Fork Report: Tra Holder, Kodi Justice fuel first conference win for ASU
Jan 14, 2016, 9:30 PM | Updated: 11:34 pm
Arizona State guard Tra Holder dives for a loose ball during the first half of Arizona State's NCAA college basketball game against Washington State, Thursday, Jan. 14, 2016, in Tempe, Ariz. (AP Photo/Matt York)
(AP Photo/Matt York)
TEMPE, Ariz. — The fourth time is the charm for Bobby Hurley.
The first-year Arizona State head coach got his first Pac-12 win Thursday night after starting 0-3 in conference play. ASU beat Washington State 84-73 at Wells Fargo Arena.
The Sun Devils used a 17-0 first-half run and a second-half highlight show from sophomore guard Kodi Justice to snap a three-game losing streak.
Willie Atwood hit two free throws with :45 left in the first half to give ASU (11-6, 1-3 Pac-12) a 40-23 lead. Washington State’s Ike Iroegbu made a layup right before halftime to trim the Devils’ lead to 15 points.
The Cougars (9-7, 1-3) would start the second half on a run of their own. Josh Hawkinson hit a three-pointer, Charles Callison made two buckets and Iroegbu canned a three to cut the ASU lead to just five at the 17:54 mark.
But the Devils answered with an 8-0 run of their own, including a three-point play from Tra Holder and a deep three-pointer from Justice.
Justice provided most of the highlights in the second half, hitting three of his four treys and dishing out a beautiful assist when WSU cut Arizona State’s lead to single-digits with eight minutes left. After coming up with a steal, Justice hit Atwood with a behind-the-back pass and the senior forward did the rest, throwing it down with a tomahawk dunk.
“I just saw Willie running the floor hard. I thought ‘you’ve got to reward the big for running,’ so I had to find a way to get it to him,” Justice said. “The only way I could was throwing it behind my back, so I got it to him and he cocked it back and threw it down.
“It was a big play for us, it got us going.”
Hurley agreed.
“I love the creativity he shows with his passing,” he said. “I think that was the one moment that the building was at its peak today with his behind-the-back pass to Willie.”
THE GOOD
– Hurley pointed out the first-half defensive effort for the Sun Devils. They would hold Wazzu to just 34 percent shooting in the game’s first 20 minutes.
It helped that the Devils were able to get Cougars big man Josh Hawkinson in foul trouble. The 6-foot-10 junior came into the contest ranked fourth in the conference in scoring at 17.2 points per game. He picked up his third personal foul with 8:18 to go in the first half when ASU center Eric Jacobsen drew a charging foul.
“Eric, he didn’t shoot it well tonight, but I thought he made one of the biggest plays of the game in the first half with his charge on Hawkinson,” Hurley said. “It was huge for us.”
– Holder continued his stellar play. The sophomore had 20 points, giving him five consecutive games with 20 or more. That makes him the first ASU player to accomplish that feat since James Harden did it in the 2007-08 season.
– ASU also helped their own cause at the free throw line. Not only did the Sun Devils attempt a season-high 33 free tosses, they knocked down 28 of them (84.8 percent).
THE BAD
– Gerry Blakes’ struggles continued. The senior guard scored just two points before fouling out in 14 minutes of play. In his last three games, Blakes is averaging 5.3 points per game and is 1-for-15 from three-point range.
NOTED
– Sun Devils football legend Terrell Suggs sat courtside, cheering on his alma mater and supporting his cousin, Renard Suggs, who played 12 minutes off the Washington State bench.
UP NEXT
The Sun Devils host the Washington Huskies Saturday at Wells Fargo Arena. Tip-off is scheduled for 5:00 and the game can be heard on ESPN Phoenix 620 AM.
