TEMPE, Ariz. – Robbi Ryan scored 14 of her career-high 24 points in the second half to help lead the Arizona State women's basketball team to a 75-50 win over Arizona in the first of back-to-back Territorial Cup Series games.
Courtney Ekmark (17 points), Jamie Ruden (12 points) and Kianna Ibis (10 points) also scored in double figures for the Sun Devils (18-9, 9-6 Pac-12), who shot a season-high 55.6 percent.
The Sun Devils outscored the Wildcats (6-20, 2-13) 25 -5 in the third quarter to break open what was a four-point game at the half (27-23). ASU would go on to shoot 69 percent in the second half while outscoring the Wildcats 48-27 over the final 20 minutes.
"Give U of A credit. In the first half they just did a good job of forcing us to settle for some things offensively," ASU head coach Charli Turner Thorne said. "I thought after I told at them at halftime to stop settling and play harder, they did. I thought we had a great second half, made some good adjustments offensively.
"I thought we had a good defensive game overall. We could go big but you can't go big when you're guarding five guards and they're spreading you out and taking you off the dribble. We have the depth in the post but that doesn't help you necessarily against U of A."
Turner Thorne gave high marks to ASU's guards, who were shorthanded without sophomore Kiara Russell (injured ankle early in ASU's game at UCLA last Sunday).
"Tremendous efforts for our guards, in particular Reili, Robbi and Courtney," Turner Thorne said. "They went into today thinking, 'I've got to be ready to play 40 (minutes).' The great thing about those three is they do have great motors and can really push themselves."
The Sun Devils had 22 assists on their 30 field goals. Reili Richardson led the way with nine assists while Ekmark (six assists) and Bre'yanna Sanders (four assists) both posted career high numbers.
On the defensive end, the Sun Devils scored a season-high 32 points off of the 23 turnovers it forced. Ekmark's career-high five steals helped the Sun Devils total 13 steals for the game, the most they have had in a Pac-12 contest this season.
The first half was a defensive struggle as the two teams combined for only 50 points in the first 20 minutes.
Ibis (3-pointer), Ruden (layup), and Sophia Elenga (back-to-back layups) hit early shots to give the Sun Devils a 9-4 lead midway through the first quarter. The Wildcats would come back with a 12-7 run to even the game at 16-16 after the first 10 minutes.
The Wildcats took their largest lead of three points midway through the second quarter, but the Sun Devils would answer by scoring nine of the last 11 points of the quarter to surge ahead 27-23 at the intermission.
The third quarter was punctuated by a 17-0 run by the Sun Devils, who made 69 percent of their shots in the frame while allowing the Wildcats to hit only one field goal (1-10). Arizona did not hit any shots the last seven-plus minutes of the period, a cold spell that did not end until Sam Thomas scored on a layup with 8:43 remaining in the fourth quarter.
ASU continued to be efficient on the offensive end in the fourth quarter as it stretched its lead to 29 after Ryan's jumper with 3:40 remaining.
The Sun Devils and Wildcats will meet again on Sunday in Tucson. Game time at McKale Center is 4 p.m. The game can be seen on Pac-12 Network and heard on NBC Sports Radio AM 1060.
Courtney Ekmark (17 points), Jamie Ruden (12 points) and Kianna Ibis (10 points) also scored in double figures for the Sun Devils (18-9, 9-6 Pac-12), who shot a season-high 55.6 percent.
The Sun Devils outscored the Wildcats (6-20, 2-13) 25 -5 in the third quarter to break open what was a four-point game at the half (27-23). ASU would go on to shoot 69 percent in the second half while outscoring the Wildcats 48-27 over the final 20 minutes.
"Give U of A credit. In the first half they just did a good job of forcing us to settle for some things offensively," ASU head coach Charli Turner Thorne said. "I thought after I told at them at halftime to stop settling and play harder, they did. I thought we had a great second half, made some good adjustments offensively.
"I thought we had a good defensive game overall. We could go big but you can't go big when you're guarding five guards and they're spreading you out and taking you off the dribble. We have the depth in the post but that doesn't help you necessarily against U of A."
Turner Thorne gave high marks to ASU's guards, who were shorthanded without sophomore Kiara Russell (injured ankle early in ASU's game at UCLA last Sunday).
"Tremendous efforts for our guards, in particular Reili, Robbi and Courtney," Turner Thorne said. "They went into today thinking, 'I've got to be ready to play 40 (minutes).' The great thing about those three is they do have great motors and can really push themselves."
The Sun Devils had 22 assists on their 30 field goals. Reili Richardson led the way with nine assists while Ekmark (six assists) and Bre'yanna Sanders (four assists) both posted career high numbers.
On the defensive end, the Sun Devils scored a season-high 32 points off of the 23 turnovers it forced. Ekmark's career-high five steals helped the Sun Devils total 13 steals for the game, the most they have had in a Pac-12 contest this season.
The first half was a defensive struggle as the two teams combined for only 50 points in the first 20 minutes.
Ibis (3-pointer), Ruden (layup), and Sophia Elenga (back-to-back layups) hit early shots to give the Sun Devils a 9-4 lead midway through the first quarter. The Wildcats would come back with a 12-7 run to even the game at 16-16 after the first 10 minutes.
The Wildcats took their largest lead of three points midway through the second quarter, but the Sun Devils would answer by scoring nine of the last 11 points of the quarter to surge ahead 27-23 at the intermission.
The third quarter was punctuated by a 17-0 run by the Sun Devils, who made 69 percent of their shots in the frame while allowing the Wildcats to hit only one field goal (1-10). Arizona did not hit any shots the last seven-plus minutes of the period, a cold spell that did not end until Sam Thomas scored on a layup with 8:43 remaining in the fourth quarter.
ASU continued to be efficient on the offensive end in the fourth quarter as it stretched its lead to 29 after Ryan's jumper with 3:40 remaining.
The Sun Devils and Wildcats will meet again on Sunday in Tucson. Game time at McKale Center is 4 p.m. The game can be seen on Pac-12 Network and heard on NBC Sports Radio AM 1060.