The Sun Devils (8-17, 4-9) made some headway last Thursday with a taut 57-52 home win over 11th-place Utah, but that's as far as they could stretch momentum. As has been the case following every other victory this season, Arizona State was unable to generate even a two-game winning streak.
The Devils' 63-49 loss to Colorado gave them a distinction they would prefer not to have: ASU is the only team from one of the nation's six power conferences not to have won two games in a row this season.
For coach Herb Sendek, the disappointment felt familiar.
"We can try to make this as complicated and analytical as we want ... (but) tonight is a microcosm of our season," Sendek said. "We turn the ball over too much. We have not found a way too consistently get that number to a more manageable size."
At least the Sun Devils have their best player on the floor again. Junior guard Trent Lockett, who'd been sidelined for six games by an ankle sprain, returned and provided 22 points and 10 rebounds in the two games.
"(His return) definitely brought energy," teammate Carrick Felix said after the win over Utah. "And another voice on the court is always good."
Lockett showed some expected rust in his game after the long layoff, but he wasn't satisfied with the team's performance in the win over Utah.
"Not at all," Lockett said. "We got to finish better."
That inability was evident against Colorado, a much better opponent. ASU trailed 46-38 before Colorado used a 15-4 run to take charge.
"We got to put a little more bite on our offense, be a little more crisper and just have a little more 'get to it.''' Lockett said. "I think that will help us down the stretch."
NOTES, QUOTES
-- Outrebounded in five of its previous six games, Arizona State pounded Utah 40-22 on the boards.
--The Pac-12 leaders in turnovers at 16.6 per game, the Sun Devils coughed the ball up 37 times in the split against Utah and Colorado.
-- The Sun Devils failed to reach 50 points for the fifth time this season in their 63-49 loss to Colorado.
BY THE NUMBERS: 36 -- Minutes played by junior G Trent Lockett against Utah in his first game back after missing six in a row with an ankle sprain.
QUOTE TO NOTE: "It makes it a little bit easier to get (out of bed). The morning after a loss is always kind of a tough period. You might need an extra cup of coffee." -- ASU coach Herb Sendek after his team's victory over Utah.
PLAYER NOTES
-- C Jordan Bachynski has mostly continued his late-season surge, as the 7-footer had 11 points and 12 rebounds against Utah for his first
career double-double, bringing his average over a five-game span to 11.2
points and 7.0 rebounds. But he had just two points in a foul-plagued
14 minutes in the loss to Colorado.
-- Junior G Trent Lockett had 12 points, six rebounds and four turnovers against Utah in his return after missing six games with a sprained ankle. He had 10 polints, four rebounds and three assists in the loss to Colorado.
--F Carrick Felix had 15 points -- despite missing all three of his 3-pointers -- and eight rebounds in the win over Utah. He scored two points in 32 minutes against Colorado and was 0 for 13 from 3-point range during the past four games.
-- Reserve PG Chris Colvin continues to have trouble holding onto the basketball. He had 11 points and nine assists off the bench against Utah and Colorado, but he also had nine turnovers, giving him 33 in his past seven games.
