Men's Hoops Erases Deficit in 85-82 win over New Mexico

SUN DEVIL MEN'S BASKETBALL IN CLOSE GAMES /// HALFTIME COMEBACKS UNDER BOBBY HURLEY

PALM SPRINGS, Calif. - Sun Devil Men's Basketball advances to the Acrisure Classic Championship game after capturing a thrilling 85-82 victory over New Mexico on Thanksgiving night.

Head Coach Bobby Hurley's teams have always done a good job winning close games and making halftime adjustments. Both happened late Thanksgiving night in Palm Springs.
 
Arizona State (6-1) led by 13 early and trailed by nine late but came back to beat New Mexico 85-82 late Thanksgiving night in a back-and-forth game that had 10 ties and seven lead changes.
 
ASU – who has scored 80+ in six straight games -- led 34-21 with 5:38 left in first half, but the Lobos closed the half on a 16-1 run to lead 37-34 at recess and then pushed the lead to 50-41 with just over 10 minutes remaining. ASU then outscored the Lobos 34-22, which included 20-of-25 from the free throw line in the second half.
 
Basheer Jihad led the Sun Devils 20 points and added six boards, while freshman Joson Sanon had 19 points off the bench. BJ Freeman added 16 points, including 7-of-8 from the free throw line, while Alston Mason added 11 points and five assists.

Up Next 
ASU will face St. Mary's (7-0) at 6:30 p.m. PT/7:30 p.m. AZT in the title game Friday, and then will host San Diego on Tuesday, Dec. 3, for its final home game prior to Big 12 play.  Television coverage can be found on TruTV.

Acrisure Classic Championship Game
Sun Devil Men's Basketball is seeking their fourth non-conference tournament championship in the Bobby Hurley era. ASU also won the 2022 Legends Classic, 2018 MGM Resorts Title, and the 2017 Continental Tire Invitational.

Block Party
Freshman Jayden Quaintance has recorded 25 blocks thus far in the 2024-2025 season, surpassing Pac-12 career blocks leader Jordan Bachynski on the ASU freshman single-season blocks list. Quaintance already has the fifth-most blocks by a freshman in program history. 

Sun Devil Freshman Blocks Record (1978-79-present)
55, Mario Bennett, 1991-92
33, Jamal Faulkner, 1990-91
31, Ike Diogu, 2002-03
29, Jalen Graham, 2019-20
25, Jayden Quaintance, 2024-25

Don't count us out
Arizona State has come back to win a game when trailing at halftime 44 times during the Bobby Hurley era and five times last season, three of which came on the road. Since 2015-16, the Sun Devils are Top-25 in the nation with their 44 halftime comeback victories.

Comfortable when it is Close
Sun Devils move to 18-8 in two-possession games over the past three seasons. Arizona State is 60-42 (58.8%) in close games in the Bobby Hurley era.

6-1 Start
Arizona State starts 6-1 for the first time since the 2022-2023 season and the fourth time under the Bobby Hurley era (2017-18, 2018-19, 2022-23, 2024-25).

Neutralizing the Opponent
Arizona State continues their success under Bobby Hurley at neutral sites. The Sun Devils have defeated three teams that won 20+ games in neutral settings already in 2024-25 (Grand Canyon, Santa Clara, New Mexico). Two were 2024 NCAA Tournament participants. ASU has now won 16 games overall under Hurley in neutral games. That includes past wins over NC State, Kansas State, St. John's, Mississippi State, Xavier, Michigan, Utah State, New Mexico, and Creighton.

80-point Streak
For the first time since the 2017-18 season, Arizona State has reached the 80-point mark in six straight games. That season, Arizona State did it in six straight games, including a win over No. 15 Xavier. That 2017-18 team went on to make the NCAA Tournament. 
 
2024-25 (6 Games)
Arizona State 81, Santa Clara 74
Arizona State 80, Gonzaga 88
Arizona State 87, GCU 76
Arizona State 81, St. Thomas 66
Arizona State 93, Cal Poly 89
Arizona State 85, New Mexico 82
 
2017-18 (6 Games)
Arizona State 94, Idaho State 74
Arizona State 90, San Diego State 68
Arizona State 97, NAU 62
Arizona State 99, UC Irvine 78
Arizona State 92, Kansas State 90
Arizona State 102, #15 Xavier 86

Sansational Start
Joson Sanon continues to emerge as one of the premier freshman in the country. He finished with 19 points on 6-of-11 shooting off the bench. Over the last four games, Joson Sanon has scored a total of 80 points (20 ppg) and grabbed 18 rebounds (4.5 rpg). During that span, he is shooting 27-47 (57.4%) from the field and 12-22 (54.5%) from beyond the arc. He is now averaging a team-best 15.0 points per game this season.

Ba-Sheer Force
In his first two games, Basheer Jihad combined for five points on 1-of-10 shooting. Over his past five games, Jihad has accumulated 88 points (17.6 ppg) on 23-of-41 (56.1%) shooting . He is also 36-for-47 (76.6%) from the free throw line during that span.  

Series History
Arizona State defeats the Lobos for the first time since 1991, ending New Mexico's four-game win streak in the series. ASU moves to 25-12 against New Mexico away from Albuquerque.

Two-Man Show
New Mexico relied on their two stars, Donavon Dent and Mustapha Amzil, to produce most of their offense. Arizona State held their teammates in check, a big factor in the victory. The rest of the Lobos combined for 24 points on 9-of-26 (34.6%) shooting.

Not this November
New Mexico was looking for their third straight tournament title in the month of Novmeber, but the Sun Devils ended any chances of that happening. The Lobos had won the 2023 Ball Dawgs Classic in Henderson last year and the 2022 Lobo Classic in Albuquerque two seasons ago. 

The Hurley Era
Bobby Hurley has won 161 games at ASU and is only the second coach in program history to reach the mark. With the win over Cal Poly, he passed Herb Sendek for the second-most victories in program history.

Career Wins at ASU
406, Ned Wulk (1957-82)
161, Bobby Hurley (2015-present)
159, Herb Sendek (2006-15)Free throw shooting in second half

About those Sun Devil Wins
Coach Hurley has notched 161 wins at Arizona State and has done it while scheduling aggressively and not being afraid to play on the road. He has won 102 games in Arizona, but also has won at least five games in California (15), Nevada (13), Oregon (six) and Washington (five). Four wins have taken place in Utah, three in New York, and two in Colorado, Nebraska, Ohio and Pennsylvania. Single wins have taken place in Florida, Georgia, Kansas, New Jersey and Texas.

Season Tickets
Season tickets are available starting at just $180. Season tickets include all regular season home games in Desert Financial Arena.
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Mini Plans
6-game mini plans are available starting at just $150. Fans can choose any 6 home games to include in their plan.
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Single-game Tickets
Single-game tickets are on sale now. Visit Sun Devil Tickets for more information on how to purchase. If you are interested in learning more about any of our tickets and experience options, please call or text 480-727-0000 or email grouptickets@asu.edu to contact a Sun Devil ticket sales representative.

Here to Stay
The Arizona State Board of Regents announced in March of 2023 that Sun Devil Men's Basketball Head Coach Bobby Hurley has agreed to an extension that will keep him with the program through the 2026 season.
 
Sun Devils on Social
For exclusive content, the latest updates, and more information on the Sun Devil Men's Basketball program, follow our X/Instagram accounts (@SunDevilHoops), like our Facebook page (facebook.com/SunDevilHoops/), and visit our website (thesundevils.com). Follow Coach Hurley on X (@BobbyHurley11).