March 16, 2004
TEMPE, Ariz. -
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Making a school-record fifth consecutive postseason appearance, the Arizona State Sun Devils head to Las Vegas to take on the UNLV Lady Rebels Thursday night at Cox Pavilion in the first round of the Women's National Invitation Tournament. Arizona State is making its second straight appearance in the WNIT after advancing to the second round of the tournament last season. The Sun Devils hold a 17-11 record this year and finished in a tie for third in the Pac-10 with an 11-7 league record, marking the team's fourth straight winning season and the third time in four years that ASU has finished in the top half of the Pac-10. Arizona State heads to Las Vegas looking to snap the team's first three-game losing streak of the season after playing five of the team's last seven games away from Tempe. ASU is also looking to end a five-game slide in games away from Wells Fargo Arena and notch its first road victory since earning a road sweep of Oregon State and Oregon on Jan. 22 and 24.
UNLV holds a 22-7 record and finished third in the Mountain West Conference with a 10-4 mark this year. The Lady Rebels have won four of their last five games, most recently falling to Utah 59-55 in the semifinals of the Mountain West Conference tournament on March 12.
In the Series UNLV holds a 6-2 advantage in the series with Arizona State, while the two teams have not played since facing each other twice during the 1985-86 season. The Lady Rebels won both of the games that season with a 92-88 victory in the Dial Soap Classic in Tempe on and an 80-67 win in the 7-Up Desert Classic in Las Vegas, while ASU won games against UNLV in 1981-82 and 1983-84. ASU is 30-34 all time against teams from the Mountain West Conference.
UNLV Connection UNLV assistant coach Frozena Jerro is a 1993 graduate of Arizona State University and earned two letters as a member of the Sun Devil women's basketball team from 1991-93. Jerro played on ASU's 1992 NCAA Tournament team. She was formerly the head coach at Cal State Northridge and led the Matadors to the school's first NCAA Tournament appearance in 1999. Jerro was named the Big Sky Conference Coach of the Year in 1999 for her efforts.
ASU in the Postseason Eighth-year head coach Charli Turner Thorne has led her Sun Devils to a school-record five consecutive postseason bids including WNIT appearances in 2000 and 2003 and ASU's first back-to-back NCAA Tournament appearances in 20 years in 2001 and 2002. ASU previously had advanced to postseason play in three straight seasons (NWIT runner-up in 1981, NCAA Sweet Sixteen in 1982 and 1983).
This year's WNIT bid is ASU's third appearance in the WNIT. ASU holds a 7-8 record in the school's previous nine postseason appearances, including a 2-2 mark in the WNIT. Arizona State won its first postseason game in 19 years in 2002 when the team downed Wisconsin in the first round of the NCAA Tournament, while last year, ASU opened WNIT play with a 57-44 win over Hawai'i in Tempe on March 20, 2003 but fell at Baylor 85-62 in the second round on March 23.
About the WNIT The 2004 Women's National Invitation Tournament features a field of 32 teams in a single-elimination format. All games, including the semifinals and championship game, will be hosted by participating schools at on-campus sites. The winner of Thursday's game between ASU and UNLV will face the winner of a first-round match-up between Rice (21-9) and Arkansas State (19-9), being played in State University, Ark., on Thursday. Dates and locations of second-round games (and all games in the WNIT) will be determined after the conclusion of each contest.
Three Sun Devils on the 2004 All-Pac-10 Teams Three Sun Devils were named to the Pac-10 All-Conference teams this year. Junior point guard Kylan Loney earned first-team All-Pac-10 honors, becoming ASU's first first-team all-league selection since two-time honoree Amanda Levens was selected to the All-Pac-10 squad in 2002. It is the first all-league honor for Loney who was named to the honorable-mention Pac-10 All-Freshman team in 2002. Sophomore Kristen Kovesdy was named an honorable-mention All-Pac-10 selection after earning honorable-mention Pac-10 All-Freshman accolades last year.
Freshman Emily Westerberg has been selected to the Pac-10 All-Freshman first team, marking the seventh consecutive year that ASU has had a player garner mention on the all-rookie first- or honorable-mention team. Last season, ASU had three players earn Pac-10 All-Freshman honors with Jill Noe and Amy Denson earning first-team accolades and Kovesdy being named to the honorable-mention squad.
