McCAULEY by JANIE, AP Game writer
BERKELEY, California. (AP) – Remy Martin made another impressive showing on the California home floor with 22 points, five assists and four rebels to beat No. 25 Arizona State 70-62 Thursday night in the Pac-12. Opener for both schools.
Prize freshman Josh Christopher added 14 points for the Sun Devils (3-1), and Holland Woods knocked down a key 3-pointer with 2:24 remaining.
Freshman forward Marcus Bagley had to help with a left leg injury after going down near midcott to play with 1:42 left. He is scheduled for an MRI and X-ray on Friday.
Cal star Matt Bradley had 20 points and eight rebounds, but was just 1 for 9 on 3-pointers. He was coming off a 26-point performance in a 60–49 win against the team’s home opener, Nicholas State, on Monday.
The Sun Devils were again without guard Alonzo Verge Jr., last season’s Pac-12 Sixth Man of the Year, as he quarantined at Temp, Arizona for COVID-19 contact tracing. ASU coach Bobby Hurley was clear that Verge’s absence was not injury-related or disciplinary.
In addition, Sun Devils head coach Rashon Burnow, operations director Eric Brown and other support staff stayed at a nearby hotel as a precaution for contact after staff members did not test positive for team coronaviruses.
Bradley converted a three-point play with 14:46 remaining to pull the Beers to 46-43. The Sun Devils responded, as they threatened Cal (2-2) late each time. A 54-03 on the putback from The Grant Antisiewicz got the Bears before a 7-0 burst by ASU with 7:52 left.
Arizona State returned from a two-game division at the Empire Classic in Connecticut, losing 83–74 to No. 3 Villanova for the tournament title.
Both teams committed five turnovers from the opening halfway point.
Martin Haas is averaging 20.3 points from four matches at the pavilion. He shot 8 for 11 and made all four attempts in the first half.
Overall on Cal’s home floor, Martin was 42 of 42 (28,666), 10 of 28, including 15 on 3-pointers, with 21 assists.
Martin scored 22.6 points in 11 road games last season, ranking 13th in the nation – and was the fifth-highest returning road scorer.
Players from both teams knelt in unison against racial injustice before standing for the national anthem.
Arizona State: The Sun Devils started 3 for 9 and missed their opening four 3-pointers. He took 3 shots for 11 from deep in the first half and completed 6 of 21 behind the arc. … ASU won the last six meetings with Cal and improved to 11-4 vs. The Bears from January 2013. … The Devils won the last four in the Haas Pavilion.
California: Cal faced 11 offensive rebellions but could not overcome 20 turnovers and 40% shooting. ASU scored 19 points from those turnovers. … The Bears are 13-6 on their home court under second-year coach Mark Fox – six of these wins vs. Pac-12 opponents.
The Sun God does not play for a week. They are scheduled to host San Diego State next Thursday.
Cal hit the road to play at UCLA on Sunday night.
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