Arizona State rolls over Kennesaw State 91-53

Nov 19, 2015 - 3:42 AM TEMPE, Ariz. (AP) Eric Jacobsen had 15 points and 10 rebounds, Obinna Oleka scored 19 points and Arizona State overpowered Kennesaw State 91-53 Wednesday night.

Arizona State (2-1) jumped on Kennesaw State early and was never really tested after that despite a sometimes-sloppy first half. The Sun Devils overwhelmed the Owls inside, outscoring them by 22 points while grabbing 29 more rebounds.

Tra Holder had 14 points and Gerry Blakes grabbed a career-high 12 rebounds for Arizona State, which scored 20 points on 17 offensive rebounds.

Kennesaw State (0-3) completed a difficult first week under new coach Al Skinner with a third straight loss to a major conference program.

The Owls, who opened the season with losses at Alabama and LSU, struggled to open both halves against the Sun Devils to never really give themselves a chance.

Nigel Pruitt had 19 points for Kennesaw State, which shot 32 percent.

The Sun Devils got the first season under Bobby Hurley off to a jittery start, stumbling down the stretch of a 66-63 home loss to Sacramento State that Hurley called embarrassing.

Arizona State bounced back nicely on Friday, rallying from a 10-point first-half deficit to beat Belmont 83-74.

The Sun Devils were sharp early against the Owls, forcing difficult shots on defense while getting out for quick baskets in transition.

Holder was the catalyst.

The sophomore point guard scored two quick baskets and repeatedly got inside Kennesaw State's defense. He also had a nifty behind-the-back pass to set up Savon Goodman for a 3-point play that put the Sun Devils up 11-3.

The Owls were impatient against Arizona State's aggressive man defense, forcing up difficult shots or turning it over. Kennesaw State needed nearly four minutes to score its first points and shot 9 of 32 in the first half.

The Sun Devils were sloppy at times in the first half (11 turnovers) and were 1 for 8 from 3-point range, yet still led 35-24.

Arizona State scored seven quick points to open the second half to push the lead to 18 and later added a 12-0 run.

TIP INS

Kennesaw State: Yonel Brown, who had 34 points and 10 rebounds against Alabama, scored 11 points on 4-of-17 shooting.

Arizona State: Andre Spight missed all 10 of his shots and had two points after scoring 15 points against Belmont. ... Goodman appeared to sprain his right ankle with 4 1/2 minutes left in the game, but was able to walk back to the bench. He finished with nine points.

WHAT'S NEXT

Kennesaw State plays at Samford on Saturday.

Arizona State plays North Carolina State Monday in Brooklyn, New York.