TEMPE, Ariz. – The Arizona State women's basketball team held eighth-ranked Oregon nearly 27 points below its scoring average and led the Ducks by as many as eight points in the first half. Unfortunately it would not be enough as Oregon used an 11-0 run in the third quarter to break open a tie game and would go on to claim a 57-44 win on Friday night.
Kianna Ibis led ASU with 13 points while Charnea Johnson-Chapman grabbed a career-high 14 rebounds to go with seven points. Courtney Ekmark added seven points for the Sun Devils (19-9, 10-7 Pac-12), who were only able to connect on 31 percent of their shots.
The Sun Devils outrebounded the Ducks 41-33. Although ASU was plus-10 in offensive boards (18-8), Oregon still managed to end the game with a 6-3 advantage in second-chance points.
Sabrina Ionescu (16 points), Ruthy Hebard (14 points) and Maite Cazorla (14 points), combined for 44 of Oregon's points. After making 37 percent of their field goal attempts in the first half, the Ducks (26-4, 15-2) came back to shoot 56 percent in the second half as they outscored ASU 33-19 over the final 20 minutes.
"I thought we had a good defensive effort. We held them more than 20 points below their average," ASU head coach Charli Turner Thorne said. "(We had) a few key breakdowns at times when we were not scoring and you can't really afford that. We wanted to outrebound them by about seven or eight and we did.
"We were really off offensively. I think this young team is still letting things bother them. There's a breakdown, or a missed shot and they just carry it inside of them... We're better than that."
Neither team shot the ball well in the first quarter as the Ducks (4-14) and the Sun Devils (5-17) both connected on only 29 percent of their shots. The Sun Devils led by as many as six after Ibis' 3-pointer made the score 12-6 with 4:05 remaining. Cazorla's layup represented the only points scored the rest of the quarter and the Devils went to the second period with a 12-8 lead. Ibis scored seven points to lead ASU and was the only Sun Devil to make more than half of her shots in the quarter (3-5).
The Sun Devils scored the first four points of the second quarter – two free throws by Kiara Russell and a layup by Sophia Elenga – to extend their lead to 16-8. The Ducks would get within three points two different times, but the Sun Devils would go back up by seven after consecutive layups by Johnson-Chapman and Robbi Ryan. The Ducks would eventually close the gap to one as they ended the first half with a 7-1 run. Satou Sabally's 3-pointer with two seconds left cut ASU's lead to 25-24 at the break.
The Ducks would eventually make it a 12-1 run as they scored the first five points of the second half to take a 29-25 lead 70 seconds into the third quarter. The Sun Devils would fight back and even the score at 31-31 after a jumper by Ibis. Unfortunately for ASU, the Ducks would grab the momentum right back as they went on an 11-0 run over a span of 3:50 to take control of the game.
The Sun Devils scored the first three points of the final period to get within eight, one of three times they got within eight points in the first four minutes of the quarter. In each instance they would regain possession of the ball with a chance to reduce the deficit even more however they were not able to hit consecutive baskets. A 5-0 run by the Ducks later in the quarter extended their lead to 13 points. A 3-pointer by Reili Richardson got ASU within 10 with 3:28 remaining but the Sun Devils would get no closer.
The Sun Devils conclude regular season play on Sunday (2 p.m.) when they host No. 12 Oregon State at Wells Fargo Arena. The game, which can be seen on Pac-12 Network/Arizona/Oregon and heard on NBC Sports Radio AM 1060, will be ASU's annual Pink Game for breast cancer awareness. Fans are encouraged to wear pink to Sunday's game.
Kianna Ibis led ASU with 13 points while Charnea Johnson-Chapman grabbed a career-high 14 rebounds to go with seven points. Courtney Ekmark added seven points for the Sun Devils (19-9, 10-7 Pac-12), who were only able to connect on 31 percent of their shots.
The Sun Devils outrebounded the Ducks 41-33. Although ASU was plus-10 in offensive boards (18-8), Oregon still managed to end the game with a 6-3 advantage in second-chance points.
Sabrina Ionescu (16 points), Ruthy Hebard (14 points) and Maite Cazorla (14 points), combined for 44 of Oregon's points. After making 37 percent of their field goal attempts in the first half, the Ducks (26-4, 15-2) came back to shoot 56 percent in the second half as they outscored ASU 33-19 over the final 20 minutes.
"I thought we had a good defensive effort. We held them more than 20 points below their average," ASU head coach Charli Turner Thorne said. "(We had) a few key breakdowns at times when we were not scoring and you can't really afford that. We wanted to outrebound them by about seven or eight and we did.
"We were really off offensively. I think this young team is still letting things bother them. There's a breakdown, or a missed shot and they just carry it inside of them... We're better than that."
Neither team shot the ball well in the first quarter as the Ducks (4-14) and the Sun Devils (5-17) both connected on only 29 percent of their shots. The Sun Devils led by as many as six after Ibis' 3-pointer made the score 12-6 with 4:05 remaining. Cazorla's layup represented the only points scored the rest of the quarter and the Devils went to the second period with a 12-8 lead. Ibis scored seven points to lead ASU and was the only Sun Devil to make more than half of her shots in the quarter (3-5).
The Sun Devils scored the first four points of the second quarter – two free throws by Kiara Russell and a layup by Sophia Elenga – to extend their lead to 16-8. The Ducks would get within three points two different times, but the Sun Devils would go back up by seven after consecutive layups by Johnson-Chapman and Robbi Ryan. The Ducks would eventually close the gap to one as they ended the first half with a 7-1 run. Satou Sabally's 3-pointer with two seconds left cut ASU's lead to 25-24 at the break.
The Ducks would eventually make it a 12-1 run as they scored the first five points of the second half to take a 29-25 lead 70 seconds into the third quarter. The Sun Devils would fight back and even the score at 31-31 after a jumper by Ibis. Unfortunately for ASU, the Ducks would grab the momentum right back as they went on an 11-0 run over a span of 3:50 to take control of the game.
The Sun Devils scored the first three points of the final period to get within eight, one of three times they got within eight points in the first four minutes of the quarter. In each instance they would regain possession of the ball with a chance to reduce the deficit even more however they were not able to hit consecutive baskets. A 5-0 run by the Ducks later in the quarter extended their lead to 13 points. A 3-pointer by Reili Richardson got ASU within 10 with 3:28 remaining but the Sun Devils would get no closer.
The Sun Devils conclude regular season play on Sunday (2 p.m.) when they host No. 12 Oregon State at Wells Fargo Arena. The game, which can be seen on Pac-12 Network/Arizona/Oregon and heard on NBC Sports Radio AM 1060, will be ASU's annual Pink Game for breast cancer awareness. Fans are encouraged to wear pink to Sunday's game.