Jan. 19, 2008
STANFORD, Calif. (AP) - Brook Lopez demanded more from himself, then delivered in every way.
After missing nine of his first 10 shots, Lopez scored every point during a 10-0 second-half run and helped Stanford hand No. 22 Arizona State its first Pac-10 defeat with a 67-52 victory Saturday night.
With Jeff Pendergraph on the bench for nearly 10 minutes in foul trouble, the surprising Sun Devils had no answer for Lopez in the paint and saw the 7-footer almost single-handedly end their 10-game winning streak - not to mention the chance for ASU to stand alone atop the conference standings.
"I had to get back in the game. I was playing soft and Pendergraph was getting the better of me," Lopez said. "I had to attack the glass and get more physical."
Lopez finished with 19 points and a career-high 16 rebounds - 14 in the final 20 minutes - taking over the game after two free throws by James Harden gave the Sun Devils a 42-40 lead with 8:48 remaining.
Anthony Goods added 14 points while playing with an upset stomach for Stanford (15-3, 4-2 Pac-10), which fell out of the rankings this past week following a loss at Oregon on Jan. 13.
Lopez scored all 10 points during that crucial run, the first two baskets on putbacks and then a three-point play that put Stanford up 47-42 with 7:45 left. He grabbed clutch boards on both ends.
"Rebounding - it was a clearly that they denied us on the backboard," ASU coach Herb Sendek said of the difference in the game. "In addition to that, they played excellent defense and really whipped us. They were incredibly physical."
Harden scored 16 points and fellow standout freshman Ty Abbott added 12 for the Sun Devils (14-3, 4-1), who were trying for sole possession of first place after fourth-ranked UCLA lost earlier in the day to rival Southern California 72-63.
Arizona State was in the Top 25 for the first time since ending the 1994-95 season ranked 16th, but couldn't pull off the difficult Bay Area sweep. It was the team's second-lowest scoring output of the season behind a 62-47 loss at Nebraska on Dec. 2.
Stanford also held a 39-25 rebounding edge, 26-9 in the second half.
"We played the second half," Cardinal coach Trent Johnson said. "We struggled in the first half but we turned it up a notch and dominated the glass."
The Sun Devils' 4-0 Pac-10 start matched that of the 1987-88 team - the best since the 1979-80 team began conference play 6-0.
Arizona State barely survived for a 99-90 double-overtime victory at California on Thursday night, a game that featured 12 ties and 18 lead changes. The Sun Devils were trying for an 11th straight win that would have been the program's longest streak since an 11-game run by the 1980-81 team that featured Byron Scott, Fat Lever and Alton Lister.
While there's lots of tough basketball left to play, Arizona State is still hoping to capture the school's first Pac-10 title in its 30th year in the conference. The Sun Devils were 7-20 on the road in conference play the past three years.
Nobody can get comfortable in this incredibly competitive conference. Stanford knows that, as the Cardinal have been in and out of the poll this season.
"They just dominated us on the inside and outside in the second half," Pendergraph said. "Their coach must have told them they were playing (poorly) in the first half, because they came out fired up in the second half."
Goods hit a go-ahead 3-pointer with 12:31 to play that capped a 10-0 spurt and 18-4 run overall to get the Cardinal back in it, forcing Sendek to call timeout. Goods' jumper at 14:12 fueled the run.
Harden's free throw at 11:13 ended a 4-minute, 17-second scoring drought by the Sun Devils - and he also scored their next five points before another long lapse.
The Cardinal, who beat Arizona on Thursday night, have won 18 of the last 20 in the series and had their lively fan base in Maples Pavilion behind them from the opening tip.
"We fell apart in the second half," Harden said. "We went off our game plan and they started making plays. That's a recipe for disaster for us."
Stanford didn't manage many open looks from the perimeter against the Sun Devils' stingy zone early, going 1-for-6 from 3-point range in the first half.
ASU's Jerren Shipp scored five straight points late in the half and put his team ahead 24-13 on a 3-pointer at 5:18 and the Sun Devils led 30-20 at the break on 42 percent shooting to Stanford's 36 percent.
Pendergraph, who came in shooting 67.5 percent from the field, finished with seven points on 3-of-10 shooting and was whistled for his fourth foul with 17:25 to play and had to take a seat.
ASU missed its first five shots to Stanford's 0-4 start and both teams were 5-for-16 at the 8:30 mark.