Keyshawn Hall breaks out for 40 as UCF battles Arizona State

Keyshawn Hall began capping a 40-point night with a short jumper with 1:26 to play that took two rebounds off the rim before finding the bottom of the net as Central Florida beat Arizona State 95-89 on Tuesday in Tempe, Ariz.

Hall’s luck gave the Knights (12-4, 3-2 Big 12) an 89-86 lead, and Darius Johnson knocked down two free throws in the next 1:04 to essentially put the Sun Devils (10-6, 1- 4) gone forever.

Alston Mason drilled a 3-pointer for Arizona State with 10 seconds left, but the shot was blocked by four free throws from Hall, who set a career high in points.

Although the lead changed hands several times in the second half, UCF was the more composed team down the stretch. Johnson finished with 17 points and seven assists.

BJ Freeman led Arizona State with 26 points, while Jayden Quaintance had 20 points, seven rebounds and five blocked shots before fouling out.

After a wild first half in which Hall scored 29 of his points on 11-of-13 shooting, the Knights went up by 12, 65-53, thanks in part to four 3-pointers in less than four minutes to open the second half.

However, the sun devils did not fold. They later scored 11 unanswered points to take a 71-69 lead. Freeman soon hit a trey for a 76-72 Arizona State lead.

UCF kept shooting from deep to keep the game close, and Hall returned to the court with just over seven minutes to play after taking a breather due to foul trouble. His return sparked the Knights after his impressive first half.

Despite Hall scoring at will, Central Florida never led by more than eight in the first 20 minutes of action. However, the Knights closed the first half on an 8-2 run to take a 49-47 lead into halftime.

Arizona State held a four-point lead before UCF’s strong first-half finish.

–Field-level media