TEMPE, Ariz. – Sophie Brunner had 19 points, seven rebounds and four assists, but the No. 15 Sun Devil women’s basketball team dropped its season opener, falling to No. 18 Kentucky 68-64 in overtime on Sunday.
Katie Hempen finished with 11 points, five rebounds and five assists, and Quinn Dornstauder added eight points and three blocks for ASU (0-1).
The Sun Devils took a 54-48 lead with 1:59 left in the fourth quarter after Brunner found a cutting Kelsey Moos for a reverse layup. Kentucky countered with a 6-0 run, and tied the game after Evelyn Akhator stole the inbounds pass after a basket by Makayla Epps and found a wide-open Taylor Murray for a layup with 40.7 seconds left in regulation.
Katie Hempen drained a tough jumper to give ASU a 56-54 lead with 22 seconds left to play, but Epps hit two free throws with seven seconds remaining to force overtime.
Back-to-back three-pointers from Brunner and Hempen put ASU ahead 62-58 with 3:07 left in overtime, but the Wildcats closed the game on a 10-2 run to secure their second victory of the season.
Epps led Kentucky with 20 points, including eight in overtime, while Janee Thompson added 11 points and four assists for the Wildcats.
The Sun Devils held Kentucky to 6-28 (21.4 percent) shooting in the opening half and went into halftime with a 29-17 lead after closing the first half on a 22-6 run.
A Peace Amukamara jumper with 5:01 left in the third quarter pushed the Sun Devils’ lead to 37-25, but Kentucky countered with a 13-2 run to cut ASU’s lead to a single point, 39-38, heading into the fourth quarter.
Brunner not only hit her first career 3-pointer on Sunday, but all three of her attempts from behind the arc.
Up next for ASU is a road trip to Dallas, Texas, for a matchup against the SMU Mustangs on Saturday (1 p.m. CT/noon MT). The game can be heard live on NBC Sports Radio AM 1060.