Jan. 3, 2008
EUGENE, Ore. - Lauren Lacey scored 14 of her career-best 23 points in the second half as the No. 24 Arizona State women's basketball team won its third consecutive game, defeating Oregon 63-50 on Thursday night.
Lacey was one of four Sun Devils who scored in double figures as sophomore guard Dymond Simon (11 points) and senior guard Jill Noe and junior guard Briann January (10 points each) also scored in double-digits. The Sun Devils outrebounded the Ducks 35-33 and also possessed a plus-nine advantage in forcing turnovers (26-17).
The game's deciding sequence came following a basket by Oregon sophomore guard Taylor Lilley brought the Ducks (7-6, 1-1 Pac-10) to within two points (48-46) with 5:29 remaining. On ASU's ensuing possession Simon scored on a layup, igniting a 13-0 ASU run which gave the Sun Devils a commanding 61-48 lead with 1:02 remaining. Following Simon's basket, Lacey would take over scoring the next six and nine of the next 11 points to clinch the win for ASU.
With their third Pac-10 win in as many games the Sun Devils (9-5, 3-0 Pac-10) tied their best ever start in conference play which was previously accomplished by the 2005-06 squad.
After falling behind by six points early in the game, the Sun Devils used a 14-2 run to take a 21-13 lead with just under nine minutes remaining in the first half. Simon sparked the run by scoring five straight points. The Ducks would score nine of the next 11 points to get within one point at 23-22. It took the Sun Devils just under two minutes to claim their largest lead of the half as they scored the next eight points to take a 31-22 lead with 3:03 left. With a chance to take control of the game the Sun Devils' offense stalled as they were outscored 6-0 over the last 2:44 of the first half. Lacey led ASU with nine points in the first 20 minutes while January added eight.
Both teams came out sluggish offensively in the second half as they combined for seven points (ASU 4, Oregon 3) in the first 5:20 of the half. The Ducks would then seize the advantage with a 5-0 run to take their first lead of the half (37-36). The two teams would exchange the lead over the next 3:30 before arriving at a 41-41 tie with just over 10 minutes remaining.
The Sun Devils return to action on Saturday (8 p.m. MT) when they take on Oregon State.