Blog

TEMPE — Randy Bennett admitted it before anybody asked him twice: he was nervous.

Not about the opponent, exactly. About all the new. A new school, a new team, a first night when you don’t know how long anything is going to take or how your guys are going to play. “Just a little anxiety, because it’s new,” Bennett said at his postgame media availability after Arizona State’s 75-65 win over East Tennessee State. “More so than usual. But all good — great experience, great atmosphere.”

The nerves make the trust easier to see. Paulius Murauskas did not start well Monday night. Bennett never wavered on him, and Murauskas finished with 21 points and nine rebounds, going 11-for-12 from the free-throw line.

“Paulius knows I’m going to roll with him,” Bennett said. “I trust him because I know he’ll play — big games, little games, he’ll show up. He didn’t start out great, but eventually he came.”

Point guard Joel Foxwell explained how the staff freed him up. East Tennessee State was hard-showing with its big man on ball screens, so the Sun Devils went to more of them — the Buccaneers didn’t know whether to come out high and leave Murauskas open for threes or let him play the other side.

“Free him up and he’s going to make plays for others,” Foxwell said. “And at the end of the day, he still put the ball in the hoop. Our spacing in the second half was much better than the first half, and we weren’t as sped up.”

What Bennett and his point guard agreed on: the win was not the standard. Foxwell called the first half poor and the second-half offense stuck — the Buccaneers closed

TEMPE — Randy Bennett admitted it before anybody asked him twice: he was nervous.

Not about the opponent, exactly. About all the new. A new school, a new team, a first night when you don’t know how long anything is going to take or how your guys are going to play. “Just a little anxiety, because it’s new,” Bennett said at his postgame media availability after Arizona State’s 75-65 win over East Tennessee State. “More so than usual. But all good — great experience, great atmosphere.”

The nerves make the trust easier to see. Paulius Murauskas did not start well Monday night. Bennett never wavered on him, and Murauskas finished with 21 points and nine rebounds, going 11-for-12 from the free-throw line.

“Paulius knows I’m going to roll with him,” Bennett said. “I trust him because I know he’ll play — big games, little games, he’ll show up. He didn’t start out great, but eventually he came.”

Point guard Joel Foxwell explained how the staff freed him up. East Tennessee State was hard-showing with its big man on ball screens, so the Sun Devils went to more of them — the Buccaneers didn’t know whether to come out high and leave Murauskas open for threes or let him play the other side.

“Free him up and he’s going to make plays for others,” Foxwell said. “And at the end of the day, he still put the ball in the hoop. Our spacing in the second half was much better than the first half, and we weren’t as sped up.”

What Bennett and his point guard agreed on: the win was not the standard. Foxwell called the first half poor and the second-half offense stuck — the Buccaneers closed the paint and pushed the Sun Devils out of their offense. Bennett went straight at the rebounding, the one thing this team is built to do well.

“I thought our rebounding has been bad, and we’re inconsistent,” Bennett said. “We’re usually a very good rebounding team — we should be, we have good size — but we’re just not there yet. Our habits aren’t where they need to be defensively. We didn’t defend the three well. We just make errors that we shouldn’t make.”

Foxwell pointed at the 50/50 balls, the thing this group talks about every day: “There’s been a want to win those 50/50 balls, to get on the ground and scrap. We had a few times tonight where we didn’t get those, and that’s what we pride ourselves on. The want wasn’t at our expectations.”

Foxwell had his own first-night nerves — “coming to a bigger school than what I was at prior, more fans, more media, more spotlight” — and finished with 15 points and five assists in 40 minutes. Where both men landed was the last six minutes: the Sun Devils controlled the game, put it on their terms, and closed a scrappy conference champion out.

“That’s a good team,” Bennett said of the Buccaneers, who won their league and their conference tournament last season. “They’re scrappy. But we need to be able to handle them on the boards and do a better job on them defensively.”

Arizona State (1-0) hosts Northern Colorado on Friday at Desert Financial Arena, with tip at 7 p.m.

Article provided by Sports Tracker

© Old Town News Scottsdale — oldtownnews.us

SAN FRANCISCO — The game story is the third quarter and the comeback that fell short. The sidebar is what Jordan Ott kept coming back to at his postgame media availability: the possessions the Suns gave away late, and the free throws.

Phoenix led 57-51 at the half and lost 116-113 to Golden State. Down the stretch, against a Warriors defense Ott credited for its activity and physicality, the Suns’ execution broke down.

“It’s probably a little bit of both,” Ott said, asked whether the turnovers were carelessness or Golden State’s speed speeding the Suns up. “It’s a newer group. It feels like the first time it was that tight down the stretch. Those are some good reps to get. But we’ll probably look back and have a couple of those possessions we wish we could redo.”

