ASU guards Torian Graham and Tra Holder paced the Devils with 24 points each, earning their fourth and fifth 20-plus point game this season, respectively. Graham's 24-point outing is a new career high after shooting 10-for-21 from the field. Holder finished 8-for-15 shooting and 2-for-5 from three-point range. It was Holder's 12th career 20-point game.
Senior Obinna Oleka also totaled double-digits with 19 points after shooting 50 percent (7-for-14). The 6-foot-8 forward was a monster above the rim, collecting 16 rebounds to tie his career high and set the single-game team high so far this season. His double-double became his seventh of the season and 11th of his career.
TRA HOLDER 20+ SCORING GAMES (12)
26 at UCLA (1/9/16)
24 vs. #9 Creighton (12/20/16)
24 vs. #8 Arizona (1/3/16)
24 vs. Cal Poly (11/13/16)
23 vs. Portland State (11/11/16)
22 vs. Citadel (11/23/16)
23 vs. CSU-Bakersfield (12/28/15)
22 vs. North Carolina State (11/23/15)
21 at USC (1/7/16)
20 vs. UNLV (12/31/6)
20 vs. #23 USC (2/12/16)
20 vs. Washington State (1/16/16)
CAREER DOUBLE-DOUBLES FOR OBINNA OLEKA (11)
19/16 vs. #9 Creighton (12/20/16)
15/11 vs. New Mexico State (12/17/16)
15/12 at San Diego State (12/10/16)
14/11 vs. #1 Kentucky (11/28/16)
20/15 vs. Citadel (11/23/16)
11/10 vs. Nothern Iowa (11/17/16)
17/13 vs. Cal Poly (11/13/16)
14/13 vs. UCLA (2/14/16)
13/11 vs. Washington (1/16/16)
11/10 vs. Washington State (1/14/16)
10/14 vs. Marquette (11/24/15)
TOP SCORING GAMES FOR OBINNA OLEKA
20 vs. Citadel (11/23/16)
19 vs. #9 Creighton (12/20/16)
19 vs. Kennesaw State (11/18/15)
From then on it was a battle of attrition, as both teams went back and forth with stretch runs. The Devils encountered theirs first with a 7-0 run leading up to the four mark of the first half. Creighton failed to score for 2:29 before turning it around for a 6-0 stretch into the final minute of the half.
The Blue Jays led 45-40 at the break, with ASU shooting 48.5% and Creighton at 44.7%. Despite being within striking distance, the Devils started the second 6-of-15 and 1-for-4 from three, while the Blue Jays hit a heater with 11-of-14 and 4-for-6.
Creighton's Marcus Foster was a big part of that, finishing the second half with 17 points for a team single-game high of 29 on the night. Holder would help lead a 9-0 run that started with eight minutes left in the game to bring the Devils within 10, but the Blue Jays would pull away down the stretch.
ASU and head coach Bobby Hurley return to Wells Fargo Arena to take on Central Arkansas on Thursday, Dec. 22 at 1 p.m. on the Pac-12 Network.
BOBBY HURLEY QUOTES...
"First off, I have tremendous respect for Creighton, their basketball program and where they are as a team. They are a really complete team with strong guard play that could hurt you everywhere. It was a fun game to be a part of, I respect how my players competed, fought and battled through some tough stretches in the second half. During half time, when it was a 45-40 game, we talked about how we wanted to try and get back to San Diego where we came out and took control of the second half. We never quite clicked on offense to do that, so they then separated from us. That was the point where you learn about the character of the team and you see if they respond appropriately, and the answer was yes. I have respect for our team and how we were diving for loose balls, scrambling to try and create turnover and how we kept pushing through the game. As a coach, that is all you can hope for—that they push themselves and that they play that way that we did. If we can consistently play this way through the season, we will have some success."
On what enabled the team to push through the whole game…
"I just think we had the right mindset and the right approach coming into the game, especially on defense. We were generating stops, we were pushing the ball, and spreading the court. We weren't perfect, there were times where we penetrated and didn't have a great plan, which ended up in a forced shot or a turnover. Eliminating those things would be beneficial, but all in all, I have a real positive feeling for our group, despite not shooting well from three. It seems that it has become our nemesis and we end up not having great percentages behind the three point line. Hopefully, we can get that figured out on a more consistent basis."
On judging results against a top-ten team…
"This is a results game and there aren't any moral victories, but you respect your players as competitors. This was a fast-paced game. Creighton pushes the ball, they have threats in transition and these guys expended a lot of energy from chasing them around the court. We didn't sit in the zone and let guys rest—we scrambled, we fought, we pressed and the five guys that started the game all played over 30 minutes. Even late in the game, they had something left in the tank. It was exciting to see and we are going to keep asking that the effort remains consistent. If we do that, we will have chances to win a lot of games."
On multiple players logging a lot of minutes…
"You like to see the guys play well, but not all five of them did. There were certainly individuals that feel like they left something on the table tonight and could have done better. All in all, it never broke our spirit and how we competed. Hopefully the guys that did have great individual games understand the correlation between how hard you play and how hard you compete on both ends. There were numerous guys you could say that for. Obi had 16 rebounds, Torian had a big point total and six rebounds, Kodi fought really hard and Tra had a really good all-around game with assists and points."
On defensive approach to a well-shooting team…
"They have a lot of shooters and there were times that we did possibly lose a few guys on their set plays. They put an enormous amount of pressure on you, because they have Foster and Watson who can drive so affectively. We won the paint. We didn't win the game, but we won the interior part of this game. They just outshot us from the three point line. That was the difference in the game."
On stopping the corner pocket threes…
"We were trying to keep the ball handler in front. Watson is hard to keep in front and he forces you to get help. We are more of a help and recover man team, so that may have something to do with the corner shots. I'll have to go back and look on that."
