NCAAB Game Preview - Utah at Arizona State

Thu Jan 25, 2018 9:30 PM EST

TEMPE, Ariz. -- No. 21 Arizona State and Utah adjusted their starting lineups to great success last weekend.

Their Pac-12 game Thursday in Tempe, Ariz. -- their second meeting in 19 days -- will provide the first clue as to whether those changes were more than just an experiment.

In an attempt to bolster bench production after an 86-77 loss at Stanford a week ago, Arizona State coach Bobby Hurley flip-flopped forwards Mickey Mitchell and Vitaliy Shibel for the game at California, and the move helped everyone.

Mitchell had 12 points and 11 rebounds off the bench, reserve guard Remy Martin had 13 points and reserve center De'Quon Lake had nine points and seven rebounds as the Sun Devils (15-4, 3-4 Pac-12) used 41 bench points in an 81-73 victory on Saturday. Mitchell, Martin and Shibel made two 3-pointers apiece.

The 6-foot-7 Mitchell, who gained his eligibility at semester after transferring from Ohio State, had started the previous seven games in place of Shibel. Hurley told Mitchell about the lineup change Friday.

"I didn't think about it," Mitchell said. "I knew when I got in there I was going to do what I do. That's his decision, so I respected it. Obviously I came out and played, so it doesn't matter where I come from. This was a must-win for us after a tough loss at Stanford. We had to have this one. A lot of guys stepped up."

Freshman Martin, who has provided a spark off the bench all season, had 11 of the 13 points scored by reserves at Stanford.

"Stanford punished us with their bench in that game, and that was a key reason why we didn't come through and maybe get a victory," Hurley said. "Just having Mickey come in and provide that spark and do what he did, our team needs that from him."

The Sun Devils have won two of three games and three of five since opening Pac-12 play with losses at Arizona and Colorado. They broke that two-game losing streak with an 80-77 victory at Utah on Jan. 7.

Guard Shannon Evans II had 22 points and five 3-pointers and guard Kodi Justice had 20 points in that game.

For Utah, graduate transfer guard Justin Bibbins had 22 points and guard Sedrick Barefield had 21 and five 3s. Bibbins' potential go-ahead 3-pointer with eight seconds remaining rimmed out.

The 5-8 Bibbins, who spent his first three seasons at Long Beach State, had double-doubles when Utah (12-7, 4-4) swept the Washington schools last weekend to snap a four-game losing streak. He had 20 points and a career-high 10 rebounds against Washington on Thursday and 13 points and a career-high 12 assists against Washington State on Sunday. He leads the team with a 14.2-point scoring average.

Barefield, who had started the seven previous Pac-12 games, scored 14 points off the bench in the 82-69 victory over Washington State on Sunday, when the Utes' bench had 38 points. Barefield, who averages 10.6 points a game, was 1 of 16 from the floor and 0 of 12 on 3-pointers in the three games between the contests against Arizona State and Washington State.

"That's the definition and essence of a team," Utah coach Larry Krystkowiak told reporters. "I like the change. Sedrick was really welcome to the idea. I think Justin's going to find his (points), and then when you have to go to the bench here comes Sedrick, and then you can run some different plays.

"It brings some enthusiasm, at least after the first time doing it it worked. We saw some defense out of him that we haven't seen, too."

Utah athletic director Chris Hill was fined $10,000 by the Pac-12 for inappropriate language following the Arizona State-Utah game Jan. 7, when he berated Pac-12 coordinator of officials Bobby Dibler. Reporters at Krystkowiak's postgame press conference overheard the outburst, which took place in an adjoining room.