WHAT: No. 21/23 Arizona State (6-3) vs. Marquette (4-5)
WHEN: Saturday, December 19, 2015 at 3 p.m. MT
WHERE: Wells Fargo Arena, Tempe, Ariz., click here to purchase tickets.
LIVE STREAM: Saturday’s game vs. Marquette will be streamed live at http://pac-12.com/live/arizona-state-university
RADIO: Sun Devil WBB’s radio partner on the Sun Devil Sports Radio Network, presented by MidFirst, is NBC Sports Radio AM 1060. Jeff Munn is in his 12th season as the voice of ASU women’s basketball. He will be joined by former Sun Devil head coach Maura McHugh.
NATIVE AMERICAN DAY: Prior to the game, a Native American market in the Arboretum will feature traditional hand-crafted goods and food as well as inflatable fun for kids. Tickets for this event including access to the arboretum start at just $8 and can be purchased here.
MAROON MONSOON: Special for this game, the team will be wearing their road maroon jerseys. Fans are encouraged to show their support by wearing their favorite maroon Sun Devil attire.
UP NEXTThe Arizona State women’s basketball team (6-3) plays it final two games before the holiday break as it hosts Marquette (4-5) on Saturday (3 p.m. MT) and No. 10/11 Florida State (8-2) on Monday (3 p.m. MT).
The Sun Devils, who enter Saturday’s game on a three-game winning streak, are currently in the middle of a stretch in which they are playing four games in 10 days.
Since starting the season 1-2 – the two losses came by a combined six points to No. 8 Kentucky (68-64 in OT) and to No. 2 South Carolina (60-58) – the Sun Devils have now won five of their last six games. Much of ASU’s recent success can be attributed to what it has done on the defensive end as the Sun Devils have allowed an average of only 47.5 points in their last six games. In its most recent contest at Hartford (W, 60-29), ASU held Harvard to only six points in the first half, setting the school record for the fewest points ever allowed in a half. In addition to its excellent play on the defensive end, ASU has also limited its turnovers in its last six games (averaging only 13.5 per game) and has been efficient on the boards averaging a plus-7.8 advantage during its 5-1 stretch.
RADIO/LIVE STREAM
Sun Devil WBB’s radio partner on the Sun Devil Sports Radio Network, presented by MidFirst, is NBC Sports Radio AM 1060. Jeff Munn is in his 12th season as the voice of ASU women’s basketball. He will be joined by former Sun Devil head coach Maura McHugh.
The game will also be streamed live at http://pac-12.com/live/arizona-state-university.
NOTES FROM LAST GAME
• ASU capped off its road trip to the East Coast with a 60-29 win at Hartford on Dec. 14. The win was the 400th of head coach Charli Turner Thorne’s career (360 at Arizona State and 40 at Northern Arizona).
• ASU set the school record for fewest points allowed in a half (6).
• The Sun Devils allowed the Hawks to shoot only 24 percent for the game, including 13 percent in the first half when Hartford made only two field goals.
• All 11 Sun Devils that played scored in the win. Katie Hempen, who led ASU with 11 points, knocked down half of ASU’s six 3-point field goals and in the process moved into second place on ASU’s all-time list for most career 3-pointers (139). Hempen’s second triple of the night moved her past Jill Noe, (2003-08) who previously held the runner-up position with 137 makes from downtown.
• Kelsey Moos, who led ASU with 13 points and seven rebounds in ASU’s win at Syracuse, turned in another strong outing as she scored nine points and grabbed six rebounds. It was Moos’ second game back from injury after missing four straight.
• Elisha Davis added seven points and five assists while Quinn Dornstauder (game-high 10 rebounds), Arnecia Hawkins and Sabrina Haines contributed six points apiece for the Sun Devils, who have now won 14 of their last 15 games on the road going back to last season.
SERIES HISTORY
This will be the third all-time meeting between the ASU and Marquette. The two teams have split their previous two meetings with ASU winning the first encounter 119-72 in 1992 and Marquette coming away with the win in the most recent meeting, 69-50 in 1997. Both games were played in Tempe.
WHAT TO LOOK FOR
• ASU returns nine players, including four starters – senior guards Katie Hempen and Elisha Davis and junior posts Sophie Brunner and Kelsey Moos – from last year’s team that finished with 29 wins (second most in team history) and advanced to the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Tournament. Brunner (Pan American Games – silver medal) and Hempen (World University Games – gold medal) both earned medals in July while competing for USA Basketball. Also earning a medal was junior center Quinn Dornstauder (Canada), who brought back a silver medal from the World University Games.
• On Dec. 14, 2015, ASU head coach Charli Turner Thorne recorded her 400th career win following ASU’s 60-29 win at Hartford.
