Arizona State University Athletics

WHAT:  Sun Devil WBB (0-0) vs. UTSA (1-0)
WHEN: Sunday at 2 p.m. MT • Click here to purchase tickets
WHERE: Wells Fargo Arena • Tempe, Ariz.
LIVE STREAM: http://pac-12.com/live/arizona-state-university
LIVE AUDIO: Sun Devil Athletics TuneIn Channel
 
UP NEXT
The Arizona State women's basketball team opens its 2017-18 season on Sunday (2 p.m. MT) when it hosts UTSA at Wells Fargo Arena.

ASU will not be easing its way into the season but rather will hit the ground running, as it will play seven games during a 14-day stretch this month. The seven games ASU will play equals the highest number of games the Sun Devils have ever played in the month of November. The 2013-14 team also had seven games the first month of the season but played them over the span of 22 days (eight fewer days than this year's team).

This year's Sun Devil squad returns three players who started at least 10 games last season: junior guard Sabrina Haines (32 starts) and sophomore guards Reili Richardson (25) and Robbi Ryan (12). Sophomore guard Kiara Russell also started nine games.

While the Sun Devils have a good amount of experience on the perimeter, they will have to replace four members of the frontcourt who graduated last year: forward Sophie Brunner, guard/forward Kelsey Moos and centers Quinn Dornstauder and Sara Hattis. Brunner, Moos and Dornstauder were all significant contributors throughout their four years at ASU. Last season the trio accounted for 42 percent of ASU's points and 45 percent of its rebounds.

The Sun Devils have several capable candidates who will look to fill the shoes of what they lost to graduation. Among them are returning players junior forward Kianna Ibis (returns as ASU's active career leader in rebounds an shot blocks), junior center Charnea Johnson-Chapman (has played in 54 contests the last two seasons) and sophomore forward Jamie Ruden (brilliant shooter who missed all 18 games of conference play last season due to a foot injury).

The Sun Devils will have four new faces on the floor: junior guard/forward Courtney Ekmark, junior forward Sophia Elenga, freshman center Eva Rubin and freshman guard/forward Bre'yanna Sanders.

Named the State of Arizona's Gatorade Player of the Year in 2013, Ekmark, a Valley native who helped lead St. Mary's to an 87-3 record and three straight state titles, played her first two seasons at UConn where she was a member of two national championship teams. She transferred to ASU in June 2016 and sat out last season due to NCAA transfer rules.

Elenga transferred to ASU from Cochise College (Douglas, Ariz.) where she earned Arizona Community College Athletic Conference (ACCAC) First-Team honors and First-Team All-Region I (Div. I) recognition in 2016 and 2017. She helped lead the Apaches to their best record in program history (28-4) in 2017 as they captured their first Region 1 Division 1 championship in more than 30 years.

Rubin comes to ASU from Homewood-Flossmoor High School in Illinois where she just missed averaging a double-double as a senior (11 points, nine rebounds, four blocks). Sanders, who accounted for 1,258 career points and nearly 1,000 rebounds in her career, was named the Fresno Bee Co-Player of the Year in 2017 after helping lead her Clovis West squad to a 34-2 record and the CIF State Open Division title.
 
LIVE STREAM/LIVE AUDIO
Sunday's game vs. UTSA will be streamed at http://pac-12.com/live/arizona-state-university. The game can also be heard on the Sun Devil Athletics Tune-In Channel. Pre-game coverage begins at 1:30 p.m. Veteran broadcaster and the state of Arizona's 2010 Broadcaster of the Year Jeff Munn is in his 14th season as the voice of ASU women's basketball. He will be joined by former Sun Devil head coach Maura McHugh.
 
SALUTE TO SERVICE
ASU is honoring veterans and active military members with 12 days of Salute to Service events scheduled across its metro Phoenix campuses from Nov. 1 to Nov. 12, built around Veterans Day, which was observed on Nov. 10. This year, on the 50th anniversary of the Vietnam War, ASU is honoring a generation of men and women who served, and all others who have worn or are still wearing the nation's service uniforms. Tempe Vice Mayor Robin Arredondo-Savage, a graduate of ASU and U.S. Army Veteran, will serve as ASU's guest coach on Sunday.
 
SERIES NOTES VS. UTSA
ASU has won all three of its previous games vs. UTSA. This will be the first meeting between the two schools since 2005.
 