The other half of his frustration was the whistle. Golden State went 31-for-37 from the free-throw line; Phoenix went 22-for-30, and Devin Booker fouled out. Ott talked about the difference between the contact allowed on a bump on a cross screen and the contact called when a player drives the ball downhill — this from a Suns team that lives on drives — and said the Suns also have to clean up fouling jump shooters.

“Some of those foul calls we wish we could get back, some of those foul calls we’re going to question,” Ott said. “But that’s what it is on the road.”

Through the Draymond Green altercation in the first half — Green throwing Khaman Maluach down, the scuffle with Dillon Brooks, the ejection — Ott thought his team kept its poise. What it did not do was finish.

“We talked about staying in it for 48 minutes — having the mental resilience to stay in 48 minutes,” he said. “We need to put a full 48 together. There’s probably a couple minutes there in the second that we lost it a little bit, and then in the fourth, you gotta find a way to win the game.”

The part he liked: Booker, who in Ott’s view was in his best rhythm from start to finish, and Jalen Green’s passing against a defense that kept putting two men on the ball on Booker — hit the roller or hit the man behind it, and the offense flowed. Green finished with eight assists.

“It’s amazing,” Ott said. “When you enjoy and feel the energy from defense, how easily offense flows.”

The defense, he said, is what they will keep trying to figure out — and on this night, it was the free throws.

The Suns open a seven-game homestand Wednesday against the Portland Trail Blazers at Mortgage Matchup Center, with tip at 7 p.m.

Article provided by Sports Tracker

© Old Town News Scottsdale — oldtownnews.us

Phoenix vs Golden State boxscore

LOS ANGELES — Luka Doncic scored 42 points with 13 assists and seven rebounds, and the Los Angeles Lakers (6-2) beat the Miami Heat (2-5) 138-117 on Monday night at Crypto.com Arena. One night after scoring 45 against Toronto, Doncic has 87 points in two nights — and at least 37 in five straight games.

Doncic scored 16 points in the first quarter and the Lakers led 37-30. The second quarter was a shootout, 42-42: the Lakers shot 67.4 percent in the first half and led only 79-72 at the break, because Miami shot 59.5 percent itself and Giannis Antetokounmpo had 20 points in the half. Doncic had 24.

The game broke open in the first minutes of the third quarter. The Lakers scored the first 11 points of the half, capped by a Walker Kessler layup that made it 90-72, and Doncic scored nine more points in the first four and a half minutes of the quarter. A Ziaire Williams three-pointer made it 111-93 after three, Kessler and Austin Reaves opened the fourth with baskets to stretch the lead to 22, and Doncic’s three-pointer with 5:37 left made it 128-106 and gave him 40 for the night. The Lakers’ largest lead was 24.

The comparison is the story of the night. The Lakers shot 57.3 percent from the field (51-for-89) to Miami’s 50.7, made 19 three-pointers to Miami’s 16, and piled up 39 assists on those 51 baskets — the ball never stopped moving. They outrebounded the Heat 41-34 and outscored them in the paint 58-38. Miami actually won the free-throw comparison, 25-for-35 to the Lakers’ 17-for-24, and still lost by 21 — that is how decisive the shooting and the passing were.

Austin Reaves scored 27 points on 10-for-15 shooting for the Lakers, Kessler had 15 points and 15 rebounds, and Sandro Mamukelashvili added 13 points off the bench.

Antetokounmpo led Miami with 30 points, 12 rebounds and seven assists, though he also committed seven turnovers. Klay Thompson scored 19 points, Bam Adebayo had 16 points and nine rebounds, and Davion Mitchell added 15 points and seven assists. The loss ended Miami’s two-game winning streak on the first night of a five-game West Coast trip.

The Lakers’ next game is Wednesday at Sacramento.

Raptors and Lakers Boxscore

INGLEWOOD, Calif. — The LA Clippers (1-6) controlled this game for three quarters and gave it away in the fourth, losing 125-118 to the Toronto Raptors (4-3) on Monday night at Intuit Dome — their sixth straight loss.

The Clippers led 33-22 after the first quarter and 63-52 at halftime, and they pushed the lead to 16 points. Kobe Sanders was hitting threes, Isaiah Jackson was finishing everything inside, and Toronto — playing the second night of a back-to-back, without Kawhi Leonard and Jakob Poeltl — looked like a team running out of time. The Clippers still led 91-78 entering the fourth quarter.

