Tommy Lloyd backs Bobby Hurley’s decision in chippy ASU-Arizona ending

Arizona State men’s basketball coach Bobby Hurley took a lot of heat for not shaking Arizona head coach Tommy Lloyd’s hand at the end of The Sun Devils’ 81-72 loss to the Wildcats on Feb. 1.

Focused more on getting his team off the court after the chippy game instead of end-of-game pleasantries with Lloyd, Hurley trusted his instincts in trying to deescalate the situation.

Lloyd, while talking with Arizona Sports’ Bickley & Marotta during Day 3 of Newsmakers Week, agreed with Hurley’s decision in the heat of the moment.

"We've never been anything but good. … I've got no problem, no beef."

Arizona's Tommy Lloyd and ASU's Bobby Hurley are all good following a chippy end between their two squads earlier this month, the Wildcats head coach told @Bickley_Marotta during Newsmakers Week. pic.twitter.com/Hcv2k8qOcF

— Arizona Sports (@AZSports) February 20, 2025

“We’ve never been anything but good,” Lloyd said of his relationship with Hurley. “That rivalry is kind of an external thing for a lot of people. For me, I’m going to be honest with you, I know the game has a little extra meaning, but we don’t put a ton of extra stock in it. Because you win or lose against Arizona State, two days later you’ve got a game. In basketball, you got to keep it moving. Bobby called me the next day and was awesome on the phone. I appreciate his friendship and we’ve never had a problem.

“Things happen in the moment. To be honest with you, we don’t need to rehash anything, but I thought he made a great decision just taking his players off the court in that moment when things were getting chippy on both sides. He and I would be fine no matter what, but if something happened between our programs on the floor with a player losing his mind, I don’t think it would be a good look for either institution or the state of Arizona. I got no problem, no beef and to be honest with you, I hadn’t even thought about it for one second until you just brought it up.”

Since the rivalry game, the two programs have gone in opposite directions record-wise.

Including the Wildcats loss, ASU (12-14) is currently riding a six-game losing streak and is second-to-last in the Big 12. Arizona (12-3) on the other hand is 4-2 and sits behind only Houston for the top spot in the conference.

Regardless of record or conference standing, though, a whole lot of eyes are going to be on the March 3 rematch — a penultimate regular season tilt — between the two sides.

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