TEMPE, Ariz. — Graham Ike scored 20 points, Tyon Grant-Foster had 14 points and 12 rebounds off the bench, and No. 19 Gonzaga outlasted Arizona State 77-65 on Friday night.
The Bulldogs (4-0) opened the season with three lopsided wins, but had a much tougher time in their first road game.
Up 13 at halftime, Gonzaga struggled offensively through most of the second half as the aggressive Sun Devils (2-1) trimmed the margin to five. The Zags kept Arizona State at bay behind their defense and consecutive 3-pointers by former Sun Devils guard Adam Miller that pushed the lead to 67-52.
Moe Odum led Arizona State with 12 points.
Gonzaga got off to a shaky start, unable to get its free-flowing offense going. With coach Mark Few telling them to settle down, the Zags finally got into a rhythm.
Gonzaga tightened up its defense — ASU missed 10 of 11 shots — to get out in transition and used half-court movement to get open shots.
The combination turned a five-point deficit into a 30-20 lead for Gonzaga that stretched to 45-32 by halftime.
The Sun Devils took their turn ratcheting up the defense to start the second half.
