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Sun Devils scorch Wildcats

The atmosphere was electric.

The finish was frenetic.

As the drama of Arizona State’s 70-68 victory over visiting Arizona unfolded Sunday night before a packed house of 14,123 at Wells Fargo Arena, those in attendance at the rollicking Tempe gymnasium knew that they were witnessing a classic chapter in the desert rivalry.

“It was two teams in a 17-round fight,” Arizona State standout sophomore James Harden, who finished with a game-high 18 points and added nine rebounds and five assists, said afterward. “It was a great game to watch for the fans. We had a great crowd.”

“I thought it was probably the best atmosphere I have ever seen in Wells Fargo Arena personally, and I’ve been here a few times,” said Arizona interim head coach Russ Pennell, an assistant on the staff of former ASU coach Rob Evans from 1998-2006. “I just thought from the opening tip to the end, it was a great college environment.”

After senior power forward Jeff Pendergraph swished a pair of free throws for Arizona State with 25.6 seconds left to break a 68-68 tie and account for the winning points, Arizona could not convert on two ensuing possessions.

On the first, junior center Jordan Hill drove the lane for a running jumper, but his shot hit the back of the rim and lipped out the front. A tip-in attempt by sophomore Zane Johnson also did not fall for the Wildcats, as it hung on the front of the rim and rolled off.

Pendergraph pulled down the rebound for ASU and passed to junior guard Derek Glasser, who was fouled with 5.6 seconds remaining. Glasser, an 87-percent free-throw shooter, missed the front end of a one-and-one.

Hill grabbed the rebound and threw the ball to junior point guard Nic Wise. The pass bounced off Wise’s hands, and a scramble for the loose ball ensued at mid-court as the final seconds ticked away.

“It’s a great feeling,” Harden said after the Sun Devils defeated the Wildcats for the second time this season. “Like I said, they’re a great team.”

Arizona State has now won four consecutive games in the series against Arizona dating back to January 2008. ASU head coach Herb Sendek was asked during Sunday’s postgame press conference whether he perceives that the tide has turned in a rivalry that had been dominated by the Wildcats for years prior to the Sun Devils’ current resurgence.

“I don’t look at it that way at all,“ said Sendek, who is 4-2 against Arizona during his three seasons in Tempe. “I find joy in the moment. I’m exhilarated by what just happened. But I’m also realistic enough, I think, to realize that this game and the previous three could have easily gone the other way.”

The Arizona State coach then expanded upon the fine line between winning and losing in the rivalry.

“We’re playing very close, competitive games,” Sendek said. “As a participant, as a competitor, when kids play as hard and as well as they did tonight on both teams, I know somebody gets a win in one column and somebody takes a loss in another. One group feels joy; one feels disappointment. We’ve all been there on both sides, but from a philosophical standpoint there are no losers. The players and the coaches who poured it out tonight on both sides, they’re anything but losers. Kyle Fogg as a freshman was sensational making threes (for Arizona). Their team played a good game. There are just no ties in basketball.”

In winning their fifth straight Pac-10 contest, the Sun Devils improved to 21-5 overall and 10-4 in the conference, pulling to within a half-game of league-leading Washington. The Huskies (20-7, 11-4) will host Arizona State in Seattle on Thursday in a battle for first place.

Meanwhile, Arizona’s seven-game winning streak ended with Sunday night’s setback, but not before the Wildcats (18-9, 8-6) rallied from a 17-point deficit with 13 minutes remaining to force the nail-biting conclusion.

“I was proud of our guys for coming back,” Pennell said. “We took a couple pretty good shots from the Sun Devils. They played awfully well. But I thought our guys responded. They have pretty much done that all year long. They’ve been very resilient at bouncing back. So from that standpoint I was very pleased with our effort. Certainly we’re disappointed we couldn’t finish it out. But that credit mainly goes to Arizona State. I thought they did a good job of keeping their poise and making plays when they needed to.”

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Arizona State made 10 of 16 three-pointers in the first half to build a 44-34 lead at the intermission. After the Sun Devils extended their advantage to 56-39 on a backboard-shaking dunk by Pendergraph with 13:02 left, the Wildcats embarked upon a 23-4 run to pull ahead 62-60 with 4:09 remaining.

Neither team led by more than two points during the final four minutes.

Jamelle Horne’s go-ahead three-pointer for the UA was answered by a putback by ASU’s Harden that tied the score at 62-62.

After the Wildcats went ahead 64-62 on a pair of free throws by Wise, the Sun Devils got a three-pointer from the left corner by junior forward Rihards Kuksiks.

Arizona retook the lead at 66-65 on a 10-foot turnaround jumper by Hill with 2:30 left. Kuksiks then nailed another three-pointer, this one from the right corner, to put the Sun Devils ahead 68-66 with 1:16 remaining.

“Those two shots he made at the end were lifesavers for us,” Sendek said about Kuksiks, who swished five triples on the night and finished with 17 points.

“They left me open,” said Kuksiks. “I just did what I’ve got to do.”

The Wildcats came back again to tie the score at 68-68 on a putback by Hill with 55 seconds left, setting the stage for the dramatic conclusion.

Pendergraph, who made the winning free throws for Arizona State with 25.6 seconds remaining, finished with 16 points and 12 rebounds.

Four players scored in double figures for Arizona. Wise led the Wildcats with 17 points and seven assists, while Hill and Fogg each ended with 14 points. Junior wing Chase Budinger contributed 13 points, nine rebounds and six assists.

By Tom Kessler
DFN Sports Staff Writer