ASU vs. Hartford recap: Jahii Carson, Sun Devils, blow past Hawks

Jahii Carson scored 20 points, and added six assists and five rebounds for good measure, as the Arizona St. Sun Devils defeated Hartford, 71-63, on Thursday night in Tempe. The victory ups the Sun Devils to 7-1.

The game was a close affair early as Arizona St. led Hartford by only a single point at halftime, 36-35. The Sun Devils were able to stretch the lead in the second half behind Carson's hot shooting (9-of-12), but didn't take command of the game until late due to poor free-throw shooting (11-of-23), and the fact that Hartford hit 12 three-pointers. Nate Sikma alone made six baskets from behind the arc for the Hawks.

Carson led ASU with his 20 points, but shot only 1-of-5 from the free-throw line. Eric Jacobsen added 16, Evan Gordon had 12, and Carrick Felix scored 11 to go with 11 rebounds. Sikma led Hartford with 26 points, but the team shot only 39 percent from the field and went to the line only seven times.

Arizona State returns to the floor on Saturday, Dec. 8 against Cal-State Northridge.