TEMPE, Ariz. – Two days after overcoming an 11-point fourth-quarter deficit at GCU, the Sun Devil women's basketball team was unable replicate that same magic in an 88-64 loss to UMass on the first game of the inaugural Briann January Classic.
Jaddan Simmons and Tyi Skinner tied for the team lead in scoring with 15 points each. Freshman Journey Thompson, who had numerous contributions in ASU's win at GCU, not only had career highs in scoring and rebounds but took it a step further with her first career double-double (11 points and 10 rebounds).
The Minutewomen (8-1) shot 50 percent from the floor while the Sun Devils (6-2) were only able to connect on 30 percent of their shots. UMass' biggest advantage came in points in the paint where it nearly doubled ASU, 54-28. The Minutewomen were also plus-11 in rebounding (54-43).
"Rebounding is always a big thing. I thought [UMass] got a lot of second-chance opportunities," head coach Natasha Adair said. "We wanted to limit their paint points and I thought some, obviously, were off-the-dribble, but there were some paint points that were just off of second-chance opportunities. Their guards got in the mix on rebounds, their bigs, obviously, so if I had to say one area that we're going to continue to talk about, it's just limiting those second-chance opportunities."
Thompson, who had four points, three rebounds and one block in the fourth quarter of ASU's come-from-behind win over GCU, picked up right where she left off, accumulating her contributions while playing a season-high 28 minutes.
"It's definitely a confidence booster now that Coach A trusts me to put me into an intense game for a long period of time," Thompson said. "I appreciate her trust and I'm going to do the best I can with it and try to grow from here on out."
Sydney Erikstrup, who had a career-high 11 points on Wednesday night, knocked down a pair of triples, the second of which tied the game at 11-11 with 3:31 remaining in the opening quarter. Simmons added five points for the Sun Devils, who were on the wrong end of a 9-0 run over the last 2:07 and UMass took a 20-11 lead into the second quarter.
ASU got within eight points on two occasions early in the second quarter. After Imogen Greenslade's layup cut UMass' lead to 22-14, the Minutewomen countered with 12 straight points to swell their advantage to 34-14 midway through the second quarter.
Skinner's 3-pointer later in the quarter trimmed the lead to 14. ASU could draw no closer and UMass to a 42-26 lead at the half.
UMass outscored ASU 12-2 over the first four minutes of the second half to go up 54-28.
In addition to tying for the team lead in scoring, Simmons dished out a 2022-23 team-high six assists for the second straight game and had a season team-high and career-high five steals on Friday.
The Sun Devils conclude the Briann January Classic on Sunday (12:30 pm MST) when they host Missouri at Desert Financial Arena. The game can be seen on ASU's Live Stream and heard on KAZG 1440 AM.
Jaddan Simmons and Tyi Skinner tied for the team lead in scoring with 15 points each. Freshman Journey Thompson, who had numerous contributions in ASU's win at GCU, not only had career highs in scoring and rebounds but took it a step further with her first career double-double (11 points and 10 rebounds).
The Minutewomen (8-1) shot 50 percent from the floor while the Sun Devils (6-2) were only able to connect on 30 percent of their shots. UMass' biggest advantage came in points in the paint where it nearly doubled ASU, 54-28. The Minutewomen were also plus-11 in rebounding (54-43).
"Rebounding is always a big thing. I thought [UMass] got a lot of second-chance opportunities," head coach Natasha Adair said. "We wanted to limit their paint points and I thought some, obviously, were off-the-dribble, but there were some paint points that were just off of second-chance opportunities. Their guards got in the mix on rebounds, their bigs, obviously, so if I had to say one area that we're going to continue to talk about, it's just limiting those second-chance opportunities."
Thompson, who had four points, three rebounds and one block in the fourth quarter of ASU's come-from-behind win over GCU, picked up right where she left off, accumulating her contributions while playing a season-high 28 minutes.
"It's definitely a confidence booster now that Coach A trusts me to put me into an intense game for a long period of time," Thompson said. "I appreciate her trust and I'm going to do the best I can with it and try to grow from here on out."
Sydney Erikstrup, who had a career-high 11 points on Wednesday night, knocked down a pair of triples, the second of which tied the game at 11-11 with 3:31 remaining in the opening quarter. Simmons added five points for the Sun Devils, who were on the wrong end of a 9-0 run over the last 2:07 and UMass took a 20-11 lead into the second quarter.
ASU got within eight points on two occasions early in the second quarter. After Imogen Greenslade's layup cut UMass' lead to 22-14, the Minutewomen countered with 12 straight points to swell their advantage to 34-14 midway through the second quarter.
Skinner's 3-pointer later in the quarter trimmed the lead to 14. ASU could draw no closer and UMass to a 42-26 lead at the half.
UMass outscored ASU 12-2 over the first four minutes of the second half to go up 54-28.
In addition to tying for the team lead in scoring, Simmons dished out a 2022-23 team-high six assists for the second straight game and had a season team-high and career-high five steals on Friday.
The Sun Devils conclude the Briann January Classic on Sunday (12:30 pm MST) when they host Missouri at Desert Financial Arena. The game can be seen on ASU's Live Stream and heard on KAZG 1440 AM.