SEASON OPENERS
The Sun Devils have been victorious in 16 of their last 19 season openers, most recently a 74-40 win over Illinois State last season in Tempe. ASU's only blemishes in that stretch were a 75-60 setback at North Carolina in the 2007 State Farm Tip-Off Classic, a 61-49 decision at home against Texas Tech in 2013 and a 68-64 overtime loss to Kentucky in 2015.
 
2016-17 RECAP
The Sun Devils finished the 2016-17 season 20-13 and 9-9 in the Pac-12 (5th place). ASU made its fourth consecutive and 15th overall appearance in the NCAA Tournament (12th under the direction of head coach Charli Turner Thorne).

A No. 8 seed in the NCAA Tournament, the Sun Devils dominated Michigan State to come away with a win in the first round, the 400th victory at ASU for head coach Charli Turner Thorne. In the second round the Sun Devils gave eventual national champion South Carolina its toughest game of the tournament. Playing in front of more than 8,000 fans on South Carolina's home court, ASU led the Gamecocks by as many as 11 points in the third quarter and entered the final minute of regulation with a one-point lead before falling 71-68.
 
ASU PACES THE PAC-12 IN NON-CONFERENCE WINS SINCE 2013
Last year's win over Holy Cross was ASU's 40th regular-season, non-conference win since 2013. Going back to the 1986-87 season – the first season of Pac-10/Pac-12 play – ASU's 40 regular-season, non-conference wins are by far the most in a four-season stretch in program history (the next highest total is 33 games done three times: 2003-06/2004-07/2005-08). In addition, ASU's 40 wins leading up to the start of the conference season are more than any other team in the Pac-12 since 2013.
 
2017 NON-CONFERENCE SCHEDULE NOTES
Contests vs. NCAA finalist Mississippi State, NCAA regional finalist Florida State and NCAA Tournament participant Green Bay highlight the Arizona State women's basketball team's 2017 non-conference schedule.

The Sun Devils will play 12 non-conference games, including four contests against teams that qualified for postseason play last March. In addition to the aforementioned NCAA Tournament teams, ASU will also face 2017 Women's Basketball Invitational semifinalist Idaho in what will be the first ever meeting between the two schools. The Sun Devils could face a fifth opponent that was involved in postseason play if they end up taking on 2017 WNIT participant UNLV on the second day of the annual ASU Classic.

SUN DEVIL WBB'S REILI RICHARDSON EARNS SILVER MEDAL AT FIBA U19 WORLD CUP
Sophomore guard Reili Richardson became the fourth Sun Devil women's basketball player to earn a medal since 2015 as the USA Women's U19 World Cup Team claimed silver at the 2017 FIBA U19 World Cup in Udine, Italy.

Richardson became the most recent Sun Devil to earn a medal in international competition as former Sun Devils Katie Hempen (gold/USA/World University Games), Quinn Dornstauder (silver/Canada/World University Games) and Sophie Brunner (silver/USA/Pan American Games) claimed medals in 2015.

Richardson averaged 10.8 minutes per game and was a steady contributor in helping the USA to wins in each of its first six games at the FIBA World Cup.

Richardson, a 5-11 guard, is coming off an outstanding freshman campaign in which she set ASU's single-season freshman record for assists (126). A Pac-12 All-Freshman honorable mention honoree, Richardson played in every game (25 starts) last season and led the team in assists (3.8 apg/12th in the Pac-12) and tied for the team lead in free throws made (79), was second in 3-pointers (20) and free throw percentage (82.3/12th in the Pac-12) and third in scoring (8.4 ppg) and steals (1.1 spg). She also finished fifth in the Pac-12 in assist-to-turnover ratio. Richardson, whose 277 points ranked seventh in program history for most points scored by a freshman, scored in double figures 13 times, including a career-high 16 points at eventual national champion South Carolina in the second round of the NCAA Tournament, a game the Sun Devils led going into the final minute.

FORMER VALLEY STANDOUT/UCONN TRANSFER/FIRST-YEAR LAW SCHOOL STUDENT COURTNEY EKMARK MAKES HER SUN DEVIL DEBUT ON SUNDAY  
In June 2016 Charli Turner Thorne announced that former UConn guard Courtney Ekmark would be transferring into the Sun Devil women's basketball program. Ekmark, who completed her sophomore season for the Huskies in 2015-16, sat out the 2016-17 season per NCAA transfer rules. She has two years of eligibility remaining.

Ekmark, who earned her degree in Liberal Studies (May 2017) in only three years, is currently a first-year law student in ASU's Sandra Day O'Connor College of Law.

