(Photo: Travis David V Whittaker/WCSN)
Arizona State’s Pac-12 Tournament journey came to an end in the quarterfinals Friday against UCLA. Despite a late 3rd quarter comeback, the Sun Devils lost to the Bruins 74-69, caused by uncharastically sloppy offense and too many defensive miscues.
Arizona State starting point guard Reili Richardson committed five turnovers, with the most costly coming with Arizona State down 71-66 with only 14 seconds left. Richardson pivoted away from UCLA guard, Japreece Dean, and with a wide open lane, Richardson attempted to pass the ball off rather than shooting it. The pass was stolen, and UCLA took possession of the ball and the game.
“I think I just wasn’t as poised as I usually am,” Richardson said. “I’m not one to turn the ball over a lot, so I need to come back and fix that.”
Throughout the first half, UCLA’s Japreece Dean and Michaela Onyenwere dominated, combining for 24 of the Bruins’ 41 first half points. Dean danced circles around the Sun Devil’s defense, going 5-8 from the field and only attempting one three-pointer the entire first half. UCLA lead 41-31 coming into the second half, having confidently out-played and out-muscled a smaller Arizona State team.
In the third, head coach Charli Turner Thorne turned to her bench to inject new life into a Sun Devil team who shot only 34 percent from the field in the first half. Arizona State senior forward Sophia Elenga led the charge with 11 points, while the rest of the bench combined for 25 points on the night.
“Just coming into this game, it’s postseason, like what we did before doesn’t matter,” Elenga said. “Just especially as a senior… It’s either you win or you lose and you go back home.”
The Sun Devils have adopted the win-or-go-home attitude all season long, facing multiple Top-5 opponents through the season, both in and out of the Pac-12 conference. Along the way, the Sun Devils have been one of the most resilient teams in the nation, and that resilience showed once again today.
Arizona State trailed by 15 points midway through the third quarter, and went on a 13-2 scoring run, led by their bench, to cut the lead to 57-56 by the end of the third quarter.
“Incredibly resilient team. You add discipline to that, and we can beat anybody in the country, and we know it,” Turner Thorne said. “We’re experienced… these players have played the best teams. There’s nothing they haven’t seen.”
Despite the veteran leadership, the Sun Devils struggled against UCLA, only making two three-pointers in the entire game and committing 15 turnovers, giving up 19 points off those turnovers.
Arizona State center Kianna Ibis came into Friday with a nagging knee injury after crashing hard on it against Colorado on Thursday. Ibis struggled against UCLA, picking up her fourth personal foul midway through the third quarter.
“Everybody in the Pac-12 right now is feeling a little beat up and sore and stuff,” Ibis said. “I just have to play through it better. I would just say that maybe I was not really focused, just a little undisciplined.”
Despite losing Jordin Canada and Monique Billings to 2018 WNBA Draft, the UCLA Bruins have come on hot, winning 11 of their last 13 games. Dean and Onyenwere led the Bruins to victory against the Pac-12 Regular Season Champion Oregon Ducks, and have now defeated the Sun Devils in both meetings this season. The Bruins will play in the semifinals of the Pac-12 Tournament Saturday in Las Vegas.
The Sun Devils will begin preparing for March Madness, where their resilience, depth and experience will be tested more than ever. Seniors Courtney Ekmark and Kiannis Ibis will look to bounce back in the NCAA tournament, and Turner Thorne is fully confident her team will be ready when the Madness officially tips off.
Turner Thorne recognizes the Pac-12 conference as “The best conference in the country,” and believes her team, having played against Top-10 teams like Oregon, Oregon State and Stanford in the Pac-12 alone, is fully equipped for whatever the tournament throws at them.
Despite the loss to UCLA and uncharacteristic performance, the Sun Devils still have high hopes for the 2019 NCAA Tournament. They will return to Tempe and wait for Selection Monday, which is set for March 18 at 5 p.m. MST.
The storm that is March Madness is coming, and Arizona State will take Friday’s loss to heart as they prepare for yet another deep run in the Big Dance.
