It wasn’t until almost tip when game-changing news broke – KZ Okpala was out for Wednesday’s game between Stanford and Arizona State. Over the next 40 minutes, Okpala’s absence proved devastating.
The Sun Devils cruised to an 80-62 win, holding Stanford 12 points below its season average of 74 points per game. Only two Stanford players finished in double figures – Josh Sharma and Oscar Da Silva.
In the teams’ first meeting, Okpala was huge. A sophomore forward, Okpala notched a team-high 21 points in the Cardinal’s 85-71 win in Palo Alto.