ASU men’s basketball (9-5, 0-1 Pac-12) dropped its first conference game of the season, falling to No. 25 Arizona (11-3, 1-0) 75-47 on Saturday night in the first game of the 2020 Territorial Cup series.
Junior guard Remy Martin led the Sun Devils with 20 points, three rebounds and two steals.
Junior forward Kimani Lawrence and junior guard Alonzo Verge Jr. chipped in eight points each for ASU.
Redshirt junior forward Romello White returned from an ankle injury and hauled in five rebounds to add to his Pac-12-leading 10.1 rebounds per game.
UA played a dominant first half, connecting on 15 of 30 shot attempts and limiting the Sun Devils to just 26% from the field.
ASU’s 17 first-half points marked a season-low for the team, as they were challenged by a stout defense led by redshirt senior Chase Jeter and freshman guard Josh Green.
UA also created a fierce presence in the paint on both ends of the floor in the half, notching 26 of its 36 points down low and limiting ASU to six interior points on defense.
The battle below the hoop also granted the Wildcats a 26-15 rebounding advantage through the first half, 21 of which were pulled down on the defensive end.
ASU looked to overcome a 19-point deficit at the start of the second half as the team created a small rhythm early, knocking down four of their first six shot attempts.
However, UA responded with an offensive surge of its own, at one point amassing a 29-point lead, courtesy of a 12-0 scoring run that took just over a minute to create.
Green and freshman guard Nico Mannion led the way for the Wildcats in the second half, combining for 16 points.
Four Wildcats scored 10 points or more, with freshman forward Zeke Nnaji leading the pack with a team-high 17 points.
ASU will look to even its Pac-12 record when the team travels to Corvallis, Oregon on Jan. 9 to face Oregon State at 9 p.m. MST.
Reach the reporter at hcroton@asu.edu or follow @thecrote on Twitter.
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