Field Level Media
Dec 11, 2020
Senior Jordan Schakel scored a career-high 25 points and junior Nathan Mensah established career bests with 17 points and 15 rebounds to lead No. 24 San Diego State to an 80-68 victory over No. 23 Arizona State on Thursday night at Tempe, Ariz.
San Diego State (5-0) leads the nation with 13 straight victories on the road.
Schakel made 9 of 15 shots from the field, including 5 of 9 from 3-point range. Mensah's interior presence helped San Diego State outscore Arizona State 36-8 in points scored in the lane.
The Aztecs' Matt Mitchell added 14 points while making 12 of 15 shots from the free-throw line.
Senior Alonzo Verge Jr., who had missed Arizona State's past two games because of COVID-19 contact tracing, led the Sun Devils with 25 points behind a career-high seven 3-pointers.
Josh Christopher had 13 points for Arizona State before fouling out with 8:24 left following a foul and technical foul.
The Sun Devils (3-2) made 34.5 percent of their shots, including 38.2 percent from 3-point range. The Aztecs hit 44.3 percent from the floor, 32 points from beyond the arc.
In the first half, San Diego State outscored Arizona State 16-2 in the paint and won the rebounding battle 26-17, but the Sun Devils kept it close. The Aztecs led 35-33 at the half.
Arizona State rallied from 12 points down in the first half by making 7 of 10 shots from 3-point range in one stretch.
The Aztecs went on an 18-2 run behind 11 points from Schakel to take a 59-45 lead with 10:40 left in regulation.
Arizona State endured a scoring drought of 4:43 during that run in which the Sun Devils were 0 of 6 from the field with two turnovers.
The hosts went without a field goal longer. The Sun Devils went from 16:49 remaining to 8:46 left without making a shot, missing 11 straight in the process.
That streak was broken by Jalen Graham's dunk that cut the deficit to 60-49.
A 9-0 run by San Diego State put the game out of reach, increasing the lead to 73-54 with 4:03 remaining.
--Field Level Media