CORVALLIS, Ore. – On Friday night the eighth-ranked Arizona State women’s basketball team used a brilliant third quarter to turn the tide at Oregon and tie the program record for consecutive wins following its 63-58 win over the Ducks. Three nights later the same quarter would prove to be the beginning of the end of the Sun Devils’ remarkable 15-game winning streak as ninth-ranked Oregon State used a 15-2 flurry to start the snowball rolling in its eventual 67-44 win.
With their first loss since a 57-48 setback to VCU on December 5, the Sun Devils (18-4, 9-1 Pac-12) dropped into a first-place tie with with Beavers (18-3, 9-1 Pac-12), who won their eighth straight game in the only meeting of the regular season between the two teams.
Sophie Brunner knocked down six of the eight shots she attempted and had 13 points to lead the Sun Devils.
The Beavers were led by the trio of Jamie Weisner (25 points, 9-10 FGs), Sydney Wiese (14 points, 5-9 FGs) and Ruth Hamblin (12 points, 5-7 FGs), who combined for 51 points while collectively shooting 73 percent (19/26).
Monday’s game figured to be a defensive struggle as both the Sun Devils (10th/51.9 ppg) and the Beavers (fourth/50.8 ppg) came into the contest among the nation’s top 10 in scoring defense. Early on it was ASU that had the early momentum after it scored the first six points of the game. The Beavers would counter with the long ball on their next two possessions and would eventually knot the game at 10-10 after a layup by Weisner with 4:37 remaining.
A back-and-forth affair would ensue over the next several minutes with neither team able to gain more than three points separation. Midway through the second quarter the Beavers strung together a 7-0 run that enabled them to match ASU’s earlier six-point lead, 25-19.
ASU would bounce back with a 6-1 burst – a jumper from Brunner and two free throws and a basket by Arnecia Hawkins – to get back within one, 26-25. The Beavers would follow with consecutive baskets to go in front by five points, but Quinn Dornstauder, who had six of her eight points in the first half, would come back with two free throws and Sabrina Haines would follow with a jumper to once again get ASU back within a point, 30-29. Weisner would hit one-of-two free throws with 18 seconds left to give OSU a 31-29 halftime advantage.
After 20 minutes the two teams were nearly right back where they had started the game. OSU shot 60 percent in the first half while ASU connected on 44 percent of its shots, but the Sun Devils were able to score 13 points off the 11 first-half turnovers they had forced.
Seven seconds into the third quarter Weisner knocked down a triple and ignited a 15-2 run for the Beavers that proved to be a game-changer.
Elisha Davis’ layup with 3:04 left ended the Beavers’ run of 10 straight points. Brunner would add a layup and for a moment it seemed the Devils might begin a rally of their own. ASU would end up holding the Beavers scoreless for a period of 3:42. With a chance to cut OSU’s lead to single digits the Sun Devils would come up empty on consecutive possessions. Any momentum ASU hoped to carry into the fourth quarter was thwarted when OSU’s Katie McWilliams connected from long range to give the Beavers a 14-point lead going into the fourth quarter.
The snowball continued rolling downhill on the Sun Devils in the final frame as their cold spell from the floor (5-28/18 percent in the second half) continued while the Beavers (13-23/57 percent in the second half) remained hot.
In addition to their remarkable accuracy to put the ball in the basket on Monday, the Beavers also held a 34-23 advantage on the boards.
ASU’s 15-game winning streak tied the 2008-09 team for the longest winning streak in program history. It represented the third time in as many seasons that ASU has had a winning streak of 10 or more games after winning 10 in a row in 2013-14 and 14 straight last season. Monday’s loss also represented only the second setback for the Sun Devils in their last 19 road games going back to last season (17-2).
The Sun Devils return to action on Friday (6 p.m. MT) when they host No. 14 UCLA at Wells Fargo Arena. Click here to purchase tickets.