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Women's Basketball returns home to host Arizona on Wednesday

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Women's Basketball returns home to host Arizona on WednesdayWomen's Basketball returns home to host Arizona on Wednesday
Sun Devil Athletics

Sun Devil WBB (17-4, 4-4 Big 12) vs. Arizona (10-9, 1-7 Big 12)

Up next
Coming off a stretch in which it played eight of its last 11 games on the road going back to the middle of last month, the Sun Devil Women’s Basketball team (17-4, 4-4 Big 12) will play the first of three straight home games on Wednesday (6:30 p.m. MST) when it hosts Arizona (10-9, 1-7) at Desert Financial Arena.

Watch/Listen
Wednesday’s game vs. Arizona can be seen on ESPN+ (Alex Coil/former Sun Devil head coach Charli Turner Thorne). It can also be heard on KDUS AM 1060 (pregame coverage will start at 6 p.m. MST). The state of Arizona’s 2010 and 2019 Broadcaster of the Year, Jeff Munn, who on Dec. 4, 2025, was named a recipient of the Arizona Media Association Lifetime Service Award, is in his 22nd season as the voice of ASU WBB. He will be joined by former Sun Devil head coach Maura McHugh.

How good was that 15-0 start?
ASU started 15-0 this year after going 10-22 last year. How impressive is that? Since 1999-2000, only Nebraska has bounced back from a losing record to post more season-opening wins, as Nebraska won its first 30 in 2009-10 after going 15-16 in 2008-09.

On Dec. 6, head coach Molly Miller’s first ASU squad surpassed the 1991-92 team (9-0) for the best start in school history. With its win over Utah on New Year’s Eve, ASU tied the 2008-09 and 2015-16 teams for the longest winning streak in school history. It was not until Jan. 3 (71-62 at BYU) that ASU lost for the first time in 2025-26.

Best season-opening win streaks after losing record previous season (1999-00 to present)

  • 30 by Nebraska in 2009-10 (15-16 in 2008-09)
  • 15 by Arizona State in 2025-26 (10-22 in 2024-25)
  • 14 by Georgia in 2025-26 (13-19 in 2024-25)
  • 14 by TCU in 2023-24 (8-23 in 2022-23)
  • 14 by Indiana in 2013-14 (11-19 in 2012-13)

State of play

  • Prior to results of games played on Jan. 27, ASU (17-4, 4-4 Big 12) was tied with three other teams BYU (15-5, 4-4), Kansas State (11-10, 4-4), Colorado (13-7, 4-4) for seventh place in the Big 12 standings. Only three games separated the quartet of teams from the top spot.

• The Big 12 currently has four teams in the Top 25: No. 12 TCU (19-2, 7-1), No. 14 Baylor (18-3, 7-1), No. 21 Texas Tech (20-2, 7-2) and No. 22 West Virginia (17-4, 7-2). 

• For ASU, Wednesday’s game vs. Arizona is the first of three consecutive games it will play at home, where it is 11-0 this season. ASU will start the second half of Big 12 play with home games vs. Kansas State (Feb. 1) and vs. Oklahoma State (Feb. 4). 

• The Sun Devils are coming off a weekend in which they lost consecutive games for the first time this season: 53-43 at No. 22 West Virginia (Jan. 21) and 66-64 at Cincinnati (Jan. 24).  

• Against West Virginia, ASU was closer than the final score indicated to winning its first game against a ranked opponent since 2022. The Sun Devils led by as many as eight late in the third quarter and were tied at 41-41 in the final frame before the Mountaineers went on a 12-2 run in the final 2:45 of the game to claim the win.

• The Sun Devils held West Virginia to its second-lowest point total of the season, 25.6 points below its scoring average entering the game, and 11.1 percentage points below its usual 34.2 percent efficiency from beyond the arc.

• ASU came into the game at West Virginia averaging six more free throw attempts per game in Big 12 play than it did in non-conference play (22.3-16.5). Remarkably, in what can best be described as the rarest of statistical anomalies, the Sun Devils were not awarded a single free throw attempt in their loss to the Mountaineers, who attempted 19 free throws (14-19). 

• At Cincinnati, ASU got off to an outstanding start, outscoring the Bearcats 26-10 in the first quarter. Unfortunately for ASU, it experienced a 180-degree difference in the second quarter as Cincinnati held ASU to its lowest point total in a quarter this season (six) while scoring 19 of its own. Ultimately, the game came down to the final seconds and the Bearcats were able to capitalize on an ASU miscue and score the winning points with two seconds remaining.

