TEMPE, Ariz. (AP) Alozo Verge Jr. scored 26 points, Remy Martin added 15 and Arizona State made 14 3-pointers in an 84-66 win over UCLA on Thursday night.
Arizona State (14-8, 5-4 Pac-12) entered the game as the Pac-12’s worst 3-point shooting team, hitting 30% from the arc.
The Sun Devils found the range against UCLA, shooting the Bruins out of the gym by making 14 of 24 from 3. Verge, Kimani Lawrence and Khalid Thomas all went 3 for 3 from the arc.
Martin was the cog making Arizona State’s offense click, finishing with seven assists. White had 16 rebounds and was effective at kicking out of double teams to set up Sun Devils’ shooters.
UCLA (12-11, 5-5) labored without top rebounder and second-leading scorer Jalen Hill, who sprained his right knee in practice this week.
The Bruins couldn’t stop Sun Devils from the perimeter and couldn’t get their shots to fall, either, finishing 7 of 25 from the 3-point arc.
Cody Riley had 16 points and Tyger Campbell 13 to lead UCLA.
The Bruins and Sun Devils have been inconsistent this season, but playing better lately to stay in the thick of the Pac-12 race.
UCLA arrived in the desert with four wins in five games, including a four-point win over then-No. 20 Colorado.
The Sun Devils rallied from 22 points down to beat rival Arizona and entered Thursday’s game with three wins in four games.
UFC ring announcer Bruce Buffer was on-hand to introduce the Sun Devils and it seemed to hype both team, who combined to hit nine of 14 shots by the first media timeouts.
The Sun Devils kept making shots. The Bruins did not.
Arizona State made 8 of 10 from the 3-point arc, using runs of 10-2 and 11-1 to lead 39-28 at halftime.
The Sun Devils stretched the lead to 16 in the opening five minutes of the second half and kept making 3s to give the Bruins no shot at the comeback.
BIG PICTURE
UCLA’s run of quality games ended with a clunker in the desert.
Arizona State had one of its best all-around games of the season and showed how dangerous it can be when the outside shots are falling.
UP NEXT
UCLA plays at No. 23 Arizona on Saturday.
Arizona State host USC Saturday.
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For more AP college basketball coverage: https://apnews.com/Collegebasketball and http://twitter.com/AP-Top25
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