"I've know Courtney since she was nine years old and it is so exciting to welcome her home. She was one of the greatest high school players ever to come out of the state of Arizona and we are ecstatic beyond words that she is joining our program," Turner Thorne said when the news of Ekmark's transfer was announced. "Courtney is a player who can do it all and she will have an incredible impact in every part of the game. For those that don't know Courtney, her competitive spirit and work ethic are simply in the 99th percentile among college basketball players. Complementing her exceptional talent and toughness is Courtney's giving and passionate nature that will fit perfectly into our culture. She comes from an amazing family that we are very grateful is now part of our Sun Devil family."

Ekmark will be returning to the Valley where she helped lead St. Mary's High School to an 87-3 record (included a 49-game winning streak), three straight Division I State Titles, a No. 1 ranking in the USA Today Super 25 in 2012 and a No. 2 ranking in 2013. Ekmark was named the state of Arizona's Gatorade Player of the Year following a junior season in which she averaged 19.6 points, 5.0 rebounds and 4.0 steals. In the 2013 state tournament, she averaged 21.5 points in helping lead the Knights to the title. In the 49-37 championship game win over Pinnacle, Ekmark had a game-high 14 points, becoming the first Arizona player to be the top scorer in three consecutive championship games. In addition to her outstanding play on the hardwood, Ekmark also excelled on the tennis court for St. Mary's, earning the top singles spot on the team.

As a member of UConn's two most recent NCAA championship teams (2015 and 2016), Ekmark played in 61 games, including 10 of the Huskies' 12 NCAA Tournament games. She averaged 9.3 minutes per game during those two seasons and connected on 38 percent of her field goal attempts.
 
SUN DEVIL WBB EARNS NO. 5 RANKING IN WBCA ACADEMIC TOP 25  
For the second time in three years the Arizona State women's basketball program finished among the nation's best in combined team GPA. With a final team GPA of 3.672 for the 2016-17 academic year the Sun Devils finished fifth in the nation (the highest ranking in program history) among Division I institutions in the WBCA's annual Academic Top 25.

 The WBCA Academic Top 25 recognizes NCAA Division I, II and III; NAIA and junior/community college women's basketball teams across the nation that carry the highest combined GPAs inclusive of all student-athletes on their rosters for the entire season. The 2016-17 season is the 22nd in which the WBCA has compiled the honor rolls.

 ASU's No. 5 finish in this year's rankings represents the second time in three seasons the Sun Devils have been among the top 10 programs in the country after placing seventh (3.558) for the 2014-15 academic year. In 2016-17 ASU was one of only eight teams around the country to be included in the WBCA's Top 25 and qualify for the NCAA Tournament. Of those eight, ASU and DePaul were the only two schools to advance past the first round.

"I could not be more proud of our team's academic performance over the past year," ASU head coach Charli Turner Thorne said. "When a student-athlete joins our Sun Devil family they make a commitment to giving their absolute best in all their endeavors as both students and athletes. This outstanding accomplishment just speaks to that pledge and how much they value performing at a high level in the classroom."
 In March the Sun Devils had two players earn Pac-12 First-Team All-Academic recognition (2017 senior Kelsey Moos and Quinn Dornstauder), one player earn second-team honors (2017 senior Sophie Brunner) and three players named honorable mention (current Sun Devils Sabrina Haines, Kianna Ibis and Charnea Johnson-Chapman). ASU was the only Pac-12 school with two first-team honorees and led all Pac-12 schools with three combined first- and second-team honorees.

 Moos became only the 11th player in Pac-10/12 history (going back to 1986-87) to earn conference first-team recognition three straight years. Brunner was also eligible for CoSIDA Academic All-American honors after being one of five players named to the CoSIDA Academic All-District® VIII Team in February.

Since the 1996-97 season, Turner Thorne's first season at ASU, the Sun Devils lead the Pac-12 in the number of first-team All-Academic conference awards (21) and the combined number of first- and second-team All-Academic conference awards (43).
 
PRESEASON POLLS
Both the coaches and media picked the Sun Devils to finish sixth in the Pac-12.

The Sun Devils received votes in both the AP and USA Today Coaches preseason polls.

In other preseason polls of note, ASU came in at No. 23 in Lindy's Sports and No. 25 in ESPN.com. The Sun Devils were picked to earn a No. 5 seed in the NCAA Tournament in ESPN.com Charlie Creme's first Bracketology post of the season (Nov. 7).
 
