Washington
Arizona State steps up the pressure, surges past No. 21 Washington State in Pac-12 play
the Sun Devils turned in one of their best performances of The season, downing visiting Washington State 73-61 in Pac-12 play at Desert Financial Arena.
It was really anyone’s guess as to how the Arizona State Sun Devils were going to respond when they stepped on the court to face No. 21 Washington State on Saturday night. Coach Bobby Hurley saw both versions of his team in an overtime loss to Washington on Thursday and it had an embarrassing showing against rival Arizona a week ago.
But the Sun Devils turned in one of their best performances of the season, downing visiting Washington State 73-61 in Pac-12 play at Desert Financial Arena. The Sun Devils (14-14, 8-9) led for 35:44 minutes and came out with an intensity and sense of urgency that they didn’t seem to have 48 hours earlier.
The performance was all the more impressive given the competition. Washington State surprisingly started the day atop the Pac-12. Coach Kyle Smith lost his top four scorers from last season and was picked 10th in the preseason coaches poll but boasts a national ranking for the first time since the 2007-08 season when it finished the season ranked 21st.
The Cougars (21-7, 12-5) were also coming off a dramatic 77-74 victory over Arizona, handing the Wildcats their first loss at McKalea Center this season.
“I thought possible the best defense we’ve played in terms of they’re a handful around the basket with (Isaac) Jones and they’ve got guys that can shoot, playmakers,” Hurley said. “So they have a really good team. Kyle Smith has done a phenomenal job there and it’s one of the great stories in college basketball, what they’ve been able to do so you could see why they’ve had the success they’ve had but our defense was up for the challenge tonight and we stepped up in that regard.”
The showing by ASU snapped the Cougars’ eight-game win streak, that team’s last loss coming on Jan. 20 against California in overtime.
Let’s take a closer look at the contest:
What went right for ASU
Played a solid first half: Hurley admitted after the frustrating Washington loss that he didn’t know where his team’s psyche would be. It had that lopsided and embarrassing loss at Arizona, then played about as bad for the first 23 or so minutes on Thursday against Washington. But the Sun Devils played their best first half in awhile, shooting 53% (16-for-30) and showing a hustle and toughness that had been missing. At one point Adam Miller and Jose Perez both went two rows deep into the crowd for a loose ball.
Balanced scoring: The Sun Devils had four players in double figures and two players with nine points. Jose Perez had 16 points, followed by Frankie Collins with 14, Adam Miller 12 and Alonzo Gaffney 11. Jamiya Neal and Bryant Selebangue each chipped in with nine. For Gaffney is was more points than he registered in the last four games combined. It was Selebangue’s biggest point contribution since a Jan. 20 game against USC in which he also had nine.
“If we’re going to have success the rest of the season, it’s not going to be with one guy. The times we seem to win there are four or five guys in double figures. We need that type of production, and again, the box scores shows that tonight,” Hurley said. “When we have that many guys playing that well at that end of the floor it really gets everyone energized and we play better at both ends.”
Held their own on the boards: Rebounding is an area in which ASU has been deficient much of the season but they finished equal with the Cougars on the boards, each with 35 rebounds. Despite coming off the bench Selebangue had seven followed by Gaffney, Perez and Collins each with six rebounds. So it was a balanced effort there too. ASU came into the game 348th out of 351 teams in rebounding margin at minus 7 so to finish even was significant.
Not reliant on the long ball: ASU went 6-for-14 from deep (44.8%) which was noteworthy since they came in shooting 30.7% for the season from there. It was the fewest 3-point attempts ASU has had in a game this year, the previous low being 15 attempts in the win over San Francisco on Dec. 3. They were 5-for-15 in that one.
Good shooting night: The Sun Devils came in shooting 41.9% on the season which ranks 307th overall and 11th in Pac-12 play. In this one they shot 49.2% (29-for-59) with Miller and Gaffney both going 5-for-8 and Selebangue going 4-for-5.
What went wrong for the Sun Devils
A stupid foul here of there: We’re being picky here because there was very little that didn’t go right for the Sun Devils. With the ASU up 53-46 with 10:05 left in the game, the Cougars had the ball late in the shot clock with ASU making a solid defensive stand. Kamari Lands fouled Isaac Jones who was getting off a desperation 3 at the buzzer. Jones made all three free throws to cut the deficit to 53-49.