• ASU has played its last six games without starting forward Sophie Brunner (team leader in rebounds and second in scoring). Brunner was injured in the second half of ASU’s 60-58 loss vs. No. 2 South Carolina in Hawaii (Nov. 27). Brunner started every game last season and concluded the campaign as the team leader in rebounding (7.6 rpg - 8th in Pac-12), steals (1.8 spg - 9th in Pac-12), FG pct. (54.3 - 4th in Pac-12) and FTs made (87) & attempted (119), 2nd in scoring (11.9 ppg), 4th in FT pct. (73.1) and 5th in assists (1.2 apg).
• Also injured in the loss to South Carolina was starting junior forward Kelsey Moos, who missed four games. Moos returned for ASU’s contest at No. 19 Syracuse on Dec. 12 and led the team with 13 points and seven rebounds. Moos currently leads ASU in field goal percentage (48.3) and is second in rebounding (5.8 rpg).
• Two of ASU’s three losses – vs. current No. 8 Kentucky (68-64 in OT on Nov. 15) and vs. current No. 2 South Carolina (60-58 on Nov. 27 in Hawaii) – have come by a combined six points to two of the nation’s top eight teams.
• The Sun Devils have won 31 of their 36 home games going back to the 2013-14 season. Last season ASU was 16-2 at home and allowed an average of only 55.1 in those games while outscoring the opposition by an average of 12.2 ppg.
• ASU is 14-1 in its last 15 road games going back to last season.
• ASU is 28-5 in non-conference games the last three seasons.
• ASU has allowed 14 or fewer points in a quarter 22 times this season. The six points Hartford scored in the first half against ASU on Dec. 14 represented the fewest points ASU has ever allowed in a half.
• ASU has held the opposition to only 47.5 ppg in its last six games.
• After averaging 19.7 turnovers in its first three games, ASU has improved that figure to 13.5 in its last six games. Last season the Sun Devils set the school record for fewest turnover per game (14.3).
• Currently in second place on ASU’s all-time list for career 3-pointers (139), senior guard Katie Hempen (started 51 of 77 games at ASU/43 straight starts) needs 23 triples to pass Kylan Loney (161 - 2001-05) as ASU’s all-time leader. Hempen, who is third on the team in scoring (10.4 ppg), has connected on 46.3 percent of her 3-pointers this season (5th in the Pac-12).
• ASU’s leading scorer off the bench each of the last two seasons, junior center Quinn Dornstauder is currently leading the team in scoring (11.8 ppg). Dornstauder’s 21 points at SMU (Nov. 21) are the most scored by a Sun Devil this season.
• Senior guard Elisha Davis (started 48 of 108 career games/48 straight starts) has 40 assists and only 14 turnovers in ASU’s last seven games.
• Senior forward Eliza Normen, who redshirted due to injury as a freshman in 2011-12, returns for her fifth year. A veteran of 111 games, Normen started four games with injuries to starters Sophie Brunner and Kelsey Moos. Normen is currently second on the team in offensive rebounds (1.6 rpg).
• Senior guard Arnecia Hawkins, who has also been inserted into the starting lineup, has averaged 9.0 points and 4.3 rebounds in ASU’s last six games. Hawkins scored 12 points and grabbed a career-high 10 rebounds vs. VCU (Dec. 5).
• Freshman Sabrina Haines averaged 9.0 ppg shot 55 percent from the floor during a recent four-game stretch. Haines currently leads ASU’s freshmen in scoring, averaging 7.0 ppg.
PRESEASON NOTES
• ASU started the season ranked 15th in both the AP media poll and the USA Today Coaches’ poll.
• ASU was picked to finish third in the Pac-12 by the league’s coaches (1. Oregon State 2. Stanford 3. ASU) and second by the media who cover the league (1. Oregon State 2. ASU). Junior forward Sophie Brunner was selected to the media’s preseason All-Pac-12 team.
CHALLENGING NON-CONFERENCE SCHEDULE AWAITS 2015-16 SUN DEVILS
The Arizona State University women’s basketball team picked up right where it left off last March – competing against the nation’s best teams. Five schools that qualified for last year’s NCAA Tournament are included on the Sun Devils’ 2015-16 non-conference schedule.
“Our program has set a standard over the years of playing a challenging non-conference schedule that not only gets us prepared for Pac-12 play, but also gives our fans the opportunity to see the kind of top-level, non-conference matchups that often occur in the month of March,” said Turner Thorne, who will be entering her 19th season. “In one year we have gone from a being young team to a veteran squad that features great experience and a lot of core returners and so I think this will be the perfect schedule for them.”