SUN DEVIL WBB IS ONCE AGAIN 'KEEPING THE BEAT' FOR HEART HEALTH AWARENESS  
In 2015 the Sun Devil Women's Basketball program launched 'Keep The Beat,' an awareness campaign designed to help people of all ages have a better understanding of what it means to live a heart-healthy lifestyle. The third annual #KeepTheBeat game will take place on Saturday, November 18 when the Sun Devil women's basketball team hosts Sacramento State at 2 p.m. in Wells Fargo Arena. Pre-game festivities include a Taste of Tempe, a free food tasting event in which several Valley restaurants will be offering free samples of Heart Healthy food; and a Heart Heath Expo.

CHARLI TURNER THORNE HAS SUN DEVIL WBB AMONG NATION'S ELITE
The all-time winningest coach in program history and No. 2 in the Pac-12 in career wins (400), Charli 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 ASU qualified for the Elite Eight on a pair of occasions, making it one of only 15 programs in the country to have qualified for the Elite Eight at least two times between 2007-12.
 
Last season the Sun Devils qualified for the NCAA Tournament for the fourth consecutive season and the 12th time under Turner Throne's guidance. ASU gave eventual national champion South Carolina its toughest game of the NCAA Tournament as it led the Gamecocks by as many as 11 in the second half and took a one-point lead into the final minute of the game before falling, 71-68.
 
In 2016 Turner Thorne was named the  Pac-12 Coach of the Year (coaches and media), the second time she has been recognized with the honor (2001), after leading the Sun Devils to their second regular season Pac-12 championship. ASU would go on to earn its highest NCAA Tournament seed (No. 2) in program history. In 2016 ASU has also tied the program records for most conference wins (16) and consecutive wins (15) and set the program record for most road wins (11). Turner Thorne would go on to also be named the WBCA Region 5 Co-Coach of the Year.
 
In 2014-15 Turner Thorne was named one of 10 semifinalists for the Naismith Women's College Coach of the Year 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.
 
In 2013-14 Turner Thorne, who recorded both the 400th win of her coaching career and her 200th Pac-12 win in 2016, raised the curtain on the team's current era of success as she 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) in 2012-13 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.
 
The outstanding success Sun Devil women's basketball has enjoyed under Turner Thorne is a 180-degree difference from the 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.
 
ALL-TIME SUN DEVIL GREAT, CURRENT INDIANA FEVER GUARD BRIANN JANUARY JOINS SUN DEVIL WBB COACHING STAFF
All-time Sun Devil great and current Indiana Fever guard Briann January returned to ASU as an assistant coach this past April.

January, who helped lead ASU to 104 wins – the most in program history in a four-year span – while playing for the Sun Devils, will continue her professional playing career with Indiana where she is currently preparing to start her ninth season.

"I am so excited for this opportunity," January said. "Charli and I have been in communication about my transition into coaching for a few years now and so this opportunity came at the perfect time. To me, Charli is one of the best coaches in college basketball and to be able to learn from her is the ideal scenario for me as I start my coaching career.

 "I can't say enough about the current team. I watched them all season and they have so much potential and talent. I can't wait to get on the court and start working with them after the WNBA season concludes. Being able to go back to my alma mater and give back is a dream-come-true opportunity for me. I had such a great experience in my four years and it really shaped the person I am today and it allowed me to achieve everything that I have and I want to give that opportunity to the kids I'm coaching."

 January, who last year was named to the Pac-12 Women's Basketball All-Century Team, concluded her Sun Devil playing career at or near the top of several ASU career statistical categories including assists (first), free throw percentage (first), steals (second), free throws (second), 3-point field goal percentage (fourth), 3-point field goals (fifth) and points (seventh). A two-time Pac-10 Defensive Player of the Year, January earned honorable mention All-America recognition from the Associated Press and WBCA in 2009. During her four-year career the Sun Devils won 77 percent of their games (104-32), including 82 percent of their Pac-10 games (59-13), and qualified for the NCAA Tournament all four years, including two Elite Eight appearances (2007, '09).

"Our entire Sun Devil family is thrilled to welcome Briann January back to Tempe and Arizona State University as a member of our coaching staff," Turner Thorne said. "Over the last few years Bri and I discussed her desire to eventually transition into coaching and I did not hesitate to reach out to her when the opportunity presented itself. Bri's competitive spirit, positive energy and basketball IQ are tremendous and we are looking forward to her sharing all those outstanding attributes with our current and future Sun Devils.

