It only took five minutes to prove the ASU men’s basketball team was in for another long game on the road.
Oregon started Tuesday’s game on a 15-0 run and held on to beat the Sun Devils (21-9, 10-7 Pac-12 ) 85-78, handing ASU its fourth straight road loss and delaying the Sun Devils’ clinch of a first-round bye in the Pac-12 Tournament for another game.
ASU missed its first six shots and turned the ball over twice before senior guard Jermaine Marshall finally hit a jumper with 14:44 left in the first half.
But the game wasn’t a blowout for long. Marshall’s basket ended up sparking a 16-2 ASU run that brought the Sun Devils back into the game.
When ASU cut the deficit to one point, the Ducks (21-8, 9-8 Pac-12) broke out on a quick 7-0 run.
The game settled down at that point as both teams traded buckets at the end of the half, and the Ducks went into halftime with a 33-25 lead.
ASU had a slow start to the second half, but the Sun Devils kept getting to the free-throw line to slowly chip away Oregon’s lead. ASU redshirt sophomore point guard Jahii Carson looked like he was going to single-handedly give ASU the lead, scoring 22 of his 28 points in the second half.
The Sun Devils failed to stay on their pace near the end of the game, though. After redshirt junior guard Bo Barnes hit a 3-pointer from the corner with 6:24 left, the Sun Devils couldn’t make a field goal for five minutes as the Ducks went on a 9-1 run late in the second half to pull away for good.
The Sun Devils hit three 3-pointers in a row – two from Barnes and one from Marshall – in the last minute, but it was too late to bring ASU back into the game.
Oregon redshirt senior forward Mike Moser, the reigning Pac-12 Player of the Week, led the Ducks with 22 points and 17 rebounds. Redshirt senior guard Jason Calliste added 16 points off the bench while sophomore guard Damyean Dotson chipped in 15.
Carson had one of his best shooting nights in conference play, hitting 10 of his 19 shots. ASU senior center Jordan Bachynski recorded his 12th double-double of the season with 13 points and 11 rebounds, along with five blocks. Despite scoring 16 points, Marshall struggled from the field and only shot 4-of-14 from the field and 3-of-8 from the 3-point line.
ASU shot just 38 percent from the field. The Sun Devils have failed to shoot better than 40 percent in their last three games on the road.
Oregon controlled the battle inside, outrebounding ASU 29-22 and allowing the Sun Devils to score just 12 points in the paint. The Ducks had trouble scoring from the outside while playing with a lineup until Calliste found his rhythm midway through the game.
It was a big win for Oregon, which has won its last six games after starting Pac-12 play 3-8 and is looking to make a late push toward the NCAA Tournament. The Ducks host No. 3 UA Saturday.
The Sun Devils will head back to Tempe immediately following the game and will regroup there until they travel to Corvallis, Ore., on Saturday to face Oregon State.
Reach the reporter at jnacion@asu.edu or follow him on Twitter @Josh_Nacion
