ARIZONA STATE BASKETBALL

ASU’s Desmond Cambridge Jr. hits half-court buzzer-beater to upset No. 7 Arizona

Feb 25, 2023, 2:41 PM | Updated: Feb 27, 2023, 9:17 am

The Arizona State Sun Devils men’s basketball team upset the No. 7 Arizona Wildcats 89-88 on Saturday at McKale Center in the most improbable of fashions.

With two seconds left and ASU down by two, an inbounds pass to Desmond Cambridge Jr. resulted in this half-court buzzer-beater:

“I did not think that shot was going in,” Cambridge Jr. told reporters postgame. “I just wanted to have a nice miss and everyone in the crowd go, ‘ohhh!’ Once it went in, I literally could only scream because I couldn’t make sense of it.”

Here is how the call sounded on Sun Devil Radio by Tim Healey and Kyle Dodd:

It was almost a familiar tale for the Sun Devils, who led 46-45 at halftime but saw the Wildcats’ lead go as high as 10 in the second half.

But unlike previous games against Arizona and UCLA where ASU’s offense sputtered out down the stretch, Cambridge Jr. and Co. capitalized on a 6.5-minute stretch in which the Wildcats failed to score a single field goal. That resulted in a 16-5 run from 6:30 to 2:30 that saw numerous lead changes in the final minutes.

“A lot of people were jumping ship and thinking we’re not that team, but we are that team and the guys proved it tonight by going toe to toe with a team like Arizona on their home floor this late in the season,” Sun Devils head coach Bobby Hurley told reporters.

The game was dead even from a statistical perspective, as ASU shot 54% from the field, 39% from three-point range (11-for-28) and 60% from the free throw line. Compare that to Arizona’s 51-42-68 mark, which featured an 11-of-26 clip from beyond the arc.

But the biggest differentiator was the free-throw attempt disparity, with the Wildcats leading in attempts 24-10. Coincidentally, it was Oumar Ballo’s 1-for-2 split at the charity stripe with two seconds left in the game that allowed Cambridge Jr.’s heave to take the lead. Some would argue Ballo should have intentionally missed his second free throw attempt.

“We were sitting on pocket aces and it happens sometimes,” Arizona head coach Tommy Lloyd told reporters postgame.

Cambridge Jr. finished tied with Arizona forward Cedric Henderson Jr. for a game-high 19 points.

DJ Horne added 18 for ASU, while Warren Washinton scored 16 and Jamiya Neal had 12 off the bench.

Meanwhile, for the Wildcats, Azuolas Tubelis scored 17, Courtney Ramey had 14, Pelle Larsson put up 16 and Kerr Kriisa finished with 10.

TIP-INS

– Arizona State remains a perfect 10-0 this season when it shoots 46% or better.

– Sun Devils true freshman guard Austin Nunez did not play due to a concussion.

UP NEXT

ASU heads to Los Angeles to take on No. 4 UCLA on Thursday at 7 p.m. and USC on Saturday at 9 p.m.

Both games can be heard on Arizona Sports 98.7, the Arizona Sports app and ArizonaSports.com.

The Associated Press contributed to this story.

Arizona State Basketball

Arizona State coach Bobby Hurley, right, and guard Frankie Collins pause near the team bench during...
Jake Anderson

After contract extension, ASU’s Bobby Hurley wasting no time building toward future

ASU men's basketball coach Bobby Hurley has had very little time to celebrate his two-year contract extension through the 2025-26 season.
1 day ago
Arizona State's Austin Nunez (2) pushes away from UCLA's Jaylen Clark (0) during the second half of...
Arizona Sports

ASU freshman Austin Nunez entering transfer portal

Arizona State guard Austin Nunez will enter the transfer portal after playing a reserve role as a freshman for the Sun Devils.
2 days ago
Miles Byrd #21, Demarshay Johnson Jr. #11 and Elijah Saunders #25 of the San Diego State Aztecs run...
Associated Press

San Diego State holds off Creighton to advance to Final Four

SDSU muscled its way into its first Final Four, grinding out a 57-56 victory over Creighton on Sunday in the Elite Eight.
4 days ago
Arizona State quarterback Jaden Rashada. (Instagram Photo/@jadenrashada)...
Arizona Sports

State of the Sun Devils podcast: Could QB Jaden Rashada start for ASU in 2023?

On the latest episode of State of the Sun Devils podcast, the guys broke down ASU's quarterback competition at 2023 spring ball practice.
5 days ago
Florida Atlantic players celebrate after defeating Kansas State in an Elite 8 college basketball ga...
Associated Press

Florida Atlantic punches ticket to Final Four with upset win over Kansas State

Florida Atlantic had never won an NCAA Tournament game prior to this season. Now in its second-ever tourney trip, FAU is Final Four bound.
5 days ago
Devan Cambridge #35 of the Arizona State Sun Devils reacts after his dunk against the TCU Horned Fr...
Arizona Sports

Devan Cambridge announces return to ASU basketball for final season

Arizona State forward Devan Cambridge announced on Friday he is returning to Tempe for his final season of eligibility.
6 days ago
ASU’s Desmond Cambridge Jr. hits half-court buzzer-beater to upset No. 7 Arizona