WHEN: Friday at 8 p.m. MST
WHERE: Desert Financial Arena • Tempe, Ariz. (Click for DFA traffic information)
TICKETS: Click here to purchase
TELEVISION: Pac-12 Arizona & Bay Area/Pac-12 Now
RADIO: KDUS AM 1060
LIVE AUDIO: Sun Devil Athletics TuneIn Channel
LIVE STATS: Click here
#GREENGAMEASU
Friday's game vs. Cal is the annual Green Game, highlighting ASU's standing as a national leader in sustainability. Fans are encouraged to use the hashtag #GreenGameASU to show how they're going green. For the 2018-19 Pac-12 Zero Waste Challenge, ASU won the Fan Engagement Award for its efforts at the Women's Basketball Green Game.
UP NEXT
The No. 24 Arizona State women's basketball team concludes regular season play this week when it hosts Cal (Friday at 8 p.m. MST) and No. 4 Stanford (Sunday at 12 p.m. MST) at Desert Financial Arena.
This weekend's games will be the final at home for seniors Reili Richardson, Jamie Ruden, Kiara Russell, Robbi Ryan and Ja'Tavia Tapley. All five players will be honored in a ceremony after Sunday's game vs. Stanford. This year's senior class has led the Sun Devils to 83 wins and three NCAA Tournament appearances, including the Sweet 16 last year.
After competing in home-and-home contests with the same seven teams over the first eight weekends of Pac-12 play, ASU is in the middle of a stretch in which it is closing out the season against the four Pac-12 teams it plays once: at Colorado (W, 65-59 on Feb. 16), at Utah (L, 71-75 on Sunday), vs. Cal (Friday), vs. Stanford (Sunday).
The Sun Devils came away with a split on last week's road trip, defeating Colorado 65-59 and falling to Utah 75-71. Senior Reili Richardson averaged 19.0 points in the two games. In Sunday's game at Utah, Richardson hit six triples, coming one 3-pointer short of tying the single-game school record. ASU shot 53 percent in its win at Colorado, its best shooting effort in Pac-12 play. The trend continued for most of the game at Utah as the Sun Devils shot 50 percent through the first three quarters before managing just 17 percent in the final quarter. ASU connected on 55 percent (17-31) of its 3-pointers in the two games and tied a season high with 10 triples at Utah.
The Sun Devils (19-9, 9-7 Pac-12) come into the final weekend of Pac-12 play in sole possession of fifth place in the league standings. The four teams that will have first round byes for next week's Pac-12 Tournament in Las Vegas have already been decided (order may still change: No. 3 Oregon (26-2, 15-1), No. 4 Stanford (24-4, 13-3), No. 9 UCLA (23-4, 12-4), No. 13 Arizona (22-5, 11-5). ASU leads sixth-place/No. 17 Oregon State (20-8, 8-8) by one game. Depending on this weekend's results, the Sun Devils will enter next week's tournament as either the No. 5 or No. 6 seed.
Contrary to its record, Cal (10-17, 2-14) has proven to be a formidable adversary throughout the season. Its near misses include a two-point loss to current No. 15 Kentucky (63-61) and a four-point, overtime loss to UCLA (74-70). On February 16, the Bears came away with a double-digit win at Utah 88-74. If the Sun Devils and Bears maintain their current position in the Pac-12 standings after this weekend's games they would face off again next Thursday in the first round (No. 5 vs. No. 12 game) of the Pac-12 Tournament.
TV/RADIO
Friday's game vs. Cal will be televised by Pac-12 Arizona/Bay Area (Cindy Brunson, Maylana Martin Douglas). It can also be heard on KDUS AM 1060 and the Sun Devil Athletics TuneIn Channel. Pregame coverage will start at 7:30 p.m. Veteran broadcaster and the state of Arizona's 2010 & 2019 Broadcaster of the Year Jeff Munn is in his 16th season as the voice of ASU women's basketball. He'll be joined by former ASU head coach Maura McHugh.
