Dec. 29, 1997
Sun Devil Women Down Oklahoma 87-76
TEMPE, Ariz.-- Five Sun Devils reached double figures in scoring - paced by 16 points apiece from local products Kisha White (Phoenix, Ariz.) and Rachel Holt - (Buckeye, Ariz.) as ASU (4-5 overall) held off Oklahoma (4-5) 87-76 Monday night at the University Activity Center.
"We're playing much better and we're rebounding better," said ASU Coach Charli Turner Thorne. "Now we just need to sustain this kind of effort night-in and night-out. This was a pretty good performance considering we had five days off."
Taking a 42-34 edge into the second period, ASU increased its lead to 10 points (60-50) with just over 12 minutes to go after freshman guard Leaf Newman (Perris, Calif.) and junior guard Michelle Tom (Winslow, Ariz.) both drained a pair of free throws. A three-pointer by senior forward Stephanie Freeman at the 7-minute mark gave the Sun Devils a 73-60 edge, and the Sooners did not come any closer than six points before the final buzzer.
After jumping out to a 12-5 lead, ASU was outscored 10-5, and Oklahoma pulled ahead 15-14 with 11:28 left in the first half. The see-saw battle continued until the Sun Devils closed out the first stanza on a 9-0 run.
The Sooners were paced by sophomore Phylesha Whaley's 27 points and game-high tying six rebounds. Holt grabbed a team-high six boards for ASU, while Newman added five.
Oklahoma shot 50.9 percent (29-of-57) from the field to the Sun Devils' 49.2 percent (29-of-59); however, ASU made twice as many trips to the free-throw line, going 28-for-35 from the charity stripe. The Sooners were on fire from beyond the arc, connecting on 50.0 percent (6-of-12) from three-point range.
The Sun Devils open their Pac-10 slate Friday at USC, with tipoff set for 8 p.m. MST (7 p.m. PST). ASU then faces UCLA Sunday at 3 p.m. MST (2 p.m. PST). Both games can be heard live on KMVP 860 AM.