Wildcats win in Tempe for 1st time since 2000
For almost two decades, Arizona State women’s basketball fended off Arizona at home, winning 19 straight rivalry games in Tempe.
The Wildcats’ breakthrough finally came Sunday, 58-53, with an undefeated, No. 18-ranked team, but not without a late scare.
ASU trailed by nine, 53-44, with 3:45 left before a lively 4,009 at Desert Financial Arena, many up from
Tucson to cheer their new favorites. That lead all but evaporated by 1:06 in a 9-1 ASU run that included five points by Iris Mbulito and a Taya Hanson 3-pointer.
Suddenly the pressure was back on UA in its first down-to-the-wire game.
With scoring leader Aari McDonald fouled out, it was junior forward Sam Thomas who saved the day. She made two free throws with 36 seconds left, partially blocked a 3-point try by ASU’s Taya Hanson, then went 2-of-4 from the line to close out UA’s first win at Desert Financial Arena since 2000.
“We had a few different options, we wanted a clean look,” ASU coach Charli Turner Thorne said of Hanson’s attempt early in the shot clock.
“We did not get the shot that we wanted.”
UA extended its school best start to 12-0 and its nation-leading active win streak to 18. ASU’s six-game win streak ended, and the Sun Devils are 10-3 after losing their Pac-12 opener.
Post-Christmas blues
Neither team led by double digits or shot well, somewhat expected given both rank in the top 20 nationally in scoring defense (UA is No. 1).
Arizona went up by nine several times in the second half but could not put the Sun Devils away.
UA junior guard Aari McDonald got to her team-high scoring average with 20 points before fouling out with 1:25 left. She, sophomore forward Cate Reese (17 points/10 rebounds) and Thomas (7/9) were enough to lift the Wildcats to their second win over ASU in the last three meetings.
Last season, UA won 51-39 in Tucson, also in the game immediately after Christmas.
“It’s disappointing we weren’t sharper,” Turner Thorne said. “Five days off. We were getting better then this was kind of a setback. They were the tougher team today. We let stuff bother us. Good lesson for the younger kids on our team. This league is brutal, and you have to be tough and play through everything.”
Freshman Walker ‘bright spot’
The “one little bright spot,” Turner Thorne said, was freshman forward Eboni Walker, team leader in points (12) and rebounds (8) in 20 minutes off the bench.
When UA first went ahead early in the second quarter, Walker had four straight points as part of an 8-2 run including on an offensive rebound follow.
“I just make sure I do my job within the team,” Walker said.
“I don’t do things to put numbers on a piece of paper. I do things for the team.”
Turner Thorne said the 5-11 Walker “has no fear. She picked up those two early fouls (late in the first quarter) and had to sit a little bit then more than made up for it. She knows how to win. She’s a competitor. Some of the other people on our team could take a page from her book. Just work. We didn’t do what we normally do today, and it was very disappointing.”
Senior forward Jamie Ruden was the only other Sun Devil in double-figure scoring with 10.
ASU shot 30.3 percent, went 2-of-18 from 3-point and missed eight free throws.
Senior F/C Ja’Tavia Tapley went 0of-4 from the line and blew an open layup off a steal.
Robbi Ryan, sick earlier in the week, was 1-of-10 shooting.
Turner Thorne was not happy with ASU committing 22 fouls, leading to UA’s 14-of-22 from the line. The Sun Devils led 47-41 in rebounding.
UA added a half point in the Territorial Cup Series to lead 3.5-2 in that allsports competition. The women’s basketball rematch is Jan. 24 in Tucson.
Up next
ASU travels to No. 10 UCLA on Friday for its second straight game vs. a nationally ranked opponent. The Bruins (12-0, 1-0 Pac-12) won 83-59 Sunday over USC.