TEMPE, Ariz. – The Arizona State women's basketball team officially started practice for the 2019-20 campaign on Tuesday with a two-hour session at Weatherup Center.
"I thought it was a great first day. We were putting the ball in the basket really well," ASU head coach Charli Turner Thorne said after the practice wrapped up. "We've got a younger team this year and so we have a lot to teach, a lot to get through. We could be really versatile offensively in terms of the players that score for us and how we score and so we just have to keep working. Of course, we are really looking to work our transition game. I think we are built to run more this year than we have been in a few years and I'm excited about that."
The Sun Devils finished 15th in the nation in 2018-19, setting school records for consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances (six) and 20-win seasons (six). ASU won a pair of games in the 2019 NCAA Tournament and advanced to the Sweet 16 for the fifth time since 2005.
The Sun Devils return two starters in the form of guards Reili Richardson (started 89 of 101 games last three seasons) and Robbi Ryan (started 74 of 101 games last three seasons). ASU's three-year starter at point guard, Richardson concluded the 2018-19 season No. 4 in the nation and No. 1 in the Pac-12 in assist-to-turnover ratio and led the team and finished 6th in the Pac-12 in assists (5.0 apg). She enters the 2019-20 season in third place on ASU's all-time list for career assists (456). Ryan, who earned All-Pac-12 honorable mention and Pac-12 All-Defensive honorable mention recognition from the league's coaches in 2018, started every game in 2018-19 and concluded the season second on the team in 3-pointers (29), third in scoring (7.2 ppg) and assists (1.8 apg) and fifth in rebounds (2.5 rpg).
Sophomore guards Taya Hanson and Iris Mbulito both competed internationally over the summer for the second straight season. Representing Canada at the FIBA U19 World Cup in Thailand, Hanson averaged 10.7 points in the tournament's seven games and led Canada in its final contest with 15 points. Mbulito, who earned Pac-12 All-Freshman honorable mention honors last season, helped Spain claim a fifth-place finish at the FIBA U20 European Championship held in the Czech Republic. Mbulito averaged 10.4 points, 5.1 rebounds and 4.7 assists (second among all players) in the seven games.
Also returning for ASU in the backcourt are senior Kiara Russell and sophomore Jamie Loera. Russell, who has 93 games of experience under her belt, finished second on the team in assists (2.2 apg) and fifth in FG pct. (45.7) last season. Despite being limited to 11 games last season, Loera still had an impact as ASU's leader in 3-point FG percentage (50.0/9-18).
The frontcourt is where the Sun Devils lost the most from last year's team as the squad is having to replace its top three scorers and rebounders. Returning posts for the Sun Devils include senior Jamie Ruden (averaged 6.1 ppg in 78 career games), juniors Eva Rubin and Bre'yanna Sanders and sophomore Jayde Van Hyfte.
The Sun Devils will have four newcomers looking to have an immediate impact. Senior post Ja'Tavia Tapley brings her talents to ASU after being a strong contributor for USC where she started 41 games the last three seasons (26 starts in 2018-19). Also debuting for the Sun Devils later this fall will be freshman post Eboni Walker (state of Nevada's Gatorade Player of the Year in 2019) and freshman guards Sydnei Caldwell (2019 McDonald's All-American Game nominee from the state of New Jersey) and Sara Bejedi, who represented Finland at the World University Games in July 2019 and finished third among all players in scoring (16.2 ppg), second in steals (3.0 spg) and tied for third in 3-pointers per game (2.7).
"The new kids are doing well. The biggest challenge for them is really the playbook because it is so much bigger," Turner Thorne said. "Ja'Tavia is really going to help us. We knew how inexperienced we were in the post and she has really impressed us in a lot of ways both offensively and defensively. Our freshmen, Sara, Eboni and Sydnei all are doing well and are all positioning themselves to help our team this year. They bring a lot of athleticism and given the style that we want to play – getting back to more a full-court game offensively and defensively – they are really going to help us."
After having the same starting lineup for 62 straight games, it should come as no surprise that one of the focal points of the next several weeks will be getting everyone to gel and work well as a unit no matter who is on the floor at a given time.
"I really like this team," Turner Thorne said. "They are still learning each other. They are still a very young team, even some of our seniors don't have the game experience that last year's senior class had. We have to be mindful of that and have to remember to work a lot on the game situations. We'll probably scrimmage a little earlier than we normally do. We lost our entire front line and while we have great talent, we don't have that experience and we have to get them experience before the home opener."
Season tickets starting at only $64 are now on sale for the Sun Devil women's basketball team's 2019-20 home slate.
The Sun Devils will host 16 contests at Wells Fargo Arena this season. The home schedule will include seven non-conference games and nine tilts against Pac-12 foes. Included in ASU's nine-game Pac-12 docket are contests against 2019 NCAA Final Four participant Oregon and 2019 NCAA Tournament teams Oregon State, UCLA, Cal and Stanford.
