 left and goes to the bench.

Jayden Quaintance foul trouble: Arizona State's 5-star freshman picks up his third foul with 15:20 to play and heads to the bench.

Gonzaga 48, Arizona State 47, 15:35 left: Khalif Battle hits back-to-back 3-pointers for Gonzaga to give them a one-point lead. Back and forth we go. Basheer Jihad now leads ASU with 12 points and 7 rebounds. Alston Mason has 10 points (2-of-3 from downtown).

Arizona State 42, Gonzaga 40, 18:04 left: The Sun Devils are not backing down and Gonzaga cannot buy a 3-pointer (3-of-12).

Halftime Stats & Analysis

Arizona State Sun Devils head coach Bobby Hurley talks with his team during their matchup with the Gonzaga Bulldogs
Arizona State Sun Devils head coach Bobby Hurley talks with his team during their matchup with the Gonzaga Bulldogs at McCarthey Athletic Center. / James Snook-Imagn Images

Arizona State did not get the memo that they are 22.5-point underdogs to No. 8. Gonzaga. The Sun Devils outplayed the Zags for stretches of the first half, and go into halftime tied at 38-38. Gonzaga dominated the boards (23-15) but shot just 3-of-12 from the 3-point line.

ASU shot 5-of-14 from beyond the arc and got a big first half from five-star freshman Jayden Quaintance. The 17-year-old has 9 points, 2 blocks and 1 rebound, but more importantly his length is giving Gonzaga problems. Arizona State is controlling the tempo of the game by walking the ball up and not allowing Gonzaga to run out and get early offense in transition.

With Gonzaga's win over Baylor, and No. 4 Houston's loss, the Zags could find themselves with a top-3 national ranking if they can beat Arizona State.

First Half Updates

Gonzaga 38, Arizona State 38, halftime: Freshman Amier Ali grabs an offensive rebound and hits a 12-foot fadeaway at the buzzer to tie the game up at halftime.

Gonzaga 31, Arizona State 30, 3:21 left: Arizona State is getting hammered on the boards (19-11), but they're staying in the game with their 3-point shooting (5-of-12) and perimeter defense. Gonzaga is just 2-of-10 from downtown.

Gonzaga 24, Arizona State 18, 7:53 left: Good ballgame so far. The Sun Devils are hanging with one of the best teams in the country. Night and day from their performance at Duke. 17-year-old freshman Jayden Quaintance leads the Sun Devils with 7 points and he had an impressive block on a Ben Gregg 3-point attempt. Braden Huff has 8 points for Gonzaga.

Gonzaga 19, Arizona State 14, 11:09 left: Gonzaga extends its lead on transition buckets and pick-and-roll conversions. The Sun Devils have already taken nine 3-pointers (3 makes). Gonzaga is dominating the interior and the boards (12-6 rebounding advantage).

Arizona State 8, Gonzaga 7, 14:51 left: Fresman Jayden Quaintance scores 5 early points to stake Arizona State to a surprising early lead. Quaintance vs. Gonzaga big man Graham Ike is a matchup to keep an eye on. Ike is one of the best bigs in the country, but Quaintance looks comfortable early on.

The starting five for Bobby Hurley's team:

Pregame Updates

Gonzaga's student section, The Kennel Club, is in full throat with five minutes until tipoff.

Gonzaga and Arizona State tip off their game Saturday at McCarthey Athletic Center in Spokane, Washington.
Gonzaga and Arizona State tip off their game Saturday at McCarthey Athletic Center in Spokane, Washington. / Photo by Ben Sherman
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Ben Sherman
BEN SHERMAN

Ben Sherman has been covering the sports world for most of his journalism career, including 17 years with The Oregonian/OregonLive. One of his favorite memories was covering the 1999 Fiesta Bowl - the first BCS National Championship Game - at Sun Devil Stadium.

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