Heartbreaking End for ASU in the Pac-12 Tournament

The Sun Devil men’s basketball team was eliminated from the Pac-12 Tournament in the first round after a Stanford game-winning buzzer beater from James Keefe, as the Cardinal notched the 71-70 win.

It looked like a solid afternoon for ASU in Las Vegas after leading for almost the entirety of the game and matching a Pac-12 Tournament record 15 three-pointers. ASU was .536 from behind the line in the game, and shot .615 in the second half (8-for-13). The Sun Devils also enjoyed a 17-point differential, which was the largest lead of the game, with more than 13 minutes left in the game and led by 14 with three minutes left.

However, Stanford battled back and started to get close in the scoreboard from that 50-33. It all started with a four-minute scoring drought by the Sun Devils that cut it to 12 with nine minutes left. The Cardinal kept fighting and in the last minute they made it a one-point game (70-69). 

ASU was unable to score in those last 60 seconds of the game, and even though they forced Stanford to miss their first try at winning the game, James Keefe was able to grab loose ball and score a jump hook in the lane. It was a dramatic shot that rattled around the rim and hit the backboard a few times before finding the net, giving Stanford the victory at the buzzer.

ASU (14-17; 10-10) tied a Pac-12 Tournament record-setting performance from the three-point line, hitting 15 shots on 28 tries. The leader was DJ Horne, who scored 21 points, with five 3-pointers. 

Senior Marreon Jackson was the key man during the first half, as he scored 11 of his 14 total points in those first 20 minutes of the game. That allowed the Sun Devils to go to the locker room with a four-point lead (31-27), shooting 4-for-5 from the field and 3-for-4 from deep. Jackson also led ASU in assists with four, and grabbed three rebounds.

Jay Heath was the other Sun Devil who scored in double digits with 12 points (4-for-5 from the three-point line).

POSTGAME NOTES

DEFENSE: ASU held opponents to .400 shooting, its best defensive effort since 1971-72 and third-best in school history. ASU held 18 opponents under 40 percent.

ASU BEST FIELD GOAL PERCENTAGE DEFENSE 

.391 — 1962-63 (791-2024)

.399 — 1971-72 (797-of-1997)

.400 –…