Entering Saturday evening, the No. 3 Arizona State Sun Devils were the last remaining undefeated team in college basketball.
But at the end of the night, the Devils were scratched from the ranks of the unbeaten by their archrivals in a nail-biter of a game.
The No. 17 Arizona Wildcats survived numerous ASU rallies in the second half and held on for an 84-78 win at McKale Center to improve to 11-3 (1-0 Pac-12) and drop the Devils to 12-1 (0-1) for the season. It was UA's eighth straight win overall and its eighth straight victory over ASU in Tucson.
Here are three big takeaways from the game.
The Wildcats hold on to hand ASU its first loss of the season. pic.twitter.com/piivGiiyFm
— ABC15 Sports (@abc15sports) December 31, 2017
The Sun Devils came up just short in Tucson tonight, but coach Bobby Hurley was not disappointed in the effort. pic.twitter.com/edHhDCAGmf
— ABC15 Sports (@abc15sports) December 31, 2017
1. Devils can't handle Cats' size
ASU is a much bigger team this season thanks to the additions of Romello White, De'Quon Lake and Mickey Mitchell. But the Wildcats still proved a bit too much for ASU near the basket on Saturday.
In particular, freshman freak Deandre Ayton, the possible No. 1 pick in next year's draft, did pretty much whatever he wanted throughout the game. He scored 23 points on 9 of 14 shooting and added 19 rebounds, and his tip-in with 11 seconds to play sealed Arizona's victory. Fellow 7-footer Dusan Ristic added 12 points and four rebounds for the Wildcats.
Would you believe us if we said he's only a freshman?
Deandre Ayton posts a double-double, 23 points and 19 rebounds, in @APlayersProgram victory over Arizona State. #Pac12Hoops pic.twitter.com/bHAjnAuj1I
— Pac-12 Network (@Pac12Network) December 31, 2017
2. Tra Holder is a star
ASU's toughness and resilience were on display Saturday night, as the Devils rallied twice from double-digit deficits in the second half to trim UA's lead to a single possession. The catalyst for those rallies was senior guard Tra Holder, who scored a game-high 31 points, connected on 4 of 8 of his 3-point attempts and made 15 of 16 free throws.
After the game, UA coach Sean Miller singled Holder out for praise, calling him a "monster" that reminded him of former Suns star point guard Kevin Johnson.
WHO. ELSE. #TraTrey pic.twitter.com/JVlKsUGCjv
— Sun Devil MBB (@SunDevilHoops) December 31, 2017
UA coach Sean Miller heaped praise on "monster" @SunDevilHoops guard Tra Holder, who scored 31 points tonight.
Miller even compared Holder to former @Suns star Kevin Johnson. pic.twitter.com/RnAUzNV0rB
— ABC15 Sports (@abc15sports) December 31, 2017
3. What an atmosphere
McKale Center is always one of the loudest college basketball arenas in the country -- but on Saturday, the atmosphere in that gym was simply off the charts. Heck, fans even got loud for a cheerleader competition that UA won during a timeout.
The crowd was very into this cheerleader contest during the timeout. pic.twitter.com/aSUg9K9N19
— Shane Dale (@ShaneDaleABC15) December 31, 2017
After the game, Miller said his team needed that fan support, noting fans still made plenty of noise despite UA students yet to return to school from holiday break.
"We needed them tonight."
Sean Miller praised the extremely loud fans who packed McKale Center, called them some of the knowledgable in the country. pic.twitter.com/0QxkNW9Qud
— Shane Dale (@ShaneDaleABC15) December 31, 2017
