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No. 3 Arizona State men's basketball rolls over Pacific 105-65

Arizona State is off to its best start in 106 years as a program, but was plagued by slow starts in its previous two games.
Arizona State Sun Devils guard Shannon Evans II (11) goes up for a layup over Pacific Tigers forward Anthony Townes (5) during the first second at Wells-Fargo Arena. (Photo: Joe Camporeale-USA TODAY Sports)

TEMPE, Ariz. (AP) - Shannon Evans II scored 21 points, Tra Holder added 19 and No. 3 Arizona State dominated from the start in a 104-65 victory over Pacific on Friday.

The Sun Devils (12-0) have been plagued by slow starts in recent games, needing to turn on their guard-driven firepower to pull away from opponents.

Arizona State jumped on Pacific (5-8) early and didn't let the Tigers up, building a 10-point lead in the opening minutes and expanding it from there to extend the best start in school history.

Romello White was a nice complement to Arizona State's guards, bulling his way inside for 16 points and eight rebounds. De'Quon Lake helped shut the Tigers down inside, blocking seven shots, including two in one second-half possession.

Miles Reynolds and Jack Williams had 13 points each to lead Pacific, which went 3 for 17 from the 3-point arc.

Arizona State is off to its best start in 106 years as a program, but was plagued by slow starts in its previous two games.

The Sun Devils' sluggishness lasted for about 10 minutes against Vanderbilt and an entire half against Longwood. They turned both games into lopsided victories by switching to a gear few teams can match.

Arizona State had no slow-starting troubles against the Tigers, opening with a 12-2 run while holding them to 1-of-7 shooting in the first 6 1/2 minutes.

The Sun Devils relaxed for a stretch midway through the first half, but mostly had their way with Pacific, building a 47-31 halftime lead .

The Tigers started making a few shots as the half went along, but had trouble keeping track of Arizona State's guards along the perimeter.

The Sun Devils made eight 3-pointers by halftime, with Evans making four while scoring 16 points and Holder adding 13 points.

Pacific made a short run to trim Arizona State's lead to 13 early in the second half, but the Sun Devils scored six points in rapid succession to stretch the margin back out. A 19-2 run later in the second half really put the game out of reach for the Sun Devils.

BIG PICTURE

Damon Stoudamire has scheduled tough in his second season at Pacific and the Tigers have struggled against the bigger schools, adding Arizona State to a list of losses that includes Stanford, Nevada, Wyoming and UNLV.

Arizona State closed out its nonconference schedule in impressive fashion, overwhelming a small-conference program from the start.

UP NEXT

Pacific hosts No. 12 Gonzaga next Thursday to open the West Coast Conference season.

Arizona State plays its biggest rival to open Pac-12 play, at No. 18 Arizona on Dec. 30.

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More AP college basketball: www.collegebasketball.ap.org and https://twitter.com/AP_Top25

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