ASU starts well before No. 8 UCLA coasts to win
Arizona State kept up with No. 8 UCLA in the first 10 minutes, but the rest of the game proved more difficult.
The Sun Devils applied pressure early on, forcing UCLA to fall behind. ASU built off the energy from UCLA’s two turnovers, converting both for a 4-0 burst. Even as UCLA started to gain traction, ASU stayed close for the rest of the quarter and trailed by four at the end.
However, the Bruins overwhelmed the Sun Devils after that and won 70-41, in their final meeting as conference opponents at Desert Financial Arena on Thursday night.
ASU was outscored 31-15 across the second and third quarters, putting the game out of reach by the fourth.
“They were moments where our defense was late and you can’t be late against a team like this. They’ll make you pay. Their leadership, their veterans, their experience, they’re deep. I think there were moments where that was exposed for us,” ASU head coach Natasha Adair said. “They were also some extra effort plays... Physicality, doing your work early, being aggressive, being on time in rotations.”
The Bruins proved difficult up the middle, scoring 44 points in the paint, including 14 in the first. Lauren Betts, UCLA's 6'7" center, led with 20 points and 11 rebounds.
Key moments
The early lead began to evaporate in the second when the Bruins surged forward on a balanced attack with Betts leading with five points.
ASU struggled to cobble together a counterattack on 3-of-13 shooting and committed three turnovers. UCLA then mounted a 10-0 run for a 29-16 lead.
UCLA controlled the glass with 13 rebounds and had five second-chance points, while not allowing ASU to get any looks on second chances. ASU scored five points off three turnovers, but struggled in the paint with four points.
The Sun Devils couldn’t find an answer coming into the second half, falling behind 8-3. The Bruins only lengthened their lead from there and closed on a 7-0 run for a 20-point lead heading into the fourth quarter.
Top performers
Jalyn Brown and Trayanna Crisp led the offense and sparked the Sun Devils in dry spells. Brown scored 25 points against UCLA earlier this season and once again led ASU's scoring with 14 points. Crisp added 13 and three assists. Both led with five rebounds each, including four defensive rebounds.
They said it
“Playing a team a second time, especially after I had a good game against them last time, they’re going to scout it out. That means other people have to step up and be put in positions they’re not used to being in. With me being a scorer, I have to put the ball in the basket. Just to understand that they are pressing that, maybe the backdoor is there and they have (Lauren Betts), so maybe we have to kick it out to the shooter and the shooter has to shoot. We’re a young team, we’re still growing and we have to get that understanding of the game. Once we get that, I think we’ll be good.” — ASU guard Jalyn Brown on adjusting to UCLA a second time.
“We’ll show them what we did well coming out of the game, but you got to put four quarters together. If they go on a run, you can’t drop your head. Then you got to get a stop. Going into the fourth and it’s at 48, you got to hold them at 48. We got to score. I just think that for our team, sometimes we’re so unselfish. You got to take the shot that we worked on at practice.” — head coach Natasha Adair on what ASU can learn from this game.
Up next
ASU (11-18, 3-14 in Pac-12) will close out its regular season on Saturday at noon against No. 7 USC for Senior Day. Treasure Hunt, Jaddan Simmons, and Maggie Besselink will all be honored before the game. ASU will then head to the Pac-12 Tournament in Las Vegas.