After coming off a five-set win in grand fashion on Friday night, No. 19 Arizona State will turn around and face the unranked Colorado Buffaloes on Sunday in Wells Fargo Arena.
Coming into this match, both teams are 6-5 in conference play and both had thrilling wins on Friday night. ASU beat Utah in a five-set grudge match, while the Buffalos beat No. 15 Arizona in four sets on the Wildcats’ home court.
The last time these two teams squared off, it was ASU who came out victorious.
Junior outside hitter Macey Gardner saw most of the sets on Friday as she continued her historic season for the Sun Devils, racking up 20 kills and 22 digs. She led the team in both categories to help the Sun Devils defeat the Utes in five.
The Buffs defeated the Wildcats for the second time this season with help from their 1-2 punch, senior outside hitter Taylor Simpson and junior outside hitter Alexis Austin. The two outsides saw most of the sets as they put up 33 out of Colorado’s 52 kills.
“They are playing really well right now,” ASU head coach Jason Watson said. “Offensively they are a lot better than they were earlier this season.”
What To Expect
Unfortunately for the Sun Devils, Colorado will come out strong after losing to ASU the last time these two teams met up. CU will use a fast-paced offense to their advantage, and the Sun Devils might struggle with that quicker tempo, like last Sunday morning when they lost to unranked Oregon State.
ASU could come out slow, which normally happens when they play on Sunday mornings, no matter what team they are playing. ASU’s defense might have some trouble trying to keep up with Colorado’s 6-2 offensive style as they will constantly have to worry about an opposite hitter even though most of the sets will go Simpson’s and Austin’s way.
Prediction
Having a knack for going 1-1 every weekend and playing a team who is red-hot and just beat an Arizona team that ASU has already lost to, it will be hard for the Sun Devils to win even though they beat Colorado earlier this season.
Most of the game will be a struggle for ASU. They will eventually make their comeback, but it will already be too late in the match as Colorado will beat the No. 19 Sun Devils in four sets.
