By Josh Green
Coming into Sunday’s Territorial Cup between Arizona and Arizona State, a lot of ASU’s attention was on Wildcat sophomore Derrick Williams, who scored 31 points and 10 rebounds in last month’s meeting in Tucson. Turns out Williams doesn’t have to be dominate for the Wildcats to beat the Sun Devils, as was shown in their 67-52 win at Wells Fargo Arena.
Kyle Fogg matched a career-high with 26 points, and Jesse Perry chipped in 10 points and seven rebounds for UA (21-4, 10-2), which won its sixth game in a row and its ninth in 10 games, sending ASU (9-15, 1-11) to its 10th straight conference loss.
On a night where the likely Pac-10 Player of the Year Williams had “only” 11 points and five rebounds, his teammate Fogg carried the load for UA, nailing six three-pointers and doing his part to help keep the Wildcats in sole possession of first place in the Pac-10
“I just felt like every shot I put up was going to go in,” Fogg said afterwards.
Jamelle McMillan led the way for the Sun Devils, as he scored 12 points and added five assists and three steals. McMillan was the only senior to have a good showing, with Ty Abbott and Rihards Kuksiks combining to shoot 4-of-19 from the floor.
“Arizona plays excellent defense and you have to give them credit,” ASU head coach Herb Sendek said.
The game started off a back-and-forth affair for the first few minutes of the first half. ASU went up 15-13, but UA answered with a 17-5 run and never looked back. The Sun Devils did make it interesting, cutting the lead to ten at the half, but the Wildcats’ lead never appeared to be in doubt.
In fact, things seemed headed for a rout, as UA went up by as many as 19 early in the second half. ASU responded with a 10-0 run to get within single digits, but the Wildcats had answers anytime the Sun Devils made a strong push.
“They did a good job taking the hits, and then they delivered on the other end,” McMillan said after.
ASU will continue trying to play the role of spoiler, as it will host third-place Washington this Thursday. UA, on the other hand, will continue pursuing its first Pac-10 championship since 2005 as it faces Washington State.
“When you’re trying to win a championship, there’s no one game that means more than the next,” said Wildcat head coach Sean Miller
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