TEMPE, Ariz. – Jade Loville scored 19 of her game-high 33 points in the second half and Taya Hanson knocked down six consecutive free throws with 17 seconds remaining to help the Sun Devil women's basketball team defeat Oregon State 67-57 on Friday.
Several Sun Devils contributed to Friday's win, including Mael Gilles (game-high eight rebounds and four assists), Jaddan Simmons (five assists) and Katelyn Levings (five points, four rebounds).
Loville, who in December became the fourth Sun Devil to score 30 or more points since 2000 in ASU's win at San Diego, accomplished the feat a second time after knocking down 12 of her 22 shots, including a trio of triples. Hanson scored eight of her 17 points from the free throw line where she made all eight of her attempts and also had a game-high six assists.
Every Sun Devil helped contribute to the team's ability to take care of the basketball – ASU (10-8, 2-3 Pac-12) tied its second-fewest total with 10 turnovers – and stepped up on the defensive end when it mattered most. After the Beavers hit 52 percent of their shots in the first three quarters, they were forced into a 27-percent effort in the final quarter.
"These are some of my favorite types of wins because of toughness," ASU head coach Charli Turner Thorne said of the quality she felt was most important in the win. "Obviously, we can play better. We squandered all sorts of opportunities, but I think this is great for our team. We're a newer team that's coming out of our 'off time' just to play a really good team like that and not have our best stuff, and finding a way to win. I thought it was a good team win.
"Obviously, [when Jade] Loville's on, Loville's on, and that was fun. Our teammates know it and they find her. But we also had different people making plays and a great steal by Katelyn [Levings] at the end of the game. Jaddan and [Jade] did a great job. We're getting better, so it's good."
The second half featured a number of scoring runs that put each squad in position to take control of the game.
ASU took the first turn as it scored the first five points of the third quarter to turn its slim 31-29 halftime lead, into a 36-29 advantage.
Oregon State (11-6, 4-3) responded with its best sequence of the game as it reeled off the next 14 points to turn the seven-point deficit into a seven-point lead after AJ Marotte's jumper with 3:35 remaining in the quarter.
A similar stretch occurred early in the fourth quarter. After the Beavers went up by five, they surrendered 10 straight points to the Sun Devils in the space of only 2:20.
The Beavers eventually knotted the game at 55-55 with 4:31 remaining. OSU's Kennedy Brown put the finishing touches on the Beavers' 8-1 run with a pair of free throws to give Oregon State a 57-55 lead with 3:09 remaining.
Levings came up big in the final minutes. Her first big play was making a jumper to tie the game at 57-57. Loville's jumper put ASU back out in front, 59-57 with 1:42 remaining. Neither team was able to score in the next 80 seconds.
With the Beavers looking to tie or win, Levings stepped up again coming up with a steal. A vehement protest by Oregon State produced a pair of technical fouls. Hanson calmly drilled the six free throws awarded to the Sun Devils to clinch ASU's second Pac-12 win of the season.
Hanson and Loville both had high praise for their teammate who helped put ASU in position to win the game.
"She's putting in the work," Hanson said of Levings. "What you see tonight is not just out of the blue, it's hours and hours of continued work and intentional practice."
Added Loville, "Katelyn is working. She works in the morning with the coaches, before practice. She's working, so I've got to credit that."
Gilles and Loville scored the game's first four points to give ASU the early advantage. After the Beavers tied the game at 6-6, the Sun Devils would reclaim a four-point lead after Loville's triple put ASU up 12-8. The Beavers scored the next five points to take their first lead of the game, 13-12. Loville's jumper gave the lead back to ASU. The Sun Devils would retain their 14-13 lead for the remained of the quarter as neither team scored over the last two-plus minutes of the frame.
A 3-pointer by Levings gave ASU a five-point lead three minutes into the second quarter. ASU led by as many as six in the half after Taya Hanson's 3-pointer midway through the frame put ASU up 26-20. However, the Beavers came right back scoring six of the game's next seven points to tie the game at 27-27. ASU would end up taking a slight 31-29 lead into the locker room.
For the Sun Devils, Friday's game was the third game of a seven-game span against teams currently among the top third of the Pac-12 standings.
