The Arizona St. Sun Devils gave Trent Lockett something to celebrate on his 21st birthday. Tied 57-57 with the North Dakota State Bison with only 1.8 seconds left, the Sun Devils turned a full-court heave, a quick, off-balance pass and a desperation shot into three points and a 60-57 victory.
The full-court heave ended up in the hands of the birthday boy Lockett, who had his back to the basket at the top of the arc and no way of making a shot. He passed off to Carrick Felix, on the left side of the arc and with a defender on him. Felix rose up and nailed the shot to notch the victory and provide Lockett with one last birthday gift: a game-winning assist.
ASU had three players in double figures: Felix (15 points), Kyle Cain (14 points) and Lockett (10 points). Cain and Lockett also pitched in 13 and 12 rebounds, respectively, to provide ASU with a 42-29 rebounding edge over the smaller Bison squad.
The Sun Devils were again plagued by turnovers, committing 16 overall and providing the Bison plenty of opportunity to score. Those turnovers allowed the Bison to hang around and make the game close, even threatening to force overtime before Felix's game-winning shot.
In the end, however, Felix's shot erased ASU's inconsistent play on the day and gave them a much-needed win at home. ASU moves to 4-5 on the season with three more home games on the way. The Sun Devils' next game will be at home on Saturday, Dec. 17th against the NAU Lumberjacks.