In its Pac-12 home opener, ASU men's basketball's offense sputtered as it fell 68-61 to No. 20 Colorado. The Sun Devils shot just 34% from the floor coupled with 26% from behind the arc in the loss.
The game was a back and forth fight until about halfway through the third quarter, when the Buffaloes strung together enough shots to enjoy a comfortable lead throughout the remainder of the contest on the way to their 14th win of the season.
Junior guard Remy Martin and redshirt junior forward Romello White combined achieved 44 of ASU’s 61 points of the night. The lack of tertiary scoring options has been a struggle for the Sun Devils all season, and tonight's performance epitomized that, with the rest of the team shooting just 17% from the floor.
Turnovers were another issue for ASU on Thursday night, as the team committed 14 turnovers, nine of which came in the first half.
"There were turnovers, guys leaving their feet and not having a play," ASU head coach Bobby Hurley said. "When you have that many guards on the floor like we do at times, you would hope that wouldn’t be a major issue, though it was tonight."
Despite scoring 25 points, Martin was downtrodden after the game, blaming himself for the team’s lackluster showing on offense.
"I felt like I could’ve done more," Martin said. "I could’ve got the team to a better start in the second half, and I feel like I let the team down and that doesn’t sit right with me."
Martin also took the blame for the team's lack of scoring balance throughout the roster on Thursday night, saying, "I think it’s my job to get them open shots by just making the right play and being aggressive."
The biggest silver lining for ASU on Thursday night was White, who finished with 19 points and 10 rebounds on 75% shooting from the floor. White was able to finish around the rim and grab four offensive rebounds for the Sun Devils.
ASU won’t have much time to dwell on the loss as it will host Utah on Jan. 18 at 7 p.m. MST.
Reach the reporter at ltochter@asu.edu and follow @Leo_Toch on Twitter.
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