Sun Devil defense falters against Washington State

(Photo via Marina Williams/WCSN)

TEMPE — Washington State gave Sun Devil women’s basketball an emphatic send-off in the pair’s final regular season matchup as members of the Pac-12 conference, as the Cougars handily defeated Arizona State in its home arena. Both teams were adorned in special pink uniforms for Sunday’s contest for ASU’s annual Pink for Breast Cancer Awareness game, as well as to celebrate National Girls & Women in Sports Day.

Despite forcing double overtime against Washington on Friday to get the win, Arizona State (11-15, 3-11 Pac-12) fell short in Sunday’s contest, 73-46. The Cougars (16-11, 5-9 Pac-12) played tough defense all game, limiting the Sun Devils to just 30% from the field and 1-of-11 from three-point range. Washington State also turned in 10 3-pointers of its own at a staggering 48% clip.

Three of those deep shots occurred during the final period, where the Cougars outscored the Sun Devils in a lopsided 27-7 quarter. Washington State also hit 12 of its 13 free throws in the fourth, coming off of nine Sun Devil fouls, and shot 46% on field goals. All of this scoring, coupled with a defense that held ASU to no field goals in the final three minutes allowed the Cougars to head back to Pullman with the win.

“Our defensive effort today, from the tip to the final buzzer, I just thought our defensive effort was not us, was not what you just saw Friday,” ASU head coach Natasha Adair said. “Everything that we do starts on the defensive end.”

The Sun Devils seemed to be a step behind the Cougars on Sunday, and it showed. Apart from the 48% three-point percentage allowed, ASU also committed 17 personal fouls and 11 turnovers, putting the Devils further in the hole.

On offense, sophomore guard Trayanna Crisp led the team with 14 points on 6-of-15 from the field and two-of-three from the free throw line. She also collected four rebounds. This follows Friday night’s showing from Crisp, where she scored a career-high 23 points against Washington in that double-overtime thriller.

Additionally, the leading scorer for the Sun Devils, sophomore guard Jalyn Brown, was held to just 10 points on Sunday, also adding a team-high seven rebounds. Brown has now scored in double figures 19 times in her last 20 games, but her relative offensive absence on Sunday was clearly felt. Entering play, Brown was second in the Pac-12 in points per game during conference play, averaging 21.2.

With both of Arizona State’s leading scorers having quieter games on the offensive end, it was hard for the Sun Devils to overcome their defensive deficiencies. Beyond Crisp and Brown, no other Sun Devil scored in double figures, a tough break for a team that needed all the points it could get.

With the loss, Arizona State drops to 11-15 on the season, including 3-11 in conference play. Washington State moves to 16-11 and 5-9 in the Pac-12, bolstering their seeding in the Pac-12 tournament. The Sun Devils will take their final Pac-12 road trip to face future ACC Conference schools Stanford and Cal before returning home to host USC and UCLA for the last games of the year.