The Sun Devils lost to Nebraska in the first round of the inaugural College Basketball Crown, declaring the end to a disappointing season. ASU finished the 2024-25 campaign with a 13-20 record and a lot of questions heading into the offseason.
The 86-78 loss to the Cornhuskers was indicative of the Sun Devils' entire season. For one, they came into this game extremely short-handed yet again, an issue that has prolonged through much of conference play and the postseason.
Freshman guard Joson Sanon has already gone through an entire transfer process, committing to St. John's on March 26; freshman big Jayden Quaintance has dealt with a lingering knee injury that kept him out of action; and senior guard BJ Freeman was dismissed from the team for conduct reasons.
READ MORE: Update: ASU men's basketball's Joson Sanon enters transfer portal, commits to St. John's
This left the Sun Devils with only six rotation pieces, creating multiple instances of tired legs that led to rough spurts in the offense. Junior center Shawn Phillips Jr. being in foul trouble didn't help much, either.
"It hurt not having Shawn, for sure, especially as thin as we are overall," head coach Bobby Hurley said in a postgame press conference. "He gave us really good minutes in the first half. He's a presence out there, so that did impact the game for sure."
The offense sputtering has also been a common theme throughout the year, and it usually occurs at the end of games. This was no different with four of the five starters playing 37 or more minutes. After a great start, leading 51-43 with 13:36 remaining, the Sun Devils would allow the Cornhuskers to go on a 28-10 run through the next 10 minutes.
The Sun Devils played well for most of the first half. Senior forward Basheer Jihad scored 15 of his 21 points in the first twenty minutes and was able to force himself to the foul line often. Three-point shooting was an efficient 44.4%. But that efficiency dwindled on the back end of the competition, as the Sun Devils shot just 18.2% from behind the arc in the second half.
On the defensive side of the court, ASU struggled to keep Nebraska's stars in check. First-Team All-Big Ten senior guard Brice Williams had his way, leading all scorers with 30 points. Senior forward Juwan Gary had an efficient 18 points on 50% shooting.
It's difficult to win games with all these odds stacked against them, but losing in almost every statistical category, outside of free throw percentage and blocks, makes it just about impossible. Most statistics were close, but it's a net negative that's hard to overcome.
After the loss, reality began to set in that it was the end of the season. Hurley thanked his seniors, who remained committed every day in the lead-up to the tournament.
"Basheer and Alston Mason, every day we had practice or workout leading to this event, they were there with a great attitude, so I really can't compliment those guys in particular (enough) for their efforts for Arizona State basketball," Hurley said in a postgame press conference.
As the Sun Devils shift gears to another important offseason, Hurley has a difficult task at hand with heavy roster turnover bound to occur. With a limited high school recruiting class, the transfer portal will be where the majority of the pieces come from.
"(I) learned a lot from the portal, and I'm back in, I'll be twisting around the portal for the next few weeks," Hurley said.
This next season will be a defining one in Tempe. Will the Sun Devils continue to falter, or will an invigorated offseason lead to a jump in production? What Hurley can grab from the portal will speak the volumes necessary to determine what's next.
Edited by Henry Smardo, Abigail Beck and Katrina Michalak.
Reach the reporter at jkmccar2@asu.edu and follow @jackmccarthyasu on X.
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Jack is a junior studying sports journalism with a minor in business. This is his first semester with The State Press. He has also worked at his high school paper.
