March 2, 2006
Tempe, Ariz. - Despite hot shooting in the first half and a game-high 23 points from junior point guard Kevin Kruger, the Arizona State Sun Devils (10-16) were unable to keep up with the No. 14 Washington Huskies (23-5), falling 91-66 in Tempe.
The two teams played very evenly in the first half, as the Sun Devils set the pace, shooting at a 58 percent clip. Kruger scored 19 of his 23 in the first half, helping the Sun Devils take a slim lead into the locker room at half, 40-38.
However a four-minute drought to open the second half and an 11-0 Washington run put the Sun Devils in a hole that they would not recover from. The Huskies mounted a 17-3 run with just under six minutes left to build a 27-point lead and put the game out of reach.
The Huskies were led by 14 points from forward Mike Jensen and got 13 points from four other players.
Freshman forward Jeff Pendergraph recorded a double-double in the effort, finishing with 15 points and 11 rebounds.
The loss dropped the Sun Devils to 4-13 in the Pac-10 and tied them with Oregon State and Washington State for eighth in the conference. The Sun Devils host the Cougars on Saturday at 6 p.m. MST, in their regular season finale before heading to the Pac-10 Tournament in Los Angeles on March 8.