The Blaze

By Josh Green

Gut check. Hard fought. Bounce back. Those were the words Arizona State Men’s Basketball coach Herb Sendek used to describe the teams 69-66 win over UAB.

The Sun Devils missed 14 three-pointers, but Ty Abbott drilled the one that mattered most, the game-winner, with two seconds left which propelled the Sun Devils to a win in front of a jubilant crowd for their home opener.

ASU improved to 1-1 on the season, and was able to get rid of some of the sour taste left from its 76-62 loss to New Mexico last Tuesday.

The first half of play was about as ugly as it could get as the two teams combined to shoot just 2 of 21 from beyond the arc, with Arizona State shooting 35% overall. Still, the game was tied at 28 heading into the locker rooms.

UAB controlled most of the second half and had an eight-point lead with 11:33 left, but the Sun Devils responded. Led by sophomore Trent Lockett and freshman Kyle Cain and Carrick Felix, ASU went on a 20-7 run to go up 62-57 with 2:33 left.

“Our guys were down, but they really showed tremendous heart and resiliency in continuing to battle,” Sendek said after.

The Blazers wouldn’t go down without a fight, though, coming back from a six-point deficit to tie the game at 66 with 28 seconds left.

Sendek then called timeout to discuss the plan for the final play, which was to get the ball to Lockett.

“The play was designed for Trent to score any way he could,” Abbott said. “They weren’t stopping him the whole game.”

Lockett had the ball near the foul line and tried to drive to his left, but was cut off by UAB’s Aaron Johnson. Lockett then turned around and found Abbott who was wide open on the right wing.

Abbott was just 1-of-4 from beyond the arc at that point, and ASU as a team was 2-of-16, but that didn’t phase him.

“That’s what I’m supposed to do, so it kind of worked out the way it was planned,” the senior guard said.

Abbott finished with 15 points on 6-of-11 shooting, and what may have made his performance more impressive was the fact that he played with an injured right knee. He knocked knees with a UAB player twice, which forced him to leave the game, temporarily.

“He wouldn’t let us take him out, basically,” Sendek said. “He kept telling us he was ok, and I’m sure glad I made that decision.”

For the second straight game, Lockett led the team in points and rebounds, with 19 and 7, respectively. The Sun Devils also got solid play from Cain, who had 14 points and six rebounds off the bench.

ASU will have a few days off before traveling to Anchorage next weekend to take part in the Great Alaskan Shootout. The Sun Devils will open up the tournament on Thanksgiving night against Houston Baptist.

***

-Before the game, ASU honored “Jumpin” Joe Caldwell by hanging up his number 32 jersey in the rafters of Wells Fargo Arena.

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