Senior guards power Arizona State past UCLA for third win in a row

Kodi Justice hit his first shot. Shannon Evans started strong. Tra Holder scored in different ways.

Arizona State found a new level of confidence.

Throughout this season, ASU's senior guards have played their best basketball and suffered through soul-searching slumps. On Saturday they produced their best overall effort in weeks, leading the Sun Devils to an 88-79 win over previously red-hot UCLA at Wells Fargo Arena.

"Those guards hurt us," said UCLA coach Steve Alford, two days after his team went into Tucson and beat Arizona. "It’s a hard one to prep for with just a day in-between. ... We only have eight guys, but they’ve got some guards who are tough to stop when they get going."

In front of…