Tough Defense Arizona State has established itself as one of the top defensive teams in the Pac-10 Conference. The Sun Devils have led the league in at least one defensive category in each of the last six years (1998-99 to present). This year, ASU is pacing the Pac-10 in rebounding defense (31.9 rpg) and ranks second in scoring defense (61.5 ppg) and three-point defense (31.2 percent allowed). ASU led the Pac-10 in three-point defense in each of the previous two years and four of the last five-plus seasons, allowing opponents to shoot just 30.3 percent from beyond the arc since the start of the 1998-99 season to present (502-1657). The Sun Devils led the league in scoring and rebounding defense in both 2000-01 and 2001-02 and have held opponents to just 62.8 points and 33.9 rebounds per game over the last six seasons (11,247 points and 6074 rebounds, 179 games, 1998-99 to present).
Scoring Defense Including a season-low 40 points by Oregon on Feb. 19, Arizona State has allowed just 60.2 points per game in its last 16 games (963 points). ASU has held 15 opponents to 60 points or less this year and is 12-3 in those contests. The Sun Devils rank second in the Pac-10 in scoring defense at 61.5 points allowed per game. The 40 points by Oregon marked the fewest for an ASU opponent since the team earned a 56-40 win at California on Jan. 24, 2002. That 2001-02 Pac-10 Tournament champion and NCAA Tournament team held three opponents to 40 points on the season.
The Sun Devils held Arizona to 60 points in their Jan. 31 win over the Wildcats, 12.7 points below Arizona's season average of 72.7 points per game (first in the Pac-10), while ASU held Stanford to an average of 56.5 points per game in two meetings this year, 14.8 below the Cardinal's average of 71.3 ppg (second in the league), including 60 points on Jan. 8, a total which was the lowest scoring effort for the Cardinal at Maples Pavilion this year. On Nov. 28, ASU held Kansas State to 59 points, the second-lowest output of the year for the Wildcats who rank eighth in the nation in scoring offense at 76.4 points per game.
Notes from the Charity Stripe Arizona State has climbed to third in the Pac-10 in free throw shooting at 71.9 percent, while the team has shot 75.4 percent from the free throw line in the last 12 games (199-264), including a 96.0 percent effort during its season-ending trip to the state of Washington (13-14 at Washington on Feb. 26 and a season-best 11-11 at Washington State on Feb. 28). ASU's 71.9 percent effort this season at the line is the best for the Sun Devils since the 1986-87 team shot 72.4 percent from the line. The school record for free throw shooting in a season was set in 1978-79 when the Sun Devils knocked down 74.7 percent of their attempts from the charity stripe. Individually, junior Kylan Loney and sophomore Kristen Kovesdy are both ranked in the Pac-10's top 10 in free throw percentage with Loney coming in at fourth at 80.5 percent and Kovesdy ninth at 77.8.
Defending Against the Three Including a 15.4 percent night by UCLA on March 6 (2-13), ASU has allowed its last 17 opponents to shoot just 25.0 percent from beyond the arc (40-160). The Sun Devils led the league in three-point defense for Pac-10 games at 28.4 percent (48-169) this year and rank second in the Pac-10 for all games at 31.2 percent (83-266). The Sun Devils held Stanford, the league's top three-point shooting team at 37.9 percent and 7.63 treys per game, to just 8.0 percent (2-25) on Feb. 7. ASU allowed no three-pointers by then No. 25 Arizona on Jan. 4 (0-3), Cal on Jan. 10 (0-6) and USC on Jan. 17 (0-4).
Spreading the Wealth Arizona State has had five different players lead the team in scoring in the past 12 games. On the year, ASU has had seven different Sun Devils lead the team in scoring in at least one game paced by junior Betsy Boardman and sophomore Kristen Kovesdy who have each led the team in scoring seven times this year. During the team's five-game Pac-10 winning streak earlier this season, ASU had a different leading scorer in each of the five games. Here's a look at ASU's leading scorers in the last 12 games:
14 Kristen Kovesdy, at Oregon State, 1/22/04 13 Betsy Boardman, at Oregon, 1/24/04 32 Kylan Loney, vs. Arizona, 1/31/04 15 Carrie Buckner, vs. California, 2/5/04 18 Jenny Thigpin, vs. No. 7 Stanford, 2/7/04 13 Jenny Thigpin, at USC, 2/12/04 16 Kylan Loney, at UCLA, 2/14/04 14 Kylan Loney, vs. Oregon, 2/19/04 15 Carrie Buckner, vs. Oregon State, 2/21/04 12 Kylan Loney, at Washington, 2/26/04 19 Betsy Boardman, at Washington State, 2/28/04 14 Kristen Kovesdy, vs. UCLA, 3/6/04
Did Someone Break a Mirror or Something? Arizona State has endured four season-ending knee injuries this year, most recently leading scorer Betsy Boardman who tore the anterior cruciate ligament in her left knee in the closing minutes at Washington State on Feb. 28. It marked the second ACL tear in 18 months for the junior guard who missed all of last year after injuring her right knee on Oct. 13, 2002. Last year, Boardman was the top returning scorer and rebounder for ASU heading in the season prior to her injury.
