TEMPE, Ariz. - Arizona State (5-0) turned the tide with a 17-1 run midway through the first half and Bradley never fully recovered as the hosts cruised to a 70-58 men's basketball victory Friday night at Wells Fargo Arena.
Bradley (4-2) took a 14-12 lead on a Tyshon Pickett bucket with 11:52 left in the first half, but a Jermaine Marshall 3-pointer with 10:55 left in the half put the Sun Devils ahead for good, starting the game's deciding run, which was capped by a Chance Murray 3-point play for a 29-15 Arizona State lead with 7:15 left in the first half. For the game's other 36-minutes, 40-seconds Bradley outscored Arizona State by a 57-53 margin.
Pickett finished with a game-high 23 points to equal his career high, while Walt Lemon, Jr. added 20 for the Braves, but the other 10 Bradley players to see the floor combined for just 15 points. In the first game since his 40-point outburst Tuesday at UNLV, Jahii Carson led the Sun Devils with 19 points, while 7-foot-2 center Jordan Bachynski turned in a double-double with 15 points, 10 rebounds and five blocked shots. Jonathan Gilling added 14 points for the Sun Devils.
Bradley shot itself in the foot by making just 4-of-12 free throw attempts in the game, missing the front end of a 1-and-bonus in the group, missing out on nine points that could have significantly changed the outlook of the game.
The Braves will return to action Nov. 30 by hosting Texas-Pan American in a 7 p.m. tip at Carver Arena.