When sophomore guard Tra Holder's jumpshot went through the hoop 63 seconds in to the ASU men's basketball team's game Wednesday night, the team hustled down the other end of the floor to defend its first lead of the game.
Nearly 39 minutes later, that lead remained intact as Holder and his teammates walked off the floor.
The Sun Devils (2-1) ran away from Kennesaw State, winning 91-53 win to wrap-up their early-season homestand. Four different players were in double-digits for ASU, none more surprising than junior forward Obinna Oleka, who led all scorers with 19 points.
ASU got rolling early, jumping out to an early double-digit lead behind the play of Holder, who ended the first half with 10 points. Coach Bobby Hurley said it was good to see his star guard get off to a better start Wednesday after struggling from the field against Belmont.
"He was aggressive and he got in the lane and created some plays for himself," Hurley said. "He was shifty with the ball and got us going offensively, which was good to see."
Holder said his ability to score inside helped the Sun Devils get in motion offensively and Hurley has encouraged him to do more of it.
"I just tried to come out quick and push the tempo," Holder said. "I think it really opened the floor for the rest of the guys, so I'm going to continue to do that."
The Sun Devils had opportunities to pull away from the Owls in the first half, but squandered them by turning the ball over 11 times through poor passes and fouls, leading to six Kennesaw State points.
While not a lot of offense was generated, the sloppy play kept ASU from putting the ball through the net.
"Coach was emphasizing not keeping them in the game and trying to put our foot on the pedal, so we tried to do that," Blakes said.
ASU listened to its coach in the second half, outgunning the Owls 56-29 to put its stamp on the game and coast to the finish.
The leader of the Sun Devil romp in the second half was Oleka. In just 11 minutes, he scored 13 points for ASU on 4-for-4 shooting from the field, giving the team a spark he failed to provide in his first two games in which he did not score a point.
Oleka said he was a little nervous playing in the first two games for the first time in two years, but he's calmed down and that's what enabled his breakout.
"I kind of needed to get my feet a little wet," Oleka said. "I was too anxious, fouling and not playing well, but this third game right here, I calmed down a little bit."
With its opening slate over, ASU heads on the road next week, finishing the Legends Classic at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, N.Y., presenting a tougher challenge. Not only will ASU have to face road adversity, but compete to win something, which is important to Hurley.
"It's an opportunity for us early in the season to play for a championship," Hurley said. "We're in the Legends Classic and we have to approach it that way. There's some really good opponents there and should be a good atmosphere and we're excited about it."
Reach the reporter at mtonis@asu.edu or follow @Tonis_The_Tiger on Twitter.
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