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Look Ahead and Back: Sun Devils vs. Cats

Compiled by Javier Morales

Arizona 2009-10 schedule
(Full schedule and statistics available at ArizonaWildcats.com)

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Steve Kerr’s legendary status at Arizona began with his 15-point performance in a win over ASU only two days after his father was assassinated in Lebanon

Nov. 26, 1976: Arizona 91, ASU 90 (OT) – The balance of power in the state started to shift from Ned Wulk‘s Sun Devils to Fred Snowden‘s Wildcats as the UA won its season-opener at McKale Center. The Wildcats played their first game since losing to UCLA in the Elite Eight of the 1976 NCAA tournament. This was Arizona’s second straight win over ASU after the Wildcats had lost to ASU in 10 of 11 games. Herman Harris led the Cats with 34 points. Little-used reserve Tim Marshall, who started only five games in his UA career, made a driving layup with two seconds remaining in overtime to give the Wildcats the victory. ASU and UA played three games during that era, playing an early-season non-conference game before playing each other in the WAC schedule.

Jan. 20, 1984: Arizona 71, ASU 49 – This game is one of the more meaningful games in McKale Center’s history. Lute Olson notched his first Pacific-10 Conference win in an emotional game involving freshman guard Steve Kerr. Only two days previously, Kerr’s father. Malcolm Kerr, was assassinated by terrorists in Beirut, Lebanon. Kerr was given the option of taking the night off, but he suited up saying that’s what his father would have desired. His legendary status with the Cats began as he hit his first shot, a 25-footer, and finished with 15 points. “The first game against ASU was special,” Kerr told Steve Rivera of the Tucson Citizen in 2007. “It was Lute’s first Pac-10 win. And being a huge sports fan, I knew all about the rivalry. So I wanted to beat them in the worst way. They had dominated the rivalry in recent years, so to beat them twice that first year was key. I think it set the tone for Lute’s dominance of ASU over the years.” ASU had a nine-game winning streak against the UA entering the game. Olson won 16 of his first 17 games against ASU and finished with a 43-7 record against the Sun Devils.

ASU struggled to beat Arizona in two overtimes in 1995 at McKale Center despite the fact Arizona was without Damon Stoudamire (pictured), Ben Davis and Joseph Blair.

March 11, 1995: ASU 103, UA 98 (2OT) –ASU center Mario Bennett took advantage of the absence of Ben Davis and Joseph Blair by scoring 34 points and recording a game-saving block in double overtime. The 12th-ranked Wildcats did not also play with suspended star Damon Stoudamire. Davis and Stoudamire, who was leading the Pac-10 in scoring and assists, were declared ineligible before the game because they allegedly received improper benefits. Blair was injured. Bennett blocked a game-attempt by Corey Williams with five seconds remaining after No. 18 Arizona State took the lead for good. Stoudamire’s eligibility was restored but Davis’ was not for the UA’s next game — a first-round loss in the NCAA tournament to Miami of Ohio, coached by current ASU coach Herb Sendek. UA coach Sean Miller was an assistant to Sendek at Miami at the time.

Jan. 15, 1998: Arizona 127, ASU 99 – A few records fell in this one, among them the McKale Center scoring record for the No. 5 Wildcats. The Cats also achieved a Pac-10 record with the most points in a conference game. And it scored the most by an ASU opponent. The defending national champs were led by Mike Bibby (23 points), Miles Simon (22), Michael Dickerson (20) and Jason Terry (17). The Wildcats extended their winning streak to seven games, averaging 103 points a game during that stretch. “The guys outside were hitting it, and the post men were getting open,” said center A.J. Bramlett, who scored 10 points in the first six minutes of the second half. “It was a lot like playing in pick-up game.”

January 21, 2009: ASU 53, Arizona 47 – No. 17 Arizona State overcame a shooting funk to beat Arizona in one of the more controversial endings at McKale Center. The Sun Devils shot 29 percent from the field and missed 40 field goals, but turned it over only nine times to 13 by UA, which was led by interim coach Russ Pennell, who was an assistant at ASU under Rob Evans. ASU closed the game with a 13-7 run after snapping a tie at 1:39. Ten of those points came at the free throw line. Derek Glasser‘s three-pointer with less than two minutes left snapped a 40-40 tie and lifted the Sun Devils into the lead. James Harden earned a pair of free throws 40 seconds later and made both to give ASU a four-point cushion. UA’s Jordan Hill, notching his 12th double-double at 16 points and a game-high 15 rebounds, made two free throws and a Zane Johnson hit a three-pointer to pull the UA within 46-45. Glasser missed the front end but made the second of two bonus shots to give ASU a 47-45 lead with 19 seconds left. UA’s Hill was called for a moving screen in the waning seconds, and a bench technical by assistant Mike Dunlap put the game out of reach for the UA at the 12-second mark.

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Tags: Ben Davis, Damon Stoudamire, Lute Olson, Steve Kerr

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