Last-Second Winner Keeps ASU Undefeated against UNLV

TEMPE — Hail Marley.

Two words said by Phoenix Mayor Kate Gallego after one of the craziest finishes Desert Financial Arena may have ever seen. 56-53 was the final in Tempe, and neither senior guard Marley Washenitz nor her teammates could contain their emotions after her absolute miracle heave sank for the game-winning three.

“Honestly, I was in disbelief, if you couldn’t tell by my reaction,” said Washenitz.

With the Lady Rebels coming off two straight losses, they were looking to get back in the win column against the Sun Devils. The visitors got off to a very strong start, forcing five turnovers in the first quarter, and were all over the paint defensively. ASU struggled, shooting 18% from the field in the first. The Sun Devils’ leading scorers on the year, senior guards Gabby Elliot and Washenitz, could not seem to get anything going, and sloppy defense from the team as a whole made it tough for the Sun Devils to get on a roll.

Heading into the second, the Sun Devils needed a spark, and got it from junior UNLV transfer McKenna Brakens, who completely stole the show. Threes, mid-ranges, and fadeaways were all automatic for the forward. In 39 minutes, she dropped 23 points and ten rebounds, giving her back-to-back double-doubles on the season.

Three-pointers were the main source of scoring for UNLV, led by Mariah Elohim, who scored all of her 12 points from behind the arc. After falling behind in the third quarter, the Rebels kept striking from deep, keeping them in the game. The Sun Devils were overaggressive on defense, abandoning their position, allowing UNLV to consistently get good looks from range. Going into the fourth quarter, it was bound to be a match that came down to the wire, and ASU was going to have to find some advantage if it wanted to come out on top.

The paint was one area where the Sun Devils were able to dominate, doubling UNLV’s paint points 32-16. Sophomore Heloisa Carrera was unstoppable in one-on-one situations near the rim, and whenever her teammates were able to feed her the ball in the paint, it was almost always an automatic basket.

Despite efforts from both Carrera and Brackens, the Rebels would not go away.

“It seemed when we would punch, they would punch back,” Miller said. “It’s a back-and-forth game.”

The fourth quarter was no different; intense basketball was being displayed from both sides as the atmosphere built up in Tempe. After two missed three throws by graduate student forward Shelbee Brown, the score sat at 53-53 with nine seconds left in the fourth quarter. After a misconstrued play by the Sun Devils, it was going to take a miracle; in fact, it was left up to a prayer by Washenitz, who picked up the ball with 1.0 second left on the game clock, and heaved a shot to win the game.

“I can only think the good Lord up above for that to be honest,” Washenitz said, “Because I really couldn’t tell you.”