SERIES NOTES VERSUS CAL (ASU LEADS 40-35 SINCE 1978-79)
ASU has faced Cal more than any other team since 2005-06 (31x - ASU 17-14). That stretch includes 5 meetings in the Pac-12 Tournament, most recently 2016 quarterfinal (Cal 75-64). ASU has won 7 of the last 9 meetings. The two teams split last season: ASU 62-61 in Tempe and Cal 69-60 in Berkeley. Cal's win snapped ASU's 5-game winning streak in the series. Reili Richardson had a career-high 11 assists in the first meeting of the 2017-18 season.
WHAT TO LOOK FOR
• ASU needs one more win for its seventh consecutive 20-win season. Next month the Sun Devils will be looking to make their seventh straight trip to NCAAs.
• ASU is currently ranked among the top 40 in the nation in O-rebs per game (17th/15.3 rpg) and rebound margin (35th/+6.9). Senior Reili Richardson is No. 15 in the nation in assist-to-turnover ratio.
• Earlier this season ASU became the first unranked team to defeat consecutive top five opponents when it upset then-No. 2 Oregon (72-66 on Jan. 10) and then-No. 3 Oregon State (55-47 on Jan. 12).
• Six of ASU's seven Pac-12 losses (79-48 loss at Oregon on Feb. 9 not included) have been by an average of 4.7 points. Two of those losses were two-point setbacks on the road: 68-66 at then-unbeaten and No. 10 UCLA on Jan. 3 and 64-62 at then-No. 9 Oregon State on Feb. 2.
• Richardson (currently with 547 career assists) broke Sun Devil great Briann January's career assists record (538 assists/2006-09) in ASU's win over Washington on Feb. 16.
• Ten of Richardson's 13 double-digit scoring efforts this season have come in the last 13 games. The stretch includes a career-high 24-point performance in ASU's triple OT win vs. USC (Jan. 31) in which Richardson scored 19 points in the 2nd half and OT, including the game-winning 3-pointer. In the last 8 games, Richardson, who needs 83 points to reach 1000 for her career, is averaging 15.9 ppg (leads team) and is shooting 47 percent (23-49) from long range.
• Twelve of senior G Robbi Ryan's 15 double-digit scoring games this season have come in the last 17 games. She has scored 17 or more points 5x during that sequence, including a career-high 25 points at Arizona (Jan. 24), the most points scored by an individual against Arizona this season.
• Graduate transfer Ja'Tavia Tapley has proven to be a difference maker for ASU. Named the Ann Meyers Drysdale/espnW/Pac-12 Player of the Week last month, Tapley has played in every game (26 starts) and currently leads ASU in scoring (11.8 ppg), rebounds (6.4) and free throws made (66) and attempted (106), is 2nd in steals (1.3 spg), FG pct. (48.5) and minutes (24.1) and 4th in assists (1.5 apg).
• ASU has outrebounded the opposition in all but seven games: at USC, vs. ORE, vs. OSU, at ARIZ, at ORE, at COLO, at UTAH. It has scored 15 or more second chance points nine times, including a season-high 32 vs. Army. Jayde Van Hyfte (86 of 148) and Eboni Walker (75 of 122) both have more offensive than defensive rebounds.
• ASU's success this season has been the product of a team effort as the Sun Devils have had eight different players who have led/tied for the team lead in scoring. Six Sun Devils have led/tied for the team lead in scoring multiple times: Tapley (8x), Ryan (7x), Richardson (7x), Walker (3x), Jamie Ruden (2x), Taya Hanson (2x).
• Ruden (6.7 ppg) and Walker (6.3 ppg) have been ASU's top players off the bench. Walker is the only Sun Devil shooting higher than 50 percent for the season (51.0). She is shooting 62 pct (18-29 FGs) from the floor in the last 6 games.
• The Sun Devils have had 15 or fewer turnovers 12x in their last 16 games. The exceptions were their contests vs. USC (26), vs. UCLA (16), at Oregon (18), at Colorado (17).
• ASU has allowed 13 or fewer points in a quarter 49x (17x in single-digits).
• ASU has scored 20 or more points off turnovers nine times (9-0 in those games), including a season-high 36 vs. Army (Nov. 10).