SUN DEVILS LOSE
ASU loses to Colorado in 1st round of Pac-12 Tournament
There was no joy for coach Bobby Hurley and the Sun Devils Wednesday as ASU loses its first-round Pac-12 basketball tournament game, falling 97-85 to Colorado.
LAS VEGAS – The ball went up, over the Arizona State defender where only Tyler Bey could reach it. In the final seconds, the Colorado freshman caught it and slammed it home, an emphatic play that ended the Sun Devils’ brief stay in Sin City.
ASU's Tra Holder took exception and pushed Bey, a clear sign of frustration, not only for this game, but for a stretch that keeps growing.
ASU has tried the past two months to recapture its non-conference magic, but Wednesday’s Pac-12 Tournament opener offered just more of the same, the ninth-seeded Sun Devils falling 97-85 to the Buffaloes at T-Mobile Arena.
The Sun Devils dropped to 20-11. While their nonconference performance still might be enough to get them into the NCAA Tournament, they’ll have to sweat out Selection Sunday. From where they were just more than two months ago – ranked in the top five of the national polls – that’s nearly unfathomable.
"It's been a roller coaster, for sure," senior guard Shannon Evans said.
After the game, coach Bobby Hurley repeated what he's said for the past week. That the entire season matters. That ASU has showed enough with non-conference wins over potential No. 1 seeds Xavier and Kansas.
That might be the case. But instead of peaking, the Sun Devils have faded. Even Hurley admitted:
"There's going to be some debate about (our candidacy), and with good reason because we didn't finish the season the way I'd hoped."