The Sun Devils have gone a combined 28-5 in regular season, non-conference games since the start of the 2013-14 season.
Here are highlights and notes about the Sun Devils’ non-conference slate…
• ASU opened its 2015-16 season against Kentucky and dropped a 68-64 decision in overtime. The Wildcats, who are currently No. 8 in the nation, entered this season having qualified for each of the last six NCAA Tournaments, including a trio of Elite Eight appearances. The game was the first ever meeting between the two teams.
• The Sun Devils spent Thanksgiving weekend in Hawaii where they played three games. ASU opened the tournament against 2015 Final Four participant and current No. 2 South Carolina, who went 34-3 last season. The Sun Devils came one win short of meeting South Carolina last season. A victory over Florida State in the Sweet 16 would have propelled ASU into an Elite Eight matchup against the Gamecocks in the Greensboro Regional final. Last month Sun Devils came within a possession of upsetting the Gamecocks, falling 60-58 (Nov. 27) as South Carolina hit two free throws with six-tenths of second remaining to claim the win. The Sun Devils played the last 11-plus minutes of the contest vs. South Carolina without starting forward Kelsey Moos and the last 4:27 without starting forward Sophie Brunner. Both players were injured in the second half.
• Speaking of Florida State, the Sun Devils and Seminoles will have a rematch of last season’s Sweet 16 game when they meet in Tempe on Monday. The contest between the two teams last March, won by Florida State 66-65, provided fans with one of the NCAA Tournament’s most exciting games as the Sun Devils nearly overcame a six-point deficit in the final two minutes. The Seminoles would finish the season 32-5 after coming up short against South Carolina in the ensuing Elite Eight contest. ASU’s contest against Florida State will be preceded by Saturday’s home game vs. Marquette.
• The Sun Devils are coming off a two-game East Coast road swing that started with a on Dec. 12 with a 61-54 win at No. 19 Syracuse. It’s the second time in three seasons that the Sun Devils and Orange battled on the hardwood. In 2013 the Sun Devils came away with a 63-60 win at home in a game that was not decided until the final seconds. Syracuse made its third consecutive NCAA Tournament appearance last season where it advanced to the second round and finished with a record of 22-10. The Sun Devils will concluded the road trip with a 60-29 win at Hartford on Dec.14.
• ASU will close out the non-conference portion of its schedule when it hosts CSUN on Mon., Dec. 28. The Matadors finished 23-10 last season and advanced to the NCAA Tournament for the second consecutive year.
• ASU was on the road for four of its five games in November, however five of its seven games this month are at home, including its last three before Pac-12 play begins.
2014-15 RECAP
• ASU made its 13th all-time appearance in the NCAA Tournament (its 10th under head coach Charli Turner Thorne) and earned a No. 3 seed in the Greensboro Regional (tied highest NCAA seed in school history)... ASU got off to its best start (18-1) and conference start (7-0) in school history. In addition, ASU reached 20 wins faster than any team in program history (22 games)... ASU’s 14-game winning streak (started on Nov. 30 and ended on Jan. 25) was its second longest in school history. Only the 2008-09 team won more games in succession (15)… Tied the 2006-07 squad for the best road record in school history (10-1)… ASU’s two wins over Stanford during the regular season represented the first time a conference school swept Stanford during the regular season since 1988... Finished among the nation’s Top 30 teams in 3-Point Field Goal Percentage Defense (4th/25.4), Scoring Defense (21st/55.9 ppg), 3-Point Field Goal Percentage (22nd/36.1), Field Goal Percentage (27th/44.0) and Scoring Margin (27th/+11.0... Set the school record for fewest turnovers per game (14.3). Eclipsed the previous record (16.4 by the 2011-12 team) by more than two turnovers per game... Gave up nearly 10 fewer points per game (9.8) in 2014-15 (55.9) compared to the 2013-14 team (65.7).
CHARLI TURNER THORNE HAS SUN DEVIL WBB AMONG NATION’S ELITE
Arizona State head women’s basketball coach Charli Turner Thorne was named one of 10 semifinalists for the Naismith Women’s College Coach of the Year in 2015 for a season in which she led the Sun Devils to their best start in school history (18-1), their best conference start in school history (7-0), a second-place finish in the Pac-12 and 29 wins, the second-highest number of wins in school history.
The all-time winningest coach in program history and No. 2 in the Pac-12 in career wins (360), Turner Thorne has turned Sun Devil women’s basketball into one of the nation’s premiere programs since taking over in 1996-97. Included in ASU’s earlier run of 13 consecutive postseason appearances (2000-12) were a school record five-consecutive NCAA Tournament bids from 2005-09. During that time the Sun Devils qualified for the Elite Eight on a pair of occasions, making ASU one of only 15 programs in the country to have qualified for the Elite Eight at least two times between 2007-12.