• Gabby Elliott (17.0 ppg, 5.5 rpg) and McKinna Brackens (16.5 ppg, 5.0 rpg and 3.0 spg) combined to average 33.5 ppg in the two games.

Did you know, as a head coach, Molly Miller....?

  • Entered the 2025-26 campaign third in winning percentage among active coaches who have served at least five years as a Division I head coach. At the outset of the 2025-26 campaign, Miller (84.4 pct/297-55 career record) trailed only legendary coaches Geno Auriemma (88.3 percent/1,250-165 career record) and Kim Mulkey (85.9 percent/754-124 career record).
  • Including last season’s 32-3 record when she was coaching for Grand Canyon, is 49-6 over the last two seasons and has won 47 of her last 51 non-NCAA Tournament games going back to last season.
  • Has won her last 34 home games going back to the 2023-24 season when she was the head coach at GCU.
  • Won 300th game as an NCAA head coach on Nov. 13, 2025.

Series notes vs. Arizona

  • ASU has won 30 of the last 45 encounters; however, Arizona has claimed victories in 11 of the last 14 contests, including the last seven meetings.
  • ASU’s 81-77 win at home vs. No. 6/7 Arizona in the first meeting of 2022 (Feb. 11, 2022) – its last win over Arizona – was the second straight upset of a Top 10 Arizona squad. ASU knocked off the No. 9 Wildcats 66-64 (OT) in the 2020-21 rematch in Tempe (Feb. 28, 2021).
  • Arizona’s 58-53 win on Dec. 29, 2019, was its first in Tempe since 2000. ASU swept the season series in 2015, 2016 & 2018 and split with the Wildcats in 2017, 2019, 2021 and 2022.

Home sweet home

ASU’s 68-45 win over UCF on Jan. 7 represented its 10th win at home this season. The 2025-26 squad became the 28th in program history to win at least 10 home games going back to 1975-76. The 2014-15 team holds the record for most wins at home (16). The 2005-06 team is the only one in program history to go unbeaten at home (15-0). When playing at home, ASU has...

  • Outscored the opposition by an average of 69.0-51.4 (+17.6).
  • Is shooting 11.2 percentage points higher (46.1-34.9).
  • Only Colorado (63) has scored more than 60 points in Tempe.

Home away from home
Even when ASU is not playing in front of its fans at Desert Financial Arena, it has still performed at a high level, as it has won six of its 10 road games. The last time the Sun Devils had a winning record on the road was in 2018-19 when it went 7-4.

  • In its 10 road games, ASU is +4.5 in turnover margin and +5.2 in points off turnovers (18.7-13.5).
  • Individually, Gabby Elliott (19.2 ppg, 40 pct 3FGs/5.6 rpg) and McKinna Brackens (15.7 ppg, 5.8 rpg) have combined to average 34.9 ppg.
  • ASU’s four highest single-game individual scoring totals this season have all come on the road. Brackens: 31 points at Utah and Elliott 30 points at Gonzaga (Dec. 16), 27 points at Penn State (Dec. 9) and 24 points at San Diego (Nov. 13). In the contest at San Diego, Elliott knocked down six 3-pointers, one short of tying the program record.
  • ASU is 4-1 this season in games decided by five points or less, including 3-1 on the road: 55-53/OT at Oregon State (Dec. 14), 68-66 at Gonzaga (Dec. 16) and 69-68 at Utah (Dec. 31). Its only loss came at Cincinnati, 66-64 on Jan. 24.

It’s no coincidence ...  
When she assumed the reins of Sun Devil Women’s Basketball, Molly Miller emphasized defense as one of the pillars of success of her past teams, and it would be no different at ASU. Miller’s last two Grand Canyon teams were among the best in the nation in scoring defense: 19th in 23-24 (56.4 ppg) and 31st in 24-25 (57.2 ppg). It should come as no surprise that those teams won 83.6 percent of their games (56-11).

One of the biggest benefits of playing excellent defense is limiting the number of times a team finds itself in the unenviable position of having to chase the game. That has been a significant factor in ASU’s success this season. Other than its three losses, ASU has not faced a deficit larger than seven points (Coppin St., UNLV, Utah). In addition, ASU has led for at least half the game (20+ minutes) in all but four of its contests (at BYU, at TCU, at West Virginia), including 11 games it has led for 30+ minutes.