On Tra's play…
"I talked with Tra and told him that I want him to have fun playing basketball. He looks like he is enthusiastic about playing the game and using his creativity out on the court. He did that and he was effective getting the ball in the paint to make some plays for us."
QUOTING COACH GREG McDERMOTT
"We got off to rough start and obviously they had a lot of energy. Defensively they were switching a lot of screens. Once we settled down we fought it. Fortunately Isaiah (Zierden) when Khyri (Thomas) got the two quick fouls. You have to have someone off your bench. I am blessed to have the luxury of bringing guys like Isaiah and Toby (Hegner) off the bench, guys who have been starters a good portion of their careers. They were a huge force tonight and without question the difference in the game."
On the team's ball movement on the perimeter:
"It was really good. Obviously we scored 96 points and did some good things offensively. We turned it over too much, but Arizona State length and they played hard. Once they got behind by 20 they took a few more chances and we didn't react to it very well. Obviously Watson fouling out was big. You know I am happy to come here and get a win. It's hard to get a road win. The game before Christmas, you are always concerned whether they will have one foot on the plane home already, but our guys remained focused and came here and got done what they needed to."
On what he told the team at halftime that lead to more open looks in the second half:
"I felt like we withstood their big run early and we were still standing. Khryi (Thomas) only played six minutes. Maurice (Watson, Jr.) only played 12, so we survived some foul trouble as well. I wasn't pleased with our defense. I think they scored 40 points on 37 possessions. We'd like to keep teams below one point per possession. Unfortunately, the second half wasn't much better on the defensive end. Offensively, we made shots tonight. When we make shots, we are really efficient offensively."
On whether Justin Patton is improving defensively:
"He is and he hasn't been good the last two or three games. We have talked to him about that. I just felt like his hands were in his pockets a lot in the lane and he wasn't as active as he needed to be. I thought the second half in particular, he changed a lot of things at the rim. He puts some fires out on some ball screens. That is what we need from him. His pace on the other end of the floor offensively, just taking his time. Obviously he is very skilled for someone that is 7-foot. I really like what he did on the defensive end tonight."
On if the long break between games is a good thing:
"They are off until the night of the 25th. I was hesitant to do that playing on the 28th, but like I told in the locker room, I am comfortable doing it because I trust them. They can take tomorrow off. They have to get in the gym the 22nd and 23rd. Take Christmas Eve off and get back after it Christmas night. They know what is at stake and they know we can't spend a couple days getting into shape when we need to be preparing for Seton Hall."
On if he has spent anytime watching the Big East this year:
"You know I haven't watched much. You are so busy with what you are doing that you don't have time to watch other games much. Obviously the league is outstanding and we are going to have the Big East tournament champion and the National Champion come to our place the first week of the (conference) season, so we are going to find out a lot about ourselves."
PLAYER QUOTES...
Kodi Justice on the difference between the first and second half…
"We came out a little stagnant. Were a little tired to start off then we picked it back up. They made quite a few three's to get going. We were behind quick but never gave up. We kept fighting to the very last minute. If we can keep playing like that, win or lose, I love playing in games like that."
Tra Holder on the energy in the arena…
"It definitely helps to have a lot of people there. It gets the adrenaline going. I hope to see that more often. There were a lot of plays where my teammates and I were motivated just by having people cheer us on. If we have those on a consistent basis we are going to compete at a high level and try to win against good teams like today."
Kodi Justice on the defensive intensity…
"There are some games where we are really intense and we pick up on defense and we are flying all over the place, where we are taking charges, blocking shots and diving on the ground for loose balls. I felt we had that today. When we play like that it's exciting to play. It gets the crowd going and it gets us going. Then, when we get stops and get on the offensive end we have a lot of people that can score the ball."
Kodi Justice on Creighton getting open shots…
"They got open shots when a couple guards got loose here and there and we missed a couple of coverages. They shoot 55% as a team. It was tough. They made difficult shots, they hit open shots. When a team comes here and hits 14 threes it's hard to come out with a victory but I felt like with our effort we were still out there competing."
Tra Holder on the perimeter defense leading to kick outs…
"Myself and the rest of the guards have to do a better job of containing the guards of getting to the key. Our mindset was to shoot over the bigs and stay with the wings. Next time we come up to a team that plays similar to them we have to do that better. Then, it will limit the threes."
Kodi Justice on playing a lot of minutes…
"I mean we are young. That is what we are here to do. We are here to play basketball. So, if somebody is playing 35 minutes we are going to go get in the cold tub and get ready for Thursday. It is what it is. We are just happy to be here to keep playing."
Tra Holder on continuing the intensity…
"I think we played really scrappy. I think it was one of our most scrappy games during the season. We had our chances. We will watch film tomorrow and see what we have to do and what got them that lead in the second half."
"In the beginning of the game we were up and they didn't hit many threes in the beginning. Then, we went loose. We are in shape, we just can't have those mental breakdowns."
Kodi Justice on Creighton's size…
"Most teams are big. We are a smaller team, but with our scrappiness and our hustle and our fight what is the difference between six-foot-six and six-foot-nine? We have guards that are athletic, big, and strong. We are not too worried about big guys. We are going to be scrappy, doubling the post, and rotating. That is just what we are going to have to be this year. With younger guys like Jethro (Tshisumpa) and Andre Adams getting in their role and getting used to college basketball. We are going to be scrappy with us guards. When they get their minutes they are getting reps to prepare themselves for Pac-12 play."
Kodi Justice on Jethro Tshisumpa's progress…
"From where he was from day one to where he is at it is tremendous to see where he is. The sky is the limit for him. He is just a defensive player for us right now. Wait until he gets an offensive game. He is understanding our offense and defensive schemes. The more and more he picks up the better he is going to keep getting."