In 2013-14, Turner Thorne helped the Sun Devils post one of the best turnarounds in the country as they went from a 13-18 record and a ninth-place Pac-12 finish (5-13) the previous season to a 23-10 record and fourth-place Pac-12 finish (11-7). Included among ASU’s 23 wins in 2013-14 were three triumphs over Top 25 teams.
On Jan. 25, 2013, Turner Thorne became the third Pac-12 coach to reach 300 victories following ASU’s 60-53 win over USC, a game in which ASU came back from 16 down in the second half. On December 14, 2015, Turner Thorne added another milestone as she won her 400th career game (360 at ASU and 40 at Northern Arizona).
A closer look at Turner Thorne’s path to 300 puts into perspective the incredible 180-degree turnaround Sun Devil women’s basketball has undergone since she came to ASU. To reach 150 wins it took Turner Thorne 272 games (150-122 - .551) as she rebuilt a program that had an aggregate record of 20-60 in the three years prior to her arrival and only two NCAA Tournament wins in its history. It would take her 215 games to get 150 more wins. Since picking up her 150th win at ASU, Turner Thorne is 210-94 (.690).
Last season, Turner Thorne led the Sun Devils to the NCAA Tournament for the 10th time in her ASU tenure.
SUN DEVIL WBB EARNS NO. 7 RANKING IN WBCA ACADEMIC TOP 25
The Arizona State University women’s basketball team was among the top 10 women’s basketball programs in the classroom in 2014-15. The Sun Devil women’s basketball team’s combined team GPA of 3.558 was No. 7 among NCAA Division I institutions, according to the Women’s Basketball Coaches Association’s (WBCA) 2015 Academic Team Honor Rolls, announced this past July. ASU was one of only seven schools among the WBCA’s Top 25 that also participated in the 2015 NCAA Tournament. On the court, the Sun Devils recorded the best finish of schools appearing in the WBCA’s Top 25 after advancing to the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Tournament. Since the 1996-97 season (Charli Turner Thorne’s first season at ASU) ASU leads the Pac-12 in the number of first-team All-Academic conference awards (17) and the combined number of first- and second-team All-Academic conference awards (37).
SUN DEVIL WBB SIGNS TOP 10 CLASS FOR NEXT SEASON
On Nov. 11 Arizona State University head women’s basketball coach Charli Turner Thorne announced the signing of five student-athletes – Sydney Goodson, Reili Richardson, Jamie Ruden, Kiara Russell and Robbi Ryan – whose outstanding ability, talent and potential for immediate impact have the signing class ranked among the top 10 in the country by espnW HoopGurlz.
Goodson, a 5-8 guard, will be joining the Sun Devils from Liberty Christian School in Argyle, Texas, where she has already led her team to a pair of TAPPS Class 5A state title game appearances. After a runner-up finish in 2013, the Lady Warriors came away with the title in 2015 as Goodson averaged 12.5 points, 3.4 assists and 2.5 steals on her way to earning First-Team All-State honors and being named the District’s Offensive Player of the Year.
Richardson will be coming to ASU from Brea Olinda High School in Brea, California. The 5-9 guard averaged 17.4 points as a junior while earning numerous awards, including MaxPreps 2014-15 California All-State Division 3 Second-Team recognition, Southern Section All-Open Division Team and Orange County Register All-County First-Team honors.
A 6-1 post, who has incredible versatility, Ruden has averaged 20 or more points each of the last three seasons for John Marshall High School (Rochester, Minnesota). Ruden is coming off a junior campaign in which she earned AP First-Team All-State and Minnesota Girls Basketball Coaches Association Class 4A All-State recognition after averaging 23 points, eight rebounds and two assists per game in leading John Marshall to a 27-2 record and a state runner-up finish.
Also coming to ASU from the North Star State is Russell, a 5-8 guard out of Osseo High School in Osseo, Minnesota. Like Ruden, Russell also earned 2015 Minnesota Girls Basketball Coaches Association Class 4A All-State honors after a spectacular junior campaign in which she averaged 23.3 points, 3.7 rebounds, 2.9 assists and 3.8 steals.
A 5-9 guard, Ryan enters the 2015-16 season as the reigning Gatorade Player of the Year in the state of Wyoming, where she has enjoyed a prolific career at Sheridan High School (Sheridan, Wyoming). Named to the All-State team in each of her first three seasons, Ryan has twice been invited to the U17 Olympic trials for women’s basketball and has also competed in the Chicago Nike National Invitation Tournament.