How To Watch, Game Preview and Game Thread: #5 UCLA Bruins at Arizona State Sun Devils

Jan 20, 2023

Jaime Jaquez Jr. — (Photo Credit: Scott Chandler/uclabruins.com)

UCLA’s roadtrip to Arizona is usually one of, if not, the toughest of the year. Not only do the Bruins have to face the 11th-ranked Arizona Wildcats on Saturday, they also have to face the third-best Pac-12 team tonight in Bobby Hurley’s Arizona State Sun Devils.

ASU enters tonight’s game with just one loss in conference play and that loss came against the Wildcats. If that were their only loss this season, the Sun Devils would almost certainly be in the Top 25 polls. But they also lost to Texas Southern by a point in their third game of the season as well as the University of San Francisco in their final non-conference game of the year.

The loss to USF was a particularly bad one. The Dons destroyed the Sun Devils by 37 points, 97-60. Ouch. That loss is compounded by the fact that their next game was a nine-point loss to Arizona which was ranked fifth at the time. So, if you take away those two losses, they are almost certainly ranked in both polls.

The fact that they aren’t ranked won’t make this game any easier.

Last season, the Bruins went into Tempe with a 16-2 record just like they do tonight and they lost a tough one in triple OT to Hurley and the Sun Devils.

In addition to that, ASU has won 11 of their last 12 home games. So, Desert Financial Arena is tough on visiting teams.

Tonight’s game might actually be more important to the Bruins than even Saturday’s game against the Wildcats. Sure, Arizona has been one of UCLA’s biggest rivals on the hardwood. But, the Bruins have a three-game lead over UofA in the Pac-12 standings while ASU sits just a game out, meaning that a Sun Devil win tonight would move them into a first place tie with UCLA.

Conversely, a win by the Bruins would expand their lead in the standings to two games, giving UCLA some breathing room heading into the second half of the conference schedule.

Overall, the key to tonight’s game might be looks to be the Bruin defense. ASU is 11-0 when they score 70 points or more while UCLA is a perfect 16-0 when the Bruins hold their opponent under 70 points. Meanwhile, UCLA is 0-2 in games where they allowed more than 70 points to their opponent. So, if UCLA can hold the Sun Devils under 70, expect a Bruin win and, if they are not able to do that, they may not get the win.

Let’s look at Bobby Hurley’s starting five for ASU.

Hurley will start a lineup featuring four guards and a forward tonight. Not only that, but the entire group of starters will be composed of transfers.

The forward will be senior Warren Washington. Washington transferred from Nevada this year and is averaging 8.2 ppg, making him the only ASU starter averaging less than 10 points per game even though he has the best shooting percentage on the team. He also leads the team in rebounds with an average of 7.1 per game and in blocks with 36. That’s more than the next two guys on the team combined.

It’s worth noting that we should probably be discussing Marcus Bagley at this point, but the junior forward has only played in two games this season and appears to be on the outs with Hurley. He was suspended following a tweet earlier in the season. It’s ironic because Bagley has the highest scoring average on the team with 12.5, but that may be only because he’s seen action in only two games.

But Bagley’s benching has resulted in transfer Desmond Cambridge, Jr. stepping up. Cambridge, Jr. is averaging 12.1 ppg and a team-leading 24 steals. ASU is his third school since 2019, having previously attended both Brown and Nevada. His younger brother Devan Cambridge is another transfer. Devan joins his brother in Tempe after transferring from Auburn. The younger Cambridge is averaging 10.9 ppg and his 5.4 rpg is second on the team behind Washington. His 53.8% shooting percentage is also second on the team behind Washington for guys who have taken more than 30 shots.

DJ Horne is another transfer who has had an impact on the Sun Devils. Last season, Horne grabbed eight rebounds in the triple OT game against the Bruins. This year, he’s tied with Desmond Cambridge with 12.1 ppg, but Horne isn’t as good of a shooter as Cambridge. Horne began his career at Illinois State

The fourth starting guard will be Frankie Collins. Collins began his college career at Michigan. This season, he’s tied with Devan Cambridge with an average of 10.9 ppg.

So, I guess that makes Hurley the college basketball equivalent of Chip Kelly, or maybe it’s the other way around. Either way, don’t expect these Devils to go down without a fight.

Listen to the Game With TMB

Tonight’s game will be on Fox Sports 1 with Aaron Goldsmith and Casey Jacobsen calling the game. If you prefer, you can listen to Josh Lewin and Tracy Murray. Just be sure to right-click on it so that you can open up another tab and have it going while you chat in the comments below. Listen to today’s game online.

This is your UCLA men’s basketball vs. Arizona State Sun Devils game thread. Here’s how to watch tonight’s game:

UCLA Basketball (16-2, 7-0)

Opponent: Arizona State Sun Devils (15-3, 6-1)
Series Record: UCLA leads, 72-24
When: 7:30 pm PT, Thursday, January 19, 2023
Where: Desert Financial Arena, Tempe, AZ
TV: Fox Sports 1 with Aaron Goldsmith and Casey Jacobsen
Live Stream: FoxSports.com and the Fox Sports app
Radio/Audio:
Local Radio: AM 570 with Josh Lewin and Tracy Murray
Satellite Radio: Sirius Ch. 132 and XM Ch. 197 (UCLA Call)
Online: uclabruins.com
Live Stats: UCLA StatBroadcast
Game Notes:
UCLA
Arizona State

Go Bruins!!!

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