FUN FACT: Going back to her first season at Grand Canyon (2020-21), Molly Miller’s teams are 72-1 when holding the opposition to 55 or fewer points.

Dominant Devil defense  

  • As of Jan. 25, ASU is ranked among the top 60 teams in the nation in scoring defense (36th/57.3 ppg), turnovers forced per game (31st/21.0), and FG pct. defense (57th/37.3) and steals per game (51st/10.7 spg).
  • ASU has held the opposition to 13 or fewer points in a quarter 39 times this season, including single digits 15 times. At West Virginia (Jan. 21), the Mountaineers scored more than 13 points in a quarter only one time.
  • In its 67-44 win vs. San Francisco (Dec. 6), ASU held the Dons more than 30 points below their scoring average ... ASU’s 56-53 win over UNLV (Nov. 22) represented the first time the Lady Rebels were held to 53 or fewer points in 148 games ... In their 53-43 loss at West Virginia (Jan. 21), the Sun Devils held West Virginia to its second-lowest point total of the season (53), 25.6 points below its scoring average, and 11.1 percentage points below its usual 34.2 percent efficiency from beyond the arc.
  • On Dec. 14, Oregon State (15 points) became the first ASU opponent in six games to reach a double-digit point total in the second quarter. ASU’s previous five opponents scored a combined 28 points in the second quarter (5.6 ppg): Little Rock - 5, SEMO - 5, McNeese - 7, San Francisco - 7, Penn State - 4.
  • The opposition has had 20+ more turnovers 11 times, including a trio of 30+ TO games: 33 vs. Coppin St. (Nov. 3), 31 vs. San Francisco (Dec. 6) and a season-high 36 at Penn St. (Dec. 9).
  • As of Jan. 25, Gabby Elliott has two of the highest single-game steal totals in the Big 12: 8 vs. San Francisco, 7 vs. Coppin St.
  • In its win over Colorado (Dec. 21), ASU’s defense stepped up when it mattered most. After CU made its first three shots of the fourth quarter to pull within two points, 58-56, ASU forced CU into missing seven of its last nine shots and outscored CU 21-7 over the last 7:57 of the game.

Team notes

  • ASU has the top two rebounding games by a Big 12 team this season: vs. Utah Tech (62) and vs. Santa Clara (59). Its rebounding effort vs. Utah Tech represented the third time in the last 25 years it had at least 60 rebounds in a game.
  • ASU has outscored the opposition by an average of 19.8-13.5 in points off turnovers this season.
  • ASU has scored 20 or more points in a quarter 24 times.
  • In their win at San Diego (Nov. 13), the Sun Devils tied the single-game program record for most 3-pointers in a game (14). As of Jan. 23, ASU’s 63.6 shooting performance from beyond the arc in that game is the second-highest 3-point shooting percentage by a Big 12 team this season.
  • Six Sun Devils have led/tied for the team lead in scoring: Gabby Elliott (9x), McKinna Brackens (8x), Heloisa Carrera (4x), Marley Washenitz (1x), Amaya Williams (1x), Jyah LoVett (1x).
  • Seven Sun Devils have scored in double figures multiple times: Elliott (19x - including last nine games), Brackens (17x), Washenitz (9x), Carrera (8x), LoVett (3x), Amaya Williams (4x) and Last-Tear Poa (2x).
  • Seven Sun Devils have led or tied for the team lead in rebounding: Brackens (9x), Carrera (6x), Elliott (4x), Deborah Davenport (3x), Washenitz (1x), Martina Fantini (1x) and Poa (1x).
  • Elliott, Carrera and Washenitz have played and started in every game this season. Williams (three starts), LoVett, Davenport (two starts) and Fantini have also played in every game this season.

Individual player notes

  • Brackens scored a then-career high 23 points in consecutive games: at Santa Clara (Nov. 16) and vs. UNLV (Nov. 22), and set a new career standard in scoring with 31 points at Utah (Dec. 31).
  • Four different players have posted double-doubles this season: Brackens (6), Elliott (1), Poa (1) and Carrera (1).
  • Poa (10 assists vs. SEMO and vs. Coppin State) and Williams (11 assists at San Diego) have combined for three double-digit assist games this season. Williams’ 11 assists were the most for a Sun Devil in a single game since current graduate assistant Reili Richardson had 11 at Colorado State on Dec. 9, 2018. Poa hit the game-winning 3-pointer with 16 seconds remaining in overtime in ASU’s 55-53 win at Oregon State (Dec. 14).