(Photo: Tyler Rittenhouse/WCSN)
It was once again the curse of the third quarter that struck the ASU women’s basketball as it was outscored 23-11 in the third and 64-60 overall against Oregon State.
The third period has been a soft spot for ASU as it were outscored by 12 in the third quarter by Oregon earlier in the week.
“We didn’t come out like we needed to come out,” guard Robbi Ryan said. “That’s been something we try to focus on because that’s been our downfall this season.”
It was forward Marie Gulich who did the majority of the damage for the Beavers, as she finished the game with 36 points including 30 alone in the second half.
“She’s a very good player,” forward Sophia Elenga said. “She has good size, but she also knows how to play. She has very good hands, moves, so it was very hard to guard her.”
On the flip side, it was Elenga and Ryan who led the Sun Devils in scoring with 13 apiece. The duo helped ASU get out to a very fast start where the team held Oregon State scoreless for four minutes.
During the run in the first period, the Sun Devils forced five turnovers before a 7-0 run by the Beavers cut the lead down to 16-11 after one period.
It was once again a fast start in the second period as ASU used a 7-0 run to extend it’s lead to a game-high 13 points. Elenga was once again key in the quarter, pouring in five more points after six in the first. OSU was held scoreless in the last three minutes of the half on its way to trailing 32-22.
A 9-0 run by the Beavers to start the third combined with five turnovers from the Sun Devils made the score 45-43 after three. Gulich dominated in the quarter after only having six points in the first half, scoring 16 in the third.
The fourth quarter was more of the same as Gulich collected 14 more points including the first eight of the quarter.
“We had opportunities even with her dominating the paint in the third and fourth quarter,” ASU head coach Charli Turner Thorne said. “We gave ourselves a chance to win. We had shots to do it and we didn’t quite get them.”
Despite the loss, Turner Thorne was extremely proud of the team’s effort and will to win.
“They took it really hard,” Turner Thorne said. “They really wanted this game. They know if they make one more play here or there they had it.”
The Sun Devils will now await the result of Washington and Cal later tonight in order to see their ranking in the Pac-12 Tournament. ASU will enter as either a five or six seed as Cal currently sits ahead of the Sun Devils in the conference standings.
