But in Tuesday’s matchup against Northern Arizona, Odum was silent on the stat sheet for most of the game – tallying only two points that came on free throws within the final minute – something that is unusual for this new look ASU team.

However, despite a down game for Odum, his demeanor on the bench and on the court remained the same, not being phased from a season-low points total for him.

“You could never tell that he was having that kind of game, if you were on the bench, watching how he was interacting with his teammates and in huddles and when he wasn't in the game, (he was) supporting his teammates,” head coach Bobby Hurley said. “So that's what a real leader does. He doesn't get hung up on his own personal success and allow that to determine his attitude. He did a very good job in that regard, being a leader tonight.”

ASU (8-2) defeated NAU (4-5) 73-45 at home on Nov 9, 2025. The Sun Devils started slow out of the gate, but used a 38-22 scoring run in the second half to pull away for their biggest margin of victory this season.

The Sun Devils jumped out to an 11-2 lead before the Lumberjacks began crawling back into the match and making it a close match for most of the first half. The momentum shift began when ASU went to its bench players for the first time, and the result was the opposite of what happened in its win against Oklahoma last Saturday.

“We didn't get that same type of production. Ended up losing the lead in the first half, but just kept plugging along,” Hurley said.

However, after halftime, the Sun Devils began getting in a groove offensively. They went on a 13-0 run after the first few minutes to begin what was a dominant second half scoring-wise to widen the gap.

“I would say it took a little time for us to figure it out, a little bit, but we went back to what we were supposed to do, and turned out well,” senior forward Allen Mukeba said.

Mukeba had 10 points, six rebounds and two steals off the bench, where he saw 20 minutes of game action.

One aspect ASU is attempting to improve on is rebounding. It’s been one of the team's weaknesses throughout the beginning of the season, and it was on full display in the team’s 88-75 loss to USC in the Maui Invitational game – a match where the Trojans had the same amount of offensive rebounds as the Sun Devils had defensive rebounds (12).

“We've been doing what's called the Yukon drill, where coach (Hurley) throws, and we have to fight each other, box it, box each other out to go rebound the ball,” sophomore forward Marcus Adams Jr. said.

ASU was picked last place in the preseason Big 12 media poll before the season. But in a season where the Sun Devils have subverted expectations, they’ve been rewarded by receiving two votes in the Associated Press Top 25 heading into the week.

“I didn't put a lot of stock in it because I didn't think (we were) going to be a bad team or a team that couldn't win games,” Hurley said. “I liked the team's attitude. I liked a lot of the pieces we had. I thought some of the guys that we brought in were better than I even thought they were, based on the film watching them, the International guys.”

It’s a strong start to the season for ASU, but the team continues to raise expectations for itself as it finishes non-conference action and heads into Big 12 play.

“We want to be undefeated in December. That's the goal we set as a team,” Adams Jr. said. “We got Santa Clara next, UCLA and Oregon State, and we want to beat those three teams and go into Big 12 play with heads on our shoulders.”