Dayton, Ohio — ASU had not faired well against the zone throughout its entire Pac-12 slate. The Devils were throwing up contested shots as teams seemed to slow down an offense that ran through all 12 of their non-conference opponents.
And in their First Four matchup of the NCAA Tournament in Dayton, Ohio, ASU knew they would have its toughest test of the season with Syracuse, who some think has the best zone in the country.
It took the Sun Devils a little bit to figure out Syracuse’s daunting 2-3 zone. Instead of penetrating it and trying to get the ball inside, ASU was settling for deep 3s.