TEMPE, Ariz. — It is 356.8 miles from Desert Financial Arena on Arizona State’s campus to San Diego State, a long, solitary drive on a ribbon of asphalt through the sand and saguaro cactus. It takes 5 hours, 27 minutes according to Google Maps.
At this time of year, you get back the one-hour time change, so if you leave at, say, 11 p.m. Thursday you arrive at 3:27 a.m. Friday.
Another way to make the bus ride quicker: Knock off — no, blow out — the nation’s No. 23 college basketball team on its home floor before leaving.
The No. 24 Aztecs did just that Thursday night, throttling Arizona State, 80-68, in front of about 100 family and friends from each school at Desert Financial Arena in a game that wasn’t even that close. SDSU is now 5-0, including wins over two Pac-12 teams that were both ranked at the time plus a Pepperdine team that just beat Cal.
There was plenty of room to spread out on the bus because there were only nine players on it. Sophomore Keshad Johnson and freshmen Keith Dinwiddie Jr. and Che Evans didn’t make the trip while in contact tracing protocol from what a school official said was a non-athletic department event.
That left SDSU with nine scholarship players. When five were on the floor, there were only four players — and nine coaches or staff — on the bench.
That was plenty.
Jordan Schakel had a career-high 25 points, six more than his previous best posted at BYU last season. Four days after shooting 1 of 6 beyond the arc against Pepperdine, he was 5 of 9.
You expect that from Schakel. A bigger surprise was the breakout game by Nathan Mensah, who had 17 points, 15 rebounds and three blocks (and passed up several inside shots to kick out to teammates).
Matt Mitchell added 14 points on a night when he shot 1 of 7, instead making 12 of 15 free throws. Trey Pulliam had seven points. Terrell Gomez had six points and four assists.
The game plan against the Sun Devils was what the game plan always is: Patiently move the ball on offense, play the helpside gaps on defense, rebound, maintain composure, don’t panic and grind.
Arizona State coach Bobby Hurley said, presciently, the day before: “I think it’s going to be a test of our togetherness, how tight are we of a unit. Because they’re not going away in that game. It’s going to be a 40-minute battle. … Can we stick together through stretches of the game when things may not be going well for us? Are we that connected of a group to be able to handle that?”
He got his answer: no.
The Sun Devils settled for jump shots against SDSU’s sagging defense and couldn’t get out on the break because they couldn’t rebound.
The frustration was simmering and finally blew off the lid of the pot with 8:24 left, when five-star freshman Josh Christopher (13 points, 2-of-8 shooting) was whistled for his fourth foul trying to guard a drive by Mitchell. He mouthed off to referee Eric Curry, who was working his third SDSU game of the young season.
Another whistle. Technical foul.
Technicals count as personal fouls, which gave Christopher his fifth and a permanent seat on the bench.
Mitchell made all four free throws — two for the T, two for the blocking foul — and the Aztecs led by 15.
Five minutes later, they led by 20.
Arizona State (3-2), playing without injured freshman Marcus Bagley, got 25 points from Alonzo Verge Jr. But the rest of the stacked roster managed only 12 baskets and shot 34.5%, including nine points, three assists and three turnovers from preseason all-American point guard Remy Martin.
The Aztecs had a 44-37 edge on the boards, 17-7 on second chance points and a whopping 36-8 on points in the paint.
The SDSU players have been hinting that the source of their slow starts this season was the absence of the usual energy inside Viejas Arena, which meant they got to test the hypothesis Thursday night in a venue where they didn’t expect raucous support.
And sure enough, in an unfamiliar arena with the lower bowl bleachers pushed back to give it an open feel, they blazed out of the gates.
Arizona State won the opening tip and missed a shot, and SDSU’s Aguek Arop grabbed the rebound. And had his outlet pass intercepted by Martin.
But it wasn’t a case of here we go again. The score after six minutes: Aztecs 14, Sun Devils 2.
Even when things went bad, they were good. Arop clanked two free throws, but Schakel wiggled free for the offensive rebounds and a few passes later hit a 3.
Meanwhile, the team that entered the night ranked ninth in Division I in offensive efficiency failed to score on nine of its first 10 possessions. The Aztecs sat in the gaps on the defense, kept their men in front of them and forced the Sun Devils into taking contested jump shots. Eleven of their first 15 attempts were behind the arc.
It was 3s, though, that got the Sun Devils back in the game when SDSU finally went cold. A Martin 3 from well behind the line gave ASU its first lead with 5:11 left in the half, and SDSU’s chances of building it again were dimmed by foul trouble.
Mitchell, Arop and Joshua Tomaic all went to the bench prematurely with two fouls. Tomaic’s second foul stung. Mensah was at the table waiting to come in for him with Mitchell at the line, but Mitchell missed and play continued — and Tomaic picked up his second foul at the other end.
The second half started as inauspiciously as the first, with a backcourt turnover — this time when Pulliam fumbled the opening inbounds pass off his leg.
But just as Hurley predicted, the Aztecs refused to wilt, using a 13-0 run to take command of the game and remain undefeated. Next up is a Dec. 18 game at Viejas Arena against BYU.
