PULLMAN, Wash. – Seniors Robbi Ryan and Ja'Tavia Tapley scored 20 points apiece to lead the No. 18 Arizona State women's basketball team to a come-from-behind, 65-56 win over Washington State on Sunday.
Fellow senior Reili Richardson scored all 11 of her points in the fourth quarter for the Sun Devils, who won their fifth game in a row and gave head coach Charli Turner Thorne career victory No. 499.
After falling behind by 10 points late in the third quarter, the Sun Devils closed with a 31-12 run over the last 12:37 to capture their ninth straight win over the Cougars.
The Sun Devils (15-4, 5-2 Pac-12) outrebounded the Cougars (9-9, 2-4) 44-36, including a 20-11 advantage in offensive boards that resulted in a 18-8 advantage in second chance points. Tapley and Eboni Walker tied for the team lead with eight rebounds each. Walker also paced ASU with a career-high three assists.
Jayde Van Hyfte (seven rebounds), Richardson (six rebounds) and Kiara Russell (five rebounds) were also among the five Sun Devils who pulled down five or more rebounds.
Tapley (three steals), Russell (two steals) and Van Hyfte (two steals) combined for seven of ASU's nine steals.
Washington State was led by Borislava Hristova, who had a game-high 22 points on 7-of-17 shooting.
Ryan's offense helped the Sun Devils stay within striking distance for the first two quarters. The senior guard scored 11 points in the first half, the only Sun Devil who scored more than three points after 20 minutes.
Tapley scored 17 of her 20 points in the second half. The senior forward (11 points) and Ryan (seven points) combined for all 18 of ASU's points in the third quarter. Tapley's 3-point play in the final minute of the period got the Sun Devils within four points heading to the final quarter.
With the Sun Devils up by one point with three minutes remaining, Tapley scored four straight points to start ASU's 8-0 run to close out the game.
After combining to score all 46 of ASU's fourth-quarter points in last weekend's upset wins over then-No. 2 Oregon and then-No 3 Oregon State, the Sun Devil seniors came up big once again on Sunday as Tapley (17 points), Richardson (11 points), Ryan (nine points) and Russell (two points) combined to score 39 of ASU's 41 second-half points.
The Sun Devils got off to a slow start and fell behind 12-6 after one quarter. The six points represented the fewest the Sun Devils have scored in a quarter this season. Ryan and Iris Mbulito accounted for ASU's only field goals of the frame as the Sun Devils shot only 13 percent.
The shots would start to fall for ASU in the second quarter. Behind Ryan, who scored eight points on 4-of-6 shooting, the Sun Devils outscored the Cougars 18-16 to cut WSU's lead to 28-24 at the half. The Sun Devils used a 13-6 run midway through the quarter to pull even at 22-22, but the Cougars closed with a 6-2 run to reclaim the advantage.
The Sun Devils return to action on Friday (6 p.m. MST) when they travel to Tucson for round two of the Territorial Cup against No. 21 Arizona. The game can be seen on Pac-12 Network and heard on KDUS AM 1060.
Fellow senior Reili Richardson scored all 11 of her points in the fourth quarter for the Sun Devils, who won their fifth game in a row and gave head coach Charli Turner Thorne career victory No. 499.
After falling behind by 10 points late in the third quarter, the Sun Devils closed with a 31-12 run over the last 12:37 to capture their ninth straight win over the Cougars.
The Sun Devils (15-4, 5-2 Pac-12) outrebounded the Cougars (9-9, 2-4) 44-36, including a 20-11 advantage in offensive boards that resulted in a 18-8 advantage in second chance points. Tapley and Eboni Walker tied for the team lead with eight rebounds each. Walker also paced ASU with a career-high three assists.
Jayde Van Hyfte (seven rebounds), Richardson (six rebounds) and Kiara Russell (five rebounds) were also among the five Sun Devils who pulled down five or more rebounds.
Tapley (three steals), Russell (two steals) and Van Hyfte (two steals) combined for seven of ASU's nine steals.
Washington State was led by Borislava Hristova, who had a game-high 22 points on 7-of-17 shooting.
Ryan's offense helped the Sun Devils stay within striking distance for the first two quarters. The senior guard scored 11 points in the first half, the only Sun Devil who scored more than three points after 20 minutes.
Tapley scored 17 of her 20 points in the second half. The senior forward (11 points) and Ryan (seven points) combined for all 18 of ASU's points in the third quarter. Tapley's 3-point play in the final minute of the period got the Sun Devils within four points heading to the final quarter.
With the Sun Devils up by one point with three minutes remaining, Tapley scored four straight points to start ASU's 8-0 run to close out the game.
After combining to score all 46 of ASU's fourth-quarter points in last weekend's upset wins over then-No. 2 Oregon and then-No 3 Oregon State, the Sun Devil seniors came up big once again on Sunday as Tapley (17 points), Richardson (11 points), Ryan (nine points) and Russell (two points) combined to score 39 of ASU's 41 second-half points.
The Sun Devils got off to a slow start and fell behind 12-6 after one quarter. The six points represented the fewest the Sun Devils have scored in a quarter this season. Ryan and Iris Mbulito accounted for ASU's only field goals of the frame as the Sun Devils shot only 13 percent.
The shots would start to fall for ASU in the second quarter. Behind Ryan, who scored eight points on 4-of-6 shooting, the Sun Devils outscored the Cougars 18-16 to cut WSU's lead to 28-24 at the half. The Sun Devils used a 13-6 run midway through the quarter to pull even at 22-22, but the Cougars closed with a 6-2 run to reclaim the advantage.
The Sun Devils return to action on Friday (6 p.m. MST) when they travel to Tucson for round two of the Territorial Cup against No. 21 Arizona. The game can be seen on Pac-12 Network and heard on KDUS AM 1060.