ASU Women’s Basketball: BYU defense stifles Sun Devils

(Photo: Marlee Smith/WCSN)           

The kryptonite of Arizona State athletics this year has been traveling North to Utah. Charli Turner Thorne hoped the women’s basketball program could change that, but they would follow the precedent set by previous teams, as BYU defeated Arizona State, 55-44, on Wednesday afternoon.

Arizona State (1-2) traveled to Brigham Young University (3-0) for its first road game. BYU entered the match with a 2-0 record after dominating victories over Lipscomb and Fresno State. Meanwhile, Arizona State arrived in Provo looking for its second win of the season after a heartbreaking overtime loss to Minnesota.

The Devils started the game with aggression. They came out in a full-court press, which helped limit the Cougars’ offense. But it would be all downhill from there. Although Arizona State was creating quality shot attempts, they could not get them to fall.

The Sun Devils shot 22.2 percent from the field on 18 shots, finishing with 10 points. But it would be their defensive play and rebounding ability that would keep them in the game. BYU had trouble cracking the code, as they would turn the rock over three times and only score 14 points. The Devils were also able to beat the Cougars on the offensive boards by grabbing four offensive rebounds.

Even with the dominant defensive play, it would be tough for Arizona State to stay in the game if its offense didn’t get going. Unfortunately, the ASU offense couldn’t produce, and the defense started to break. BYU’s senior Paisley Harding would crack the code and explode in the second quarter.

The 5-foot-9 guard scored most of her points by forcing her way to the charity stripe. Four free throws, a 3-pointer and two shots from the field would give Harding nine points. Making matters worse was the lack of offensive production by Arizona State. The Sun Devils shot 4-for-15 from the field and 0-for-5 from downtown, ending the first half in a 29-20 deficit.

With an uphill climb ahead, Arizona State had to win the third quarter if they wanted to escape Provo with a win. Instead, they did the exact opposite. The offense never got going as their leading scorer; senior Taya Hanson only scored five of her eight points in the third quarter. Once again, Arizona State was creating quality shot attempts but failed to find the bottom of the net. While ASU tried to figure out its offense, BYU would have a solid offensive performance. They were led by sophomore guard Shaylee Gonzales, who scored six of the Cougars’ 16 points. This scoring outburst gave BYU a 17-point lead to end the third quarter.

Arizona State head coach Charli Turner Thorne and her squad started the fourth quarter in an enormous hole. They trailed BYU by 17 points and appeared to have no offensive momentum. Suddenly, freshman Katelyn Levings would drill a jumper. After the jumper, Arizona State’s defense planted its foot in the ground and strung together a few stops. Sophomore gaurd Jaddan Simmons would bury a 3 to cut the deficit to 12 points. After Simmons’s three, the Devils defense had forced a Cougars stop, but they would let up an offensive rebound that found Harding, who made a 3-pointer. After the 3, BYU let Arizona State go on a 7-0 run cutting the deficit to 8, the closest the Devils had been since halftime. Eventually Arizona State’s poor shooting night would haunt them, as they missed nine shots to end the game. BYU would defeat Arizona State, 55-44.

Turner Thorne’s squad created numerous scoring chances but failed to convert on them. The Devils would finish the game 18-for-61 from the field and 3-for-24 from downtown. Arizona State will return to Tempe this Sunday against Marist (2-1) at 1 p.m. Before arriving in Tempe, Marist will travel South to Tucson for a matchup against the Arizona Wildcats (3-0).

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