Murauskas scores 21 points to help Arizona State beat Tennessee State 75-65 to kick off Bennett era

Paulius Murauskas scored 21 points to help Arizona State kick off the Randy Bennett era with a 75-65 win over East Tennessee State in a season opener on Monday night.

Murauskas made 11 of 12 foul shots and grabbed nine rebounds, Joel Foxwell scored 15 points, Dillan Shaw 13 and reserve Filip Malesevic 11.

BJ Ward scored 25 points, Trevor Hennig 15 and Jayden Cooper 10 for the Buccaneers.

JRob Croy's 3-pointer with 12:36 remaining in the game put the Sun Devils ahead 55-42. An 8-0 run brought East Tennessee State within 55-50, but the Buccaneers could never get closer than five the rest of the way.

ETSU led for just 63 seconds.

Bennett, a Mesa, Arizona native, replaces Bobby Hurley who coached the Sun Devils for 11 seasons. Bennett spent the last 25 seasons at the helm of Saint Mary's helping turn it into one of the nation’s most consistent programs.

Saint Mary’s made 19 postseason appearances under Bennett, 12 in the NCAA Tournament and seven in the NIT.

East Tennessee State: Travels to Raleigh, North Carolina on Friday to face NC State.

Arizona State: Hosts Northern Colorado on Friday.

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