Then the game turned completely. Toronto scored 47 points in the fourth quarter, matching its franchise record for a fourth quarter, and outscored the Clippers 47-27. Scottie Barnes, who had seven points through three quarters, scored 15 in the fourth, and Immanuel Quickley added 14 of his 27 in the period — the two of them scored 29 of Toronto’s 47. Barnes closed the game at the free-throw line, making free throws with 17 seconds, nine seconds and one second left to keep the Clippers from getting the ball back with a chance. 

The comparison shows how Toronto did it. The Clippers actually won the three-point shooting — 13-for-35 to Toronto’s 8-for-29 — and had more assists, 29 to 26. But Toronto shot 51.8 percent from the field to the Clippers’ 46.2, outscored them in the paint 62-54, won the rebounds 41-38, and lived at the free-throw line: 31-for-48, against 21-for-27 for the Clippers, who committed 34 fouls. Toronto kept going at the rim, and the Clippers kept fouling.

Quickley led Toronto with 27 points, RJ Barrett scored 26, and Barnes finished with 22 points, 15 rebounds and eight assists. Collin Murray-Boyles, starting at center with Poeltl out, scored 18 points with seven rebounds, and Jamison Battle hit four three-pointers for 12 points.

Sanders led the Clippers with 26 points and five three-pointers. Jackson scored 19 points on 9-for-11 shooting with eight rebounds, and Darius Garland had 16 points and eight assists but also seven turnovers. Brook Lopez, Kris Dunn and Gradey Dick scored 12 apiece. The Clippers played without Bradley Beal, Brandon Ingram and Rui Hachimura — but a 16-point home lead is a 16-point home lead, and they let it go in 12 minutes.

The Clippers’ next game is Wednesday at home against the Miami Heat.

Article provided by Sports Tracker

© Old Town News Scottsdale — oldtownnews.us

Raptors vs Clippers stats 

SAN FRANCISCO — The Phoenix Suns (1-4) had this one. They led by 12 in the second quarter and 57-51 at the half at Chase Center — and they lost it in the third quarter and at the free-throw line, falling 116-113 to the Golden State Warriors (5-3) on Monday night.

Golden State scored 42 points in the third quarter to flip the game, and Phoenix scored just 20 in the fourth. Stephen Curry led the comeback with 34 points, seven assists and six rebounds, going 11-for-12 from the line. Brandin Podziemski added 20 points, and the Warriors’ bench did real damage — Charles Bassey scored 19 points with eight rebounds and Georges Niang added 13.

As much as Curry did, the Suns beat themselves in the stretches that decide games. The last three minutes of a quarter are vital, and Phoenix closed both the second and the third quarters badly — the big lead was trimmed before the half, and the game got away in the third. The shots were there, too: Luke Kennard, Collin Gillespie and Jalen Green combined to shoot 3-for-16 from three, a lot of them wide open. And at the line, the Suns went 22-for-30. Make the open threes and make the free throws, and Phoenix wins this game.

The play everyone will talk about came in the first half. Draymond Green pulled Khaman Maluach down, got up, picked him up and threw him down again, then got into it with Dillon Brooks. Green was ejected after 16 minutes — but the play was not called a flagrant two, which would have meant two free throws and the ball for the Suns. On the Suns’ postgame show, Tom Chambers and Frank Kaminsky made the point that flagrant fouls have been called for significantly less than what Green did, that the interpretation seems to change from game to game, and that in a three-point loss, a first-half possession like that one — shots and the ball Phoenix never got — can end up deciding the game.

Devin Booker led the Suns with 26 points and five assists before fouling out. Mikal Bridges scored 21 points with four steals, Dillon Brooks had 18 points and eight rebounds, and Jalen Green finished with 11 points, eight rebounds and eight assists. Oso Ighodaro scored 14 off the bench without missing a shot.

The strange part is that Phoenix outshot Golden State, 47.1 percent to 42.9, and still lost. The difference was the line and the glass: the Warriors went 31-for-37 on free throws to the Suns’ 22-for-30 — nine extra points in a three-point game — and outrebounded Phoenix 44-37, with 12 offensive rebounds.

The Suns open a seven-game homestand Wednesday against the Portland Trail Blazers at Mortgage Matchup Center, with tip at 7 p.m.

Article provided by Sports Tracker

https://www.cbssports.com/nba/gametracker/boxscore/NBA_20261102_PHO@GS/

https://x.com/YahooSports/status/2117489772557967838

LAS VEGAS — Ivan Kharchenkov scored 38 points and it was not enough. No. 22 UCLA (1-0) upset No. 5 Arizona (0-1) 84-75 on Monday night at T-Mobile Arena, beating the Wildcats with balance and ball security while Arizona leaned on one man.

UCLA led 27-21 midway through the first half and 43-29 at halftime. Arizona won the second half 46-41 and kept pushing, but the 14-point hole was the game — every Wildcat run met an answer, and the Bruins closed it at the line.

