Baylor beats Arizona State

November 29, 2008

Curtis Jerrells scored 22 points as Baylor made a huge statement on Friday, upsetting 14th-ranked Arizona State, 87-78, to advance to the finals of the 76 Classic.<separator></separator>LaceDarius Dunn poured in 27 points off the bench and Henry Dugat added 14 for the Bears, who opened the season with five straight wins - four by double-digits - but had yet to face a ranked opponent.<separator></separator>Baylor, which next will face 24th-ranked Wake Forest in the finals on Sunday, proved that it deserves to be mentioned amongst the best 25 teams in the country, making their point from long distance.<separator></separator>Following a back-and-forth opening 20 minutes that left the teams tied, 31-31, entering the break, the Bears caught fire from the arc immediately after emerging from the locker rooms.<separator></separator>Dugat started the second half with a 3-pointer and the rest of the team followed his lead.<separator></separator>Baylor made five of its first six 3-pointers after the break to forge a 53-38 advantage with 14:17 remaining in the game.<separator></separator>After an Arizona State timeout, <a href="http://thesundevils.cstv.com/sports/m-baskbl/mtt/harden_james00.html">J… Harden</a>, who finished with 32 points and nine rebounds, scored three straight points and <a href="http://thesundevils.cstv.com/sports/m-baskbl/mtt/mcmillan_jamelle00.htm… McMillan</a> drained a three to pull the Sun Devils back within 55-44 with 13:06 left.<separator></separator>Dunn scored the next six points for the Bears, putting them back on top by 15 points.<separator></separator>The Sun Devils chipped away at the lead, closing to within five points with one minute remaining. It was too little too late, however, as Baylor made 7-of-8 free throws down the stretch to seal the win.<separator></separator>Arizona State had surrendered an average of 53 points during its season-opening four straight wins, but were victimized by the hot shooting of Baylor.<separator></separator>After the Sun Devils allowed the opposition to shoot 39 percent from the field and 35 percent from 3-point range this season, the Bears made 50 percent (26-of-52) of their shots from the floor and 46 percent (11-of-24) from the arc.