The ASU men's basketball team has been the cardiac kids all season. Saturday night, it didn't survive the heart attack.
ASU came up short against its neighbors to the south, falling to No. 11 UA 70-68 in front of 14,141 at Wells Fargo Arena.
For the third time in conference play and the second consecutive game, the Sun Devils were buried on the final possession. As has been the story in close games all year long, ASU gave up an offensive rebound that led to its disastrous fate.
After Wildcat junior guard Hassan Adams missed a running lay-up with 20 seconds remaining, the ball was tipped in the air and landed back in Wildcats' hands. UA (25-5, 15-3 Pac-10) called a timeout and drew up an isolation play for its senior leader, Salim Stoudamire.
With the game on the line, Stoudamire showed why he is one of the premier shooters in the country. Stoudamire drove the lane and nailed a fade away 14-foot jumper over two Sun Devil defenders with six-tenths of a second left on the clock. ASU sophomore guard Kevin Kruger's desperation attempt at the buzzer missed, and so did ASU (18-12, 7-11) at pulling off a huge upset it needed to bolster a late-season run.
"I thought it was a great basketball game by two teams who battled tremendously hard," ASU coach Rob Evans said. "Our whole season has come down to one or two plays, one or two calls and we're in the NCAA Tournament already."
The loss put a damper on what was an exciting night for the Sun Devils and their seniors. All four -- forwards Andrew Ecker, Jamie Andrisevic and guards Steve Moore and Jason Braxton -- were honored before the game. The entire Sun Devil team then went into the student section to rile up the crowd before the game.
It was a much more pleasant image than the looks of sadness and disbelief that came after the final buzzer.
"We just really needed this one," said junior forward Ike Diogu, who had a game-high 25 points. "I really wanted to get this one for the seniors on our team, but we just didn't do it."
While it wasn't the fairy tale ending they had wished for, both Braxton and Moore played big roles in the game.
Braxton finished his career in Tempe in his usual hard-working style, scoring nine points and pulling down a team-high nine rebounds.
Moore scored the Sun Devils' first six points, finishing the game with 16. A win in his final home game would have been a sweet finish for the Los Angeles native, but having his family in attendance to see him play was the highlight of his night.
"It was the first time my mom has seen me play in 23 years," Moore said when asked about his mother, Hortense Johnson, who battled breast cancer last season. "When I hit a three, my mom is 4-foot nothing and I saw her jump up before anyone else, that made me feel real good."
The feelings were mutual from the family side, as Johnson, along with Moore's sister Veronica Bosc, and brother Eric were proud to be with Steve on the special night.
"It was excellent, and to be here along with my mom made it even more special," Eric Moore said. "Steve has come a long way to where he's at now. It's a beautiful thing to see."
Stoudamire's game-winning shot ultimately sealed the Sun Devils' fate, however it was a 19-0 Wildcat run early in the first half that made the game an uphill climb ending in heartbreak for ASU.
"I'm emotional on the court, but as far as shedding tears, I don't do that unless there is a death in the family," Moore said. "I shed a few tears, because it really hurt me to lose, especially like that. To see Coach Evans fight so hard to get respect and we came up short, it hurts."
Reach the reporter at matt.reinick@asu.edu.
