TEMPE, Ariz. – Kianna Ibis scored 17 of her game-high 24 points in the second half to help lead the Arizona State women's basketball team to a 73-59 win over Colorado on Sunday.
Courtney Ekmark (6-11 FGs) added 16 points and four assists for the Sun Devils (14-6, 5-3 Pac-12), who snapped a three-game losing streak.
Reili Richardson (nine points), Kiara Russell (eight points) and Jamie Ruden (eight points) combined for 25 points while Robbi Ryan (career-high eight assists) and Charnea Johnson-Chapman (tied career-high with 12 rebounds) both came through with major contributions in the win.
"Obviously we didn't play very well, but it's just nice to get back on the winning track," ASU head coach Charli Turner Thorne said. "The thing that I loved about this game for our team was they had that look in their eyes… I knew that they kind of got their toughness back. I thought we rebounded well and had a good team win. We just got to get back to being a little more efficient on offense. Defensively we definitely didn't key on players like we wanted to."
After making only 35 percent of their shots in the first half, the Sun Devils came back to shoot 61 percent over the final 20 minutes.
After trailing by 12 early in the fourth quarter, the Buffaloes (11-8, 2-6) would get within six after Alexis Robinson's layup with 5:56 remaining.
Ibis would respond with four straight points to once again put the Sun Devils up by double digits, 60-50.
The Sun Devils would put the game out of reach later in the quarter after Ibis (jumper), Ekmark (layup) and Richardson (free throw) combined to score five straight points to give ASU a 67-52 lead with 1:12 remaining.
Ibis's seven points (3-4 FGs) in the first quarter helped the Sun Devils get out to a 20-9 lead after the first 10 minutes.
Ruden, who had six points the second quarter, helped extend ASU's lead to 14 after her layup put the Sun Devils up 24-10 with 5:55 remaining in the first half.
The Buffaloes would respond by outscoring ASU 16-9 to get within seven at the half, 33-26.
Kennedy Leonard scored 14 of her team-high 23 points in the second half to help the Buffaloes stay within striking distance. Leonard personally accounted for Colorado's last six points of the third quarter to help the Buffaloes get within six points after they trailed by 15 earlier in the frame.
The Sun Devils go on the road next week to face Stanford (Friday at 7 p.m. PT/8 p.m. MT) and Cal (Sunday at 3 p.m. PT/4 p.m. MT). Both games will be shown on Pac-12 Arizona/Bay Area.
Courtney Ekmark (6-11 FGs) added 16 points and four assists for the Sun Devils (14-6, 5-3 Pac-12), who snapped a three-game losing streak.
Reili Richardson (nine points), Kiara Russell (eight points) and Jamie Ruden (eight points) combined for 25 points while Robbi Ryan (career-high eight assists) and Charnea Johnson-Chapman (tied career-high with 12 rebounds) both came through with major contributions in the win.
"Obviously we didn't play very well, but it's just nice to get back on the winning track," ASU head coach Charli Turner Thorne said. "The thing that I loved about this game for our team was they had that look in their eyes… I knew that they kind of got their toughness back. I thought we rebounded well and had a good team win. We just got to get back to being a little more efficient on offense. Defensively we definitely didn't key on players like we wanted to."
After making only 35 percent of their shots in the first half, the Sun Devils came back to shoot 61 percent over the final 20 minutes.
After trailing by 12 early in the fourth quarter, the Buffaloes (11-8, 2-6) would get within six after Alexis Robinson's layup with 5:56 remaining.
Ibis would respond with four straight points to once again put the Sun Devils up by double digits, 60-50.
The Sun Devils would put the game out of reach later in the quarter after Ibis (jumper), Ekmark (layup) and Richardson (free throw) combined to score five straight points to give ASU a 67-52 lead with 1:12 remaining.
Ibis's seven points (3-4 FGs) in the first quarter helped the Sun Devils get out to a 20-9 lead after the first 10 minutes.
Ruden, who had six points the second quarter, helped extend ASU's lead to 14 after her layup put the Sun Devils up 24-10 with 5:55 remaining in the first half.
The Buffaloes would respond by outscoring ASU 16-9 to get within seven at the half, 33-26.
Kennedy Leonard scored 14 of her team-high 23 points in the second half to help the Buffaloes stay within striking distance. Leonard personally accounted for Colorado's last six points of the third quarter to help the Buffaloes get within six points after they trailed by 15 earlier in the frame.
The Sun Devils go on the road next week to face Stanford (Friday at 7 p.m. PT/8 p.m. MT) and Cal (Sunday at 3 p.m. PT/4 p.m. MT). Both games will be shown on Pac-12 Arizona/Bay Area.