They said it
“If we’re guarding with a purpose and energy and we’re in the right spots and we’re flying around and getting deflections then we can be pretty dynamic getting out in the open court and it leads to our offense and they had four points for a long time. I thought we started out strong and defended them well.” — ASU Coach Bobby Hurley
“It was real focused. Coach told us we got to be the good eggs. You guys don’t know what that means but you put that out there I think the whole team, we were the good eggs tonight.” — ASU’s Jose Perez
“You can’t complain when you beat a ranked team. We knew what it was going to be coming into the game and we were prepared. We needed this one. Lost the last one so had to bounce back and get ready for Wednesday.” — ASU’s Bryant Selebangue
What to look for next
Can ASU build on the strong performance: Given the monumental task that lies in front of it in the form of their rival, the Sun Devils needed a confidence booster and what better way to get it than beat the team that beat your rival not once, but twice this season.
Up next
The Sun Devils have just one game next week and it will be the rematch against rival Arizona (21-6, 12-4) at 8 p.m. Wednesday at Desert Financial Arena. The game will be televised on the Pac-12 Network. ASU will be looking for a bit of redemption having lost to the Wildcats 105-60 at McKale Center a week ago in what was the mostly lopsided game in the series history.
Arizona defeated Washington 91-75 Saturday afternoon behind the 28 points of Caleb Love.
Over the course of the next few weeks, we will be taking an in-depth look at the Bengals’ 2026 opponents. The Bengals play in Washington on Monday Night Football in Week 11 against the Commanders.
2025
The Commanders went 5-12 last season, finishing third in the NFC East a year after making a run to the NFC Championship Game. QB Jayden Daniels played in just seven games due to injury after winning NFC Offensive Rookie of the Year in 2024. Veteran Marcus Mariota started eight games, going 2-6, while now-Bengal Josh Johnson logged two starts under center.
Washington’s offense averaged 20.9 points per game last season, ranking 22nd in the league. Without their second overall pick quarterback, the Commanders struggled to pass the ball, averaging 184.1 passing yards per game, good for 24th in the league. The team’s top receiver Terry McLaurin played in 10 games as he too struggled with injuries. As a result, former San Francisco 49er Deebo Samuel led Washington with 72 receptions for 727 yards and five touchdowns.
The Commanders were more effective on the ground, ranking fourth in yards per carry (4.7) and yards per game (134.7). Washington primarily featured two backs: rookie Jacory Croskey-Merritt and Chris Rodriguez. Croskey-Merritt paced the team in attempts (175), yards (805) and touchdowns (eight) while Rodriguez added 112 carries for 500 yards and six scores.
On the other side of the ball, the Commanders allowed 26.5 points per game, the sixth most in the NFL, and 384.3 yards per game, the most in the league. Washington allowed the third-most rushing yards per game (141.8) and fifth-most yards per carry (4.8). The defense allowed 242.5 yards per game through the air, the fifth most. The unit struggled to force turnovers as well, notching the second-fewest takeaways in the NFL with 10.
Offseason Changes
Head coach Dan Quinn had to replace both coordinators this offseason, as the team decided to mutually part ways with former offensive coordinator Kliff Kingsbury and let go of defensive coordinator Joe Whitt Jr. The Commanders hired two first-time coordinators in David Blough (OC) and Daronte Jones (DC).
Washington overhauled its defense this offseason, starting with the defensive line. The Commanders signed former Ravens and Chargers DE Odafe Oweh to a four-year deal, former Texans DT Tim Settle Jr. to a three-year deal and former Jaguars and Patriots DE K’Lavon Chaisson to a one-year deal. They also drafted DE Joshua Josephs from Tennessee in the third round of the 2026 NFL Draft.
The team added LB Leo Chenal from the Chiefs in free agency and spent the seventh overall pick in the draft on LB Sonny Styles Jr. from Ohio State. On the back end, Washington signed S Nick Cross and CB Amik Robertson.
On the offensive side of the ball, Washington let Rodriguez walk in free agency and signed former Browns RB Jerome Ford and former Buccaneers RB Rachaad White instead. It added depth to the receiver room with one-year deals for Dyami Brown and Van Jefferson and used a second-round pick on Clemson WR Antonio Williams. The Commanders also signed TE Chig Okonkwo to a three-year contract from the Titans.
