Seen and heard in Tempe: Local spiciness, another Hurley gripe, and bearcats?

That much was clear when CBS turned to veteran analyst Bill Raftery for a little postgame wrap-up after he called the game from Desert Financial Arena.

“I’m happy I wasn’t ejected,” Raftery said. “Seemed like I was the only one.”

Still, Raftery noted that the game did demonstrate that the Wildcats were “getting better as the year progresses” and now have a lot of different players who are contributing.

Cheerleaders beware

While saying that the Wildcats showed “no class” during their 81-72 win Saturday, ASU coach Bobby Hurley had other issues, too.

Among the most notable stats Saturday were that UA outrebounded the Sun Devils 52-38, scoring 14 points off 18 rebounds, while the Wildcats also took eight more free throws — making 21 of 22 while ASU was 10 of just 14.

In his complaint about all of that, Hurley referenced the workday of talented freshman big man Jayden Quaintance, a projected 2026 NBA lottery pick who had seven points and eight rebounds.

“I have to do a better job of teaching my post players how to dislodge a player and just move him as far under the basket as possible, into the cheerleader sometimes,” Hurley said. “It must be nice for someone to pave the road for you, where you literally just wipe out a defender and take him out of any type of help defense.

“It’s basically a moving screen that’s allowed, and it’s been happening way too often for me not to say that that is part of the reason that we can’t get an offensive rebound and we can’t challenge a layup in the paint. A lot of times, Quaintance is being pushed into the basketball support.

“It’s great that they could do that. That must be nice.”

Canceled

UA was leading 78-72 with 1:04 left when ASU chose an odd time to place a particular question over the public-address system at Desert Financial Arena.

“What school can’t figure out if it’s a wildcat or a bearcat?” the announcer said.

Boos loudly drowned out the rest of the announcer’s remarks.

Big 12 honors Black History

The Wildcats wore warmup shirts before Saturday’s game commemorating Black History Month and the Big 12’s partnership with the estate of civil rights activist Maya Angelou.

The black-colored shirts featured a quote from Angelou that said, “If you’re going to leave a legacy, make a mark on the world that can’t be erased.”

Managers elevate, too

The Wildcats line up to throw down dunks during every early pregame warmup, and on Saturday they were most excited about the last one.

That was the dunk thrown down by manager Coleman Chennault. UA forward Henri Veesaar led a crowd of Wildcats swarming Chennault after he dunked his second try.

Morning brew

After the Wildcats beat Iowa State in a late Monday game that ended at 11:10 p.m., UA coach Tommy Lloyd said he loved the late-night crowd in Tucson.

“You know, the kids are home in bed. Hopefully the parents went out to a good happy hour before, had a few tall boys during the game,” Lloyd said. “And let’s go.”

Turns out, fans for both teams appeared maybe just as enthusiastic Saturday. Despite the 11 a.m. tipoff, some of the longest concession lines at Desert Financial Arena flowed out of the beer kiosks.

The $15 tall boys on offer included Coors Light, Dos Equis, Dos Equis Especial Lime and Salt, Lagunitas IPA plus Simply Spiked Lemonade and Topo Chico Hard Seltzer.

Quotable

“I have no issues with Arizona State people. A lot of them I’m friends with. Hey, you just chose different paths. I guess for these two hours, people pick sides. But other than that I’m all for the state of Arizona, all around.” — Lloyd

The big number

27: Caleb Love’s point total Saturday, the third time in UA’s past four games he has surpassed the 20-point mark.