ASU Women’s Basketball: Marquette Preview

(Photo: Nicole Hernandez/WCSN)

The Arizona State Sun Devils are coming off to a 2-0 start, winning both of their games last weekend by over 35 points. The Sun Devils are traveling to Milwaukee to play the also undefeated Marquette Golden Eagles.

Marquette started their season off with two wins at home as they blew out Longwood University in their season opener and then beat Saint Francis 104-91.

Marquette is averaging nearly 96 points a game and is being lead by Erika Davenport and Allazia Blockton who are both averaging over 20 points a game.

“It’s tough, I think you contain them, I don’t know if you can totally stop them,” said Arizona State head coach Charli Turner Thorne. “So we got to play great team defense, take away their transition and limit them to one shot.”    

ASU’s bench has been reliable thus far. In the first two games of the season they are averaging 45 points.

The freshmen haven’t missed a beat in the transition from high school to college. The five new comers have contributed 60 points this season, almost 40-percent of the team’s total points.

“It’ll be fun, I expect (the freshman) to be ready, I really do,” Thorne said. “It’ll be their first true hostile environment, road game. But they’re pretty tough, and they have the veterans around them so I think they’re going to be ready and they’ll do well.”

There is one freshman that really stood out the first week. This Monday, Reili Richardson was named the Pac-12 Women’s Basketball Freshman of the Week.

“It’s just good for my team,” Richardson said. “I mean my team has helped me get to the point where I am and I just want to give it all to my team.”

Richardson is averaging 9 points and 5.5 assists a game while shooting a very efficient 58 percent.  

Thorne claimed at the end of the last game that even though they won both games handily, rebounding was something that the team must get better at as the season goes on.

This past week in practice the team focused on their rebounding and defense since they believe that will be the key against Marquette.

“We’re always focusing more on our defense,” Richardson said. “Our offense will flow from our defense so if we can lock in and limit them from getting second possessions and stopping their best players we’ll be good.”

The Sun Devils and the Golden Eagles will tip off at 2:00 pm MST Saturday at the Al McGuire Center.

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