To purchase season tickets today, click here, or contact a Sun Devil ticket office representative at 480-965-5812.
"I thought it was a great first day. We were putting the ball in the basket really well," ASU head coach Charli Turner Thorne said after the practice wrapped up. "We've got a younger team this year and so we have a lot to teach, a lot to get through. We could be really versatile offensively in terms of the players that score for us and how we score and so we just have to keep working. Of course, we are really looking to work our transition game. I think we are built to run more this year than we have been in a few years and I'm excited about that."
The Sun Devils finished 15th in the nation in 2018-19, setting school records for consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances (six) and 20-win seasons (six). ASU won a pair of games in the 2019 NCAA Tournament and advanced to the Sweet 16 for the fifth time since 2005.
The Sun Devils return two starters in the form of guards Reili Richardson (started 89 of 101 games last three seasons) and Robbi Ryan (started 74 of 101 games last three seasons). ASU's three-year starter at point guard, Richardson concluded the 2018-19 season No. 4 in the nation and No. 1 in the Pac-12 in assist-to-turnover ratio and led the team and finished 6th in the Pac-12 in assists (5.0 apg). She enters the 2019-20 season in third place on ASU's all-time list for career assists (456). Ryan, who earned All-Pac-12 honorable mention and Pac-12 All-Defensive honorable mention recognition from the league's coaches in 2018, started every game in 2018-19 and concluded the season second on the team in 3-pointers (29), third in scoring (7.2 ppg) and assists (1.8 apg) and fifth in rebounds (2.5 rpg).
Sophomore guards Taya Hanson and Iris Mbulito both competed internationally over the summer for the second straight season. Representing Canada at the FIBA U19 World Cup in Thailand, Hanson averaged 10.7 points in the tournament's seven games and led Canada in its final contest with 15 points. Mbulito, who earned Pac-12 All-Freshman honorable mention honors last season, helped Spain claim a fifth-place finish at the FIBA U20 European Championship held in the Czech Republic. Mbulito averaged 10.4 points, 5.1 rebounds and 4.7 assists (second among all players) in the seven games.
Also returning for ASU in the backcourt are senior Kiara Russell and sophomore Jamie Loera. Russell, who has 93 games of experience under her belt, finished second on the team in assists (2.2 apg) and fifth in FG pct. (45.7) last season. Despite being limited to 11 games last season, Loera still had an impact as ASU's leader in 3-point FG percentage (50.0/9-18).
The frontcourt is where the Sun Devils lost the most from last year's team as the squad is having to replace its top three scorers and rebounders. Returning posts for the Sun Devils include senior Jamie Ruden (averaged 6.1 ppg in 78 career games), juniors Eva Rubin and Bre'yanna Sanders and sophomore Jayde Van Hyfte.
The Sun Devils will have four newcomers looking to have an immediate impact. Senior post Ja'Tavia Tapley brings her talents to ASU after being a strong contributor for USC where she started 41 games the last three seasons (26 starts in 2018-19). Also debuting for the Sun Devils later this fall will be freshman post Eboni Walker (state of Nevada's Gatorade Player of the Year in 2019) and freshman guards Sydnei Caldwell (2019 McDonald's All-American Game nominee from the state of New Jersey) and Sara Bejedi, who represented Finland at the World University Games in July 2019 and finished third among all players in scoring (16.2 ppg), second in steals (3.0 spg) and tied for third in 3-pointers per game (2.7).
"The new kids are doing well. The biggest challenge for them is really the playbook because it is so much bigger," Turner Thorne said. "Ja'Tavia is really going to help us. We knew how inexperienced we were in the post and she has really impressed us in a lot of ways both offensively and defensively. Our freshmen, Sara, Eboni and Sydnei all are doing well and are all positioning themselves to help our team this year. They bring a lot of athleticism and given the style that we want to play – getting back to more a full-court game offensively and defensively – they are really going to help us."
After having the same starting lineup for 62 straight games, it should come as no surprise that one of the focal points of the next several weeks will be getting everyone to gel and work well as a unit no matter who is on the floor at a given time.
"I really like this team," Turner Thorne said. "They are still learning each other. They are still a very young team, even some of our seniors don't have the game experience that last year's senior class had. We have to be mindful of that and have to remember to work a lot on the game situations. We'll probably scrimmage a little earlier than we normally do. We lost our entire front line and while we have great talent, we don't have that experience and we have to get them experience before the home opener."
Season tickets starting at only $64 are now on sale for the Sun Devil women's basketball team's 2019-20 home slate.
The Sun Devils will host 16 contests at Wells Fargo Arena this season. The home schedule will include seven non-conference games and nine tilts against Pac-12 foes. Included in ASU's nine-game Pac-12 docket are contests against 2019 NCAA Final Four participant Oregon and 2019 NCAA Tournament teams Oregon State, UCLA, Cal and Stanford.
To purchase season tickets today, click here, or contact a Sun Devil ticket office representative at 480-965-5812.