It was “James Harden Beard Night” at Wells Fargo Arena Wednesday night. And to honor former ASU standout James Harden, there were bearded bandanas, a ‘beard-cam’ – where fans were displayed on the video scoreboard with a beard superimposed over their face and a halftime contest for best beard.
To show their appreciation for the former Sun Devil, the student section planned to remain silent until ASU scored their 13th point of the game (Harden wore #13 at ASU).
But someone forgot to tell the team of this silent tribute.
“I was confused. I didn’t know what was going on,” said senior forward Carrick Felix. “I was like this is kind of awkward at first. I was like, are we bringing no energy? Or does our crowd just not like what we are doing?”
Both players and coaches were confused by the fans lack of reaction at the start of the game.
“I am thinking to myself this is the quietest arena I have ever been in,” said head coach Herb Sendek. “There is no energy, there is no spirit. What should I do?”
The silence lasted for the first 10 minutes of the game until Felix sunk a 3-point to tie the game at 14.
ASU went on to defeat Washington State 69-57.