Donald Trump’s plans to build a skyline-altering arch in the nation’s capital won initial approval Thursday from a key federal commission, but its members put off a decision on whether a federal law that limits building heights should be applied to this project.
Despite overwhelming public opposition, the National Capital Planning Commission voted to approve preliminary site and building plans for the 250ft (76m) arch the Republican president wants to build on a traffic circle at the Virginia end of the Memorial Bridge from Washington.
The project, one of several being pursued by Trump in his quest to reshape parts of the nation’s capital to his liking, moved a step closer to reality with the vote.
Staff had recommended in its report on the project that the commission grant such approval and request a series of changes so the arch would comply with the Height of Buildings Act. The suggested changes included redistributing the heights among the main structure of the arch, the habitable roof, where an observation deck is planned, and the statues that would top it.
But commissioners, led by chair Will Scharf, voted to continue deliberations on whether the law indeed applies.
The staff report said the commission has long applied the law in its approval process. Scharf said the applicant, which is the interior department, had, as requested, provided a legal analysis that he said makes a “compelling argument” that the law “is not binding on the federal government”.
The interior department oversees the federal land where the arch would be built.
Eight of the 12 commissioners, including Scharf and two others appointed by Trump, voted for preliminary approval. One was against, and the remaining three commissioners voted present.
“This is a complex project,” Scharf said before the vote. He said a vote on final approval could come at the agency’s next meeting, in September.
All 12 commissioners listened to a summary of the staff report and its recommendations, and heard from several dozen people who had signed up to testify about the project.
As the commissioners met, construction continued at the White House on a $400m ballroom Trump is building there and crews draped tarps over the stone columns at the north entrance to the mansion, where work is being done to scrape off layers of paint.
Some of those who testified against Trump’s project opposed building a celebratory arch so close to Arlington national cemetery. Others suggested it would be more appropriate for a neighborhood near the Capitol and sporting venues.
Opponents say the arch is too big and would disrupt the carefully designed view between the Lincoln Memorial and Arlington national cemetery that was meant to symbolize the reunification of the north and the south after the civil war.
The arch would be more than twice as tall as the Lincoln Memorial, which is 99ft (30m) tall, and close to half the height of the Washington Monument, at about 555ft (169m) tall.
Concerns about vehicular traffic and pedestrian safety also were expressed on Thursday. Others insisted that Congress must approve the arch – a position Trump disagrees with.
The US Commission of Fine Arts, a separate federal agency, approved the design for the arch in May. The National Capital Planning Commission oversees construction on federal land in the city and began reviewing the arch plan in June.
Trump had said last year that the arch could be paid for with unused funds from the hundreds of millions of dollars he said he has raised from corporations, donors and other wealthy people to pay to build a new $400m ballroom at the White House.
But, as it turns out, some public money will be used for the ballroom project, as well as the arch. The White House has not released a cost estimate for the arch.
The Washington Commanders are retiring John Riggins’ No. 44 during the upcoming NFL season, the team announced Thursday.
The Hall of Fame running back will be honored in a ceremony at halftime of the team’s game against the Los Angeles Rams on Nov. 8.
“There are certain players whose impact goes far beyond statistics, championships and accolades: They become woven into the identity of a franchise,” controlling owner Josh Harris said in a statement. “John Riggins is one of those players. …Our fans not only admired him, they identified with him. He is authentic, unapologetically himself and deeply connected to the people around him. John has meant so much to this franchise, our fans and the game of football.”
Riggins is the organization’s all-time leading rusher with 7,472 yards and 79 touchdowns on 1,988 carries and helped the team win the Super Bowl in the 1982 season.
The fan favorite nicknamed “Riggo” was the MVP of that Super Bowl for his performance best known for his memorable 43-yard TD run in the fourth quarter that put Washington ahead of the Miami Dolphins. He was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1992.
Riggins is the seventh player to have his number retired by the team, joining Sammy Baugh, Bobby Mitchell, Sean Taylor, Sonny Jurgensen, Darrell Green and Art Monk. Green, Monk and Riggins have all happened since Harris’ group took over from longtime owner Dan Snyder.
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