Kharchenkov was brilliant: 12-for-20 from the field, 12-for-16 from the line, 10 rebounds in 38 minutes. The problem was everything around him. Arizona’s next scorer was Devon Dixon with 18 points on 5-for-17 shooting, and freshman Caleb Holt had a quiet debut — seven points, 0-for-4 from three, seven rebounds in 27 minutes.

UCLA put four starters in double figures. Trent Perry scored 21 points and went 11-for-11 from the free-throw line. Eric Dailey Jr. had 13 points and eight rebounds, Jamar Petty scored 12 with seven assists and four three-pointers, and Nikola Kusturica added 10 points with three blocks.

The deciding number was the turnovers: UCLA gave it away five times all night; Arizona gave it away 10 times. Tommy Lloyd said it himself before the game — to beat UCLA, you have to take care of the ball. Arizona didn’t, and UCLA made them pay for it, hitting 10 three-pointers to Arizona’s seven on the same number of attempts.

Motiejus Krivas gave Arizona eight points, nine rebounds and six blocked shots in the loss.

Arizona’s home opener is Thursday against Cal Poly at McKale Center, with tip at 8:30 p.m.

We apologize for the inconvenience. Stats will be provided on a separate page.

Article provided by Sports Tracker

© Old Town News Scottsdale — oldtownnews.us

https://www.cbssports.com/college-basketball/gametracker/boxscore/NCAAB_20261102_ARIZ@UCLA/

TEMPE, Ariz. — The Randy Bennett era opened with a win Monday night, Arizona State (1-0) beating East Tennessee State (0-1) 75-65 at Desert Financial Arena — a closer game than the score looks, against a team that did not come to Tempe to be a warmup act.

East Tennessee State won the Southern Conference regular-season title last year and was picked second this season, and it played like it. The Buccaneers shot better than Arizona State from the field (45.5 percent to 43.4) and from three (41.2 percent to 30.8), and B.J. Ward carried them with 25 points and four steals. Arizona State led 37-31 at the half and never gave the lead back, but it never ran away, either.

The game was won at the free-throw line, and it is not close. Arizona State went 21-for-26 from the line; East Tennessee State went 8-for-12. That is 13 points of difference in a 10-point game. The Buccaneers committed 26 fouls — three of their players fouled out — and the Sun Devils kept collecting the points.

Paulius Murauskas led Arizona State with 21 points and nine rebounds in 40 minutes. He missed all five of his threes and got his points the other way, going 11-for-12 from the line. Jayden Foxwell scored 15 points with five assists, also playing all 40 minutes, and Dante Shaw added 13 points and six rebounds.

The bench closed the argument. Filip Malesevic did not miss — 4-for-4 from the field, 4-for-4 from the line — for 12 points and six rebounds, and Jake Croy hit three three-pointers for nine points. Arizona State also won the rebounds 30-25 and turned it over 10 times to the Buccaneers’ 13.

Trey Hennig scored 15 off the bench for East Tennessee State and Jayden Cooper added 10.

PHOENIX, Ariz. — Grand Canyon opened its season Monday night with a 103-79 win over Texas Southern at Global Credit Union Arena, taking an 11-point lead into the half and pulling away from the Tigers in the second half.

The Antelopes (1-0) led 48-37 at the break behind Amarion Dickerson, who had 12 points and three blocks in the first half on his way to five blocks for the game. Texas Southern (0-1) stayed in it early in the second half — the Tigers matched Grand Canyon point for point through the first stretch and trailed 65-54 — but the Lopes broke it open from there. Dylan Darling hit two free throws at the 7:57 mark to make it 81-63, Tyler Behrend scored on a layup from Jaden Zimmerman for 83-65, and Grand Canyon kept going to the finish, breaking 100 in its opener.

Jaden Henley led Grand Canyon with 20 points and five rebounds. Darling finished with 15 points, six assists and five rebounds, and Dickerson had 12 points to go with his five blocks — the rim protection that kept Texas Southern from ever making a real run at the lead in the second half. Tyon Behrend added eight rebounds.

The comparison tells it: Grand Canyon shot 51.6 percent (33-for-64) to Texas Southern’s 42.4 percent (25-for-59), and hit 11 three-pointers to the Tigers’ four.

Karris Bilal led Texas Southern with 15 points, Jason Kimbrough had 14 points and three steals, and Ben Vungo had seven points and seven rebounds.

It is the start Grand Canyon needed in a season it opens picked second in the Mountain West, and a title chase that begins with a 24-point win at home.

We apologize for the inconvenience. Stats will be provided on a separate page.

Article provided by Sports Tracker

© Old Town News Scottsdale — oldtownnews.us