"We fully support Bri continuing with her WNBA career for as long as she desires – I would not have it any other way. Anytime I'm out recruiting I use Bri as an example of what we look for in a Sun Devil. She is someone who truly loves the game of basketball, loves to compete and will do anything and everything she can to help her team win. On behalf of Sun Devils everywhere, it is our pleasure to welcome an ASU star and Sun Devil for life back home to help us win even more championships."

 January was selected by the Fever with the sixth overall pick in the 2009 WNBA Draft. In that time she has played a major role in helping Indiana qualify for the playoffs each of the last eight seasons, including three trips to the WNBA Finals and a WNBA championship in 2012. January is coming off a 2016 campaign in which she averaged 9.7 points, 1.8 rebounds and a career-best 4.7 assists per game while being named to the WNBA's All-Defensive Team for the fifth straight season.

 In 2014, January was named to the East All-Star Team for the WNBA's annual All-Star Game that was played in Phoenix. In 2012, January averaged 10.0 ppg in the WNBA Finals to help lead the Fever over the Minnesota Lynx for the WNBA title. As a rookie in 2009, January had an immediate impact as Indiana made its first WNBA finals appearance.
 
ANGIE NELP JOINS SUN DEVIL WBB COACHING STAFF; JACKIE MOORE PROMOTED TO ASSOCIATE HEAD COACH
This past May Charli Turner Thorne announced the appointment of Angie Nelp as assistant coach and that Jackie Moore had been promoted to associate head coach. 

Nelp joined ASU from Rice University where most recently she helped guide the Owls to a WBI Championship (the school's first postseason title) and 22 victories in 2016-17, the second-most wins in a single season. The Owls improved by 13 wins from her first to second season, one of the top increments in the nation. Players who Nelp has mentored in her time as an assistant coach have combined for 17 All-Conference awards. In addition she has helped develop three players who went on to play in the WNBA and eight players who signed to play professionally overseas.

"I am extremely honored that Coach Charli has invited me to be a part of Arizona State women's basketball, a program I have greatly admired throughout my coaching career," Nelp said. "The family environment at ASU was obvious from the first moment I stepped on campus. I have an amazing respect for Coach Charli as she is one of the best coaches in the country. The tradition and culture of this program is unmatched, and I can't wait to get started with this great staff. My family and I look forward to joining the thriving Sun Devil community."

Rice led all of Conference USA in total assists (558) and total rebounds (1,308) while setting a single-season program record in 3-pointers (242). In addition the Owls ranked second in the league in assists per game (15.9), field goal percentage (.444), made three-pointers (242) and free throw attempts (626).

 The Owls set a school record with 13 home victories in the 2016-17 season and the team's 9-2 start was the best by a Rice squad since the 1988-89 season.

 Nelp joined the Owls after spending four seasons as an assistant coach and recruiting coordinator at Mercer where she was responsible for coaching the guards, as well as scout and film preparation. Nelp helped lead Mercer to two 20-win seasons, setting school records for most conference and non-conference wins while orchestrating one of the nation's quickest program turnarounds in one year as the Bears went from six to 20 wins. 

Prior to Mercer, Nelp served as assistant director of basketball operations at Marquette University. She also spent one season as a graduate assistant coach on the Arkansas women's basketball staff under then head coach Tom Collen.

 Nelp played collegiate basketball at Colorado State, accumulating 1,397 points, 629 rebounds, 356 assists and 261 steals in four seasons. During her time with the Rams she earned Mountain West Defensive Player of the Year honors, was a first-team All-MWC selection, a Kodak All-America Honorable Mention honoree and was named an academic all-conference performer all four seasons.

 After graduating from Colorado State in 2002 with a bachelor's degree in health and exercise science, she went on to spend two seasons with the NWBL Colorado Chill and one season with 08 Stockholm in Sweden. As a professional, she helped lead the Chill to the 2005 NWBL title and 08 Stockholm to the 2003 Swedish national crown.

Moore, who has more than 20 years of coaching experience, joined the Sun Devil coaching staff in 2012. In addition to serving as the program's recruiting coordinator, Moore's on-court contributions have been vital to ASU's recent success, which includes 98 wins and four consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances since 2014.

"I'm really pleased to announce the promotion of Jackie Moore to associate head coach," Turner Thorne said. "Jackie has been a tireless worker since she came to ASU. She really does it all for us and has continued to add incredible value to this program. She is more than deserving of this promotion."