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There are some that say it is not how you start but how you finish that matters. Well, Arizona State needed to start better than it did Tuesday night in Eugene, as the Ducks scored the first 15 points of the game, in route to a 85-78 victory over the Sun Devils.
The game started about as bad as it could have for Arizona State, as the Sun Devils missed their first six field goal attempts, while Oregon started 6-8 from the field. The Ducks came out playing fast and with a lot of intensity on the defensive side of the ball. forcing four Sun Devil turnovers in the game's first six minutes.
However, Arizona State rebounded with a run of its own, scoring the next 11 points of the game to pull within four with 10:45 left in the first half. Jahii Carson led the Sun Devils with six points in the first half, with Jermaine Marshall adding five points and Jordan Bachynski scoring four points and grabbing six rebounds in the game's opening 20 minutes.
Oregon, led by guard Damyean Dotson's eight first half points, took a 33-25 lead into halftime.
The Ducks came out in the second half and extended its halftime lead to 14 points by the first media timeout in the second half. Oregon was led by forward Mike Moser. The senior scored 20 points and grabbing 17 rebounds, it was Moser's third game this season with at least 15 rebounds.
Carson tried as best he could to lead Arizona State back in the second half, scoring 22 of his 28 points in the second half. Carson was an impressive 10-19 from the field, 4-5 from 3-point territory. Marshall finished with 16 points and Bachynski added 13 points and 11 rebounds.
However, Oregon never surrendered the lead as the Ducks shot 47-percent from the field on the night. The Sun Devils were once again outrebounded and Oregon outscored Arizona State 32-12 in the paint.
Oregon is one of the hottest teams in the Pac-12, as the Ducks have now won six straight Pac-12 games since starting 3-8 in conference. Arizona State on the other hand has now dropped three straight games on the road. Up next for the Sun Devils is a road contest against Oregon State on Saturday to round out the regular season.