Pac-12 Tournament Notes: Carson not thinking about NBA future after loss

LAS VEGAS — Arizona State (21-12, 9-9 Pac-12) probably needed to win out if it wanted to make the NCAA tournament.

Against UCLA, the Sun Devils had the looks of a team ready to make a run — they held a 15-point lead early in the second half.

But, on the shoulders of stud freshman Shabazz Muhammad, the Bruins fought back and won 80-75, relegating ASU to a likely NIT berth. Muhammad scored 16 points, including 10 in the final 11 minutes of the game.

“It just sucks,” said junior center Jordan Bachynski, who scored a game-high 22 points. “Nothing else really to say. It’s really disappointing.”

It was no fault of Sun Devils freshman point guard Jahii Carson, though. After scoring 34 points in a win against Stanford on Wednesday, Carson came back with 21 points, seven assists and six rebounds against UCLA.

After the game, a dejected Carson was asked about whether or not he’s considered his future at ASU beyond the season.

“No,” he said, “I don’t even think about that at the moment. I was just thinking about trying to get out here and get a championship.”

UCLA will face the winner of Colorado/Arizona, which is at halftime as of this post.

— Follow basketball beat reporters Zack Rosenblatt (ZackBlatt) and Cameron Moon (MoonCameron20) for more updates from Vegas