ASU returns to action on Sunday (2 p.m. MST) when it hosts No. 19 Oregon in the program's annual Pink Game for Breast Cancer Awareness.
Several Sun Devils contributed to Friday's win, including Mael Gilles (game-high eight rebounds and four assists), Jaddan Simmons (five assists) and Katelyn Levings (five points, four rebounds).
Loville, who in December became the fourth Sun Devil to score 30 or more points since 2000 in ASU's win at San Diego, accomplished the feat a second time after knocking down 12 of her 22 shots, including a trio of triples. Hanson scored eight of her 17 points from the free throw line where she made all eight of her attempts and also had a game-high six assists.
Every Sun Devil helped contribute to the team's ability to take care of the basketball – ASU (10-8, 2-3 Pac-12) tied its second-fewest total with 10 turnovers – and stepped up on the defensive end when it mattered most. After the Beavers hit 52 percent of their shots in the first three quarters, they were forced into a 27-percent effort in the final quarter.
"These are some of my favorite types of wins because of toughness," ASU head coach Charli Turner Thorne said of the quality she felt was most important in the win. "Obviously, we can play better. We squandered all sorts of opportunities, but I think this is great for our team. We're a newer team that's coming out of our 'off time' just to play a really good team like that and not have our best stuff, and finding a way to win. I thought it was a good team win.
"Obviously, [when Jade] Loville's on, Loville's on, and that was fun. Our teammates know it and they find her. But we also had different people making plays and a great steal by Katelyn [Levings] at the end of the game. Jaddan and [Jade] did a great job. We're getting better, so it's good."
The second half featured a number of scoring runs that put each squad in position to take control of the game.
ASU took the first turn as it scored the first five points of the third quarter to turn its slim 31-29 halftime lead, into a 36-29 advantage.
Oregon State (11-6, 4-3) responded with its best sequence of the game as it reeled off the next 14 points to turn the seven-point deficit into a seven-point lead after AJ Marotte's jumper with 3:35 remaining in the quarter.
A similar stretch occurred early in the fourth quarter. After the Beavers went up by five, they surrendered 10 straight points to the Sun Devils in the space of only 2:20.
The Beavers eventually knotted the game at 55-55 with 4:31 remaining. OSU's Kennedy Brown put the finishing touches on the Beavers' 8-1 run with a pair of free throws to give Oregon State a 57-55 lead with 3:09 remaining.
Levings came up big in the final minutes. Her first big play was making a jumper to tie the game at 57-57. Loville's jumper put ASU back out in front, 59-57 with 1:42 remaining. Neither team was able to score in the next 80 seconds.
With the Beavers looking to tie or win, Levings stepped up again coming up with a steal. A vehement protest by Oregon State produced a pair of technical fouls. Hanson calmly drilled the six free throws awarded to the Sun Devils to clinch ASU's second Pac-12 win of the season.
Hanson and Loville both had high praise for their teammate who helped put ASU in position to win the game.
"She's putting in the work," Hanson said of Levings. "What you see tonight is not just out of the blue, it's hours and hours of continued work and intentional practice."
Added Loville, "Katelyn is working. She works in the morning with the coaches, before practice. She's working, so I've got to credit that."
Gilles and Loville scored the game's first four points to give ASU the early advantage. After the Beavers tied the game at 6-6, the Sun Devils would reclaim a four-point lead after Loville's triple put ASU up 12-8. The Beavers scored the next five points to take their first lead of the game, 13-12. Loville's jumper gave the lead back to ASU. The Sun Devils would retain their 14-13 lead for the remained of the quarter as neither team scored over the last two-plus minutes of the frame.
A 3-pointer by Levings gave ASU a five-point lead three minutes into the second quarter. ASU led by as many as six in the half after Taya Hanson's 3-pointer midway through the frame put ASU up 26-20. However, the Beavers came right back scoring six of the game's next seven points to tie the game at 27-27. ASU would end up taking a slight 31-29 lead into the locker room.
For the Sun Devils, Friday's game was the third game of a seven-game span against teams currently among the top third of the Pac-12 standings.
ASU returns to action on Sunday (2 p.m. MST) when it hosts No. 19 Oregon in the program's annual Pink Game for Breast Cancer Awareness.