TEMPE – The No. 18/19 Sun Devil women's basketball team jumped out to a 10-0 run in double overtime to hand No. 21/18 California its first loss of the season and kick off 2017 with a 72-62 victory on Sunday.
Seniors Sophie Brunner (game highs of 21 points and 12 rebounds) and Quinn Dornstauder (19 points, 10 rebounds) each posted double-doubles, helping ASU (10-3, 1-1 Pac-12) to a 44-28 advantage in points in the paint against a Golden Bear offense that entered the contest outscoring opponents by over 23 points per game in the category. Brunner, Dornstauder and fellow senior Kelsey Moos, who nearly had a double-double of her own with 11 points and eight rebounds, combined to grab 30 rebounds for the Sun Devils, who outrebounded Cal 51-36.
"I'm just so proud of our team and their toughness and grit," ASU head coach Charli Turner Thorne said. "Obviously, that's a very good team and I thought we stayed with things. I was very happy with a lot of things. I thought we had good poise. Our end of the game execution was really good.
"Our goal today was to get better and we felt if we got better, we would win. We were trying to keep things in perspective after (Friday's loss to Stanford). I was really proud of our mindset and the way we approached that game."
The Sun Devil defense stifled Cal (13-1, 1-1 Pac-12) for much of the game, limiting the potent Bear offense to a season-low 39.4 percent shooting from the floor. The Devils did an admirable job of holding Cal's Kristine Anigwe in check, getting the All-American into foul trouble early and limiting her to a season-low 10 points after entering the game ranked third nationally with over 25 points per game.
ASU held the Bears (80.8 ppg coming into Sunday's game) 18.8 points below their scoring average even with the extra 10 minutes of game time.
An opportunistic Sun Devil defense forced 20 Cal turnovers, capitalizing with a 28-11 scoring advantage in points off those turnovers and getting up the court quickly with a 10-0 advantage in fast break points.
Dornstauder got ASU off to a strong start against a Cal team that entered the contest as one of just four undefeated teams in the nation. The senior was 5-of-5 from the floor in the first quarter with 11 points as the Devils jumped to a 21-13 advantage after the first 10 minutes.
Cal would not go quietly, however, battling back from a season-high 11-point deficit to take its first lead of the game with 1:58 remaining in the third quarter on a Jaelyn Brown three-pointer.
It was a back-and-forth game for the remainder of regulation, featuring six lead changes down the stretch and four ties despite ASU leading the game for 41:35 minutes of the contest.
Dornstauder's layup with 7:41 left in regulation would give the Devils a 50-47 lead but Cal rallied again to tie the game at 55-55 with 2:56 remaining before both offenses hit a wall, going scoreless for the remainder of regulation to send things into the first overtime period of the day.
The teams exchanged baskets and free throws in the first overtime but Reili Richardson's shot at the buzzer fell short to send things into the second overtime, tied at 60.
From there, it was all ASU as Brunner knocked down a jumper on the team's opening possession and the Devils capitalized on back-to-back Golden Bear turnovers to take a 66-60 lead with 3:35 remaining. Dornstauder pulled down five defensive rebounds in the final frame of the game to help seal the win for the Devils.
After scoring a career-high 14 points against Stanford on Friday, Richardson came back with 10 more points on Sunday and tied for the game high with six assists.
The Sun Devils will head to Utah on Friday, Jan. 6 for their first Pac-12 road contest of the season, scheduled for 7 p.m. MT in Salt Lake City. The game can be seen on Pac-12 Networks and heard live on NBC Sports Radio AM 1060.
Seniors Sophie Brunner (game highs of 21 points and 12 rebounds) and Quinn Dornstauder (19 points, 10 rebounds) each posted double-doubles, helping ASU (10-3, 1-1 Pac-12) to a 44-28 advantage in points in the paint against a Golden Bear offense that entered the contest outscoring opponents by over 23 points per game in the category. Brunner, Dornstauder and fellow senior Kelsey Moos, who nearly had a double-double of her own with 11 points and eight rebounds, combined to grab 30 rebounds for the Sun Devils, who outrebounded Cal 51-36.
"I'm just so proud of our team and their toughness and grit," ASU head coach Charli Turner Thorne said. "Obviously, that's a very good team and I thought we stayed with things. I was very happy with a lot of things. I thought we had good poise. Our end of the game execution was really good.
"Our goal today was to get better and we felt if we got better, we would win. We were trying to keep things in perspective after (Friday's loss to Stanford). I was really proud of our mindset and the way we approached that game."
The Sun Devil defense stifled Cal (13-1, 1-1 Pac-12) for much of the game, limiting the potent Bear offense to a season-low 39.4 percent shooting from the floor. The Devils did an admirable job of holding Cal's Kristine Anigwe in check, getting the All-American into foul trouble early and limiting her to a season-low 10 points after entering the game ranked third nationally with over 25 points per game.
ASU held the Bears (80.8 ppg coming into Sunday's game) 18.8 points below their scoring average even with the extra 10 minutes of game time.
An opportunistic Sun Devil defense forced 20 Cal turnovers, capitalizing with a 28-11 scoring advantage in points off those turnovers and getting up the court quickly with a 10-0 advantage in fast break points.
Dornstauder got ASU off to a strong start against a Cal team that entered the contest as one of just four undefeated teams in the nation. The senior was 5-of-5 from the floor in the first quarter with 11 points as the Devils jumped to a 21-13 advantage after the first 10 minutes.
Cal would not go quietly, however, battling back from a season-high 11-point deficit to take its first lead of the game with 1:58 remaining in the third quarter on a Jaelyn Brown three-pointer.
It was a back-and-forth game for the remainder of regulation, featuring six lead changes down the stretch and four ties despite ASU leading the game for 41:35 minutes of the contest.
Dornstauder's layup with 7:41 left in regulation would give the Devils a 50-47 lead but Cal rallied again to tie the game at 55-55 with 2:56 remaining before both offenses hit a wall, going scoreless for the remainder of regulation to send things into the first overtime period of the day.
The teams exchanged baskets and free throws in the first overtime but Reili Richardson's shot at the buzzer fell short to send things into the second overtime, tied at 60.
From there, it was all ASU as Brunner knocked down a jumper on the team's opening possession and the Devils capitalized on back-to-back Golden Bear turnovers to take a 66-60 lead with 3:35 remaining. Dornstauder pulled down five defensive rebounds in the final frame of the game to help seal the win for the Devils.
After scoring a career-high 14 points against Stanford on Friday, Richardson came back with 10 more points on Sunday and tied for the game high with six assists.
The Sun Devils will head to Utah on Friday, Jan. 6 for their first Pac-12 road contest of the season, scheduled for 7 p.m. MT in Salt Lake City. The game can be seen on Pac-12 Networks and heard live on NBC Sports Radio AM 1060.