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TEMPE, Ariz. - LMU men's basketball shot 28 percent from the field, hitting just eight field goals each half as they fell to Arizona State, 68-44, in their first road game of the season at Wells Fargo Arena in Tempe, Ariz., Thursday night.

The Lions hit 16-for-57 from the field on the night (28.1 percent) while the Sun Devils (3-0) hit 46 percent to stay unbeaten at home. The Lions went 1-for-11 from the three-point line and managed 11-for-19 (57.9 percent) from the free throw line.

LMU's defense kept it close early as they generated 10 steals and forced Arizona State into 17 turnovers, both season highs for the Lions. It equated to a 14-6 edge in points off turnovers as the Lions had just nine. However, the lack of offense put pressure on the Lions defensively.

"It is really hard on your defense when you can't hit shots," said Head Coach Mike Dunlap. "We played with good energy and really held the line there early, but our lack of offense really bled into our defense down the stretch."

No Lion had double figures as Simon Krajcovic and Evan Payne led the Lions off the bench with nine points each. Krajcovic, who made his season debut on the night, added two assists and three steals in his college debut. David Humphries and Godwin Okonji led the Lions with six rebounds each.

Arizona State had four players in double figures, including leading scorer Chance Murray with 12 points, hitting 8-for-10 from the free throw line.

It was the Sun Devils opportunistic 10 three-pointers that did the Lions in, as they outscored the Lions 30-3 from beyond the arc.

The Lions got down by 13 in the first half, 26-13, but Krajcovic came off the bench to give the Lions a boost and helped the Lions cut it down to six at the break, 28-22, with a lay-up with 35 seconds to play. LMU continued to charge, cutting the lead to four, 28-24, a minute into the second half.

However, a big three-pointer ended the momentum for the Lions, as Bo Barnes hit one with 17:02 to play. With the lead at eight, Arizona State, got another big three, this one by Jonathan Gilling with 14:22 to play, to push the lead to 11.

LMU managed to get the lead down to nine, 45-36 on an Okonji free throw with 7:59 to play. However, Barnes hit another three to help the Sun Devils pull away in the final six minutes.

"We were holding the line there until about seven minutes to play, but once again our inability to hit shots really bled into our defense and we couldn't hold," said Dunlap.

The Lions head home for some Holiday Basketball at Gersten Pavlion, hosting three straight in and around Thanksgiving. It starts with Alumni Family Day at the Game on Sunday, Nov. 23 when the Lions host San Diego Christian at 5 pm. Special ticket prices are available for Alumni and their families and a special pre game tailgate gets things going at 3 pm. Then on Wednesday, the Lions host UC Riverside in the LMU Holiday Classic at 5 pm. The game is free to all with $1 hotdogs by Sodexo. The home stand ends on Saturday, Nov. 29 with UC Irvine at 8 pm.