This season also marked the second year in a row that the Sun Devils entered the season after losing their top returning scorer to an ACL tear in the preseason. Sophomore Jill Noe, a 2003 Pac-10 All-Freshman first-teamer, has missed the entire 2003-04 season after tearing the anterior cruciate ligament in her left knee Oct. 8 in preseason skillwork. Noe was the first Sun Devil rookie to lead the team in scoring since 1999, averaging 12.6 points per game, and finished second on the team in three-point shooting (35.5 percent), assists (2.7 assists per game) and steals (1.9 steals per game) in 2002-03. ASU also spent 2002-03 without forward Alexis Tate to season-ending knee injuries. Tate attempted a comeback this summer but was ultimately forced to end her career due to her injuries.
And last but not least, ASU lost its only senior, forward Jen Albert to an ACL tear on Dec. 28. A two-time Pac-10 All-Academic selection, Albert had played in 100 career games with six starts prior to her injury. With the injuries to Albert and Boardman, Arizona State currently has no four-year players on its active roster and only three juniors.
Last Time Out Freshman Noelle Quinn had 16 points and 10 rebounds as UCLA used a huge second-half run to defeat Arizona State 70-50 in the quarterfinals of the Pac-10 tournament on March 6.
Sophomore Nikki Blue added 14 points and eight rebounds and sophomore Lisa Willis also scored 14 as UCLA took control late against scrappy Arizona State.
Sophomore Kristen Kovesdy had 14 points and five boards for the Sun Devils. ASU was playing for the first time without leading scorer Betsy Boardman who suffered an ACL tear in ASU's regular-season finale at Washington State. The junior was averaging 10.6 points and 4.3 rebounds.
ASU went cold on offense in the second half. After sophomore Jenny Thigpin made a layup to pull within 37-36 at 13:55, the Sun Devils were held scoreless for the next 8:37 as UCLA used a 23-2 run to go up 60-38 with 3:59 to play.
The Bruins led 30-22 at halftime despite having no players in double figures in points and shooting 37.5 percent to Arizona State's 38.1 percent.
Hot Hands The Sun Devils shot 52.1 percent in their Feb. 21 win over Oregon State (13-25), marking the eighth time this year that the team bettered the 50-percent mark. ASU is 8-0 this year when shooting 50 percent or better from the field, including a season-best 58.2 percent at Holy Cross on Dec. 20 (32-55) and back-to-back 50-percent efforts vs. Cal on Feb. 5 (50 percent) and Arizona on Jan. 31 (53.5). In their last 14 games, the Sun Devils have shot 44.1 percent (310-703), up from their season mark of 42.2. Last year, ASU shot 50 percent or better just four times (no Pac-10 games), while six of the team's eight 50-percent efforts this year came in conference games. ASU shot 42.3 percent in Pac-10 games this year (third in the league) compared to just 38.6 percent in conference games last year (8th).
Wiping the Glass Arizona State continues to lead the Pac-10 in rebounding defense and rebounding margin. The team has outrebounded (or tied) 10 of its last 15 opponents and held those 15 teams to just 31.8 rebounds per game (477 rebounds), including a 40-26 advantage over Oregon (16-7 on the offensive glass) on Feb. 19 and a 34-26 edge over Oregon State (11-7) on Feb. 21. Cal's 25 rebounds on Feb. 5 marked a season low given up by the Sun Devils this year. The Sun Devils are averaging 37.4 boards per game to just 31.9 for their opponents (+5.5). In addition to leading the league, ASU ranks 30th in the nation in rebounding margin.
With their Pac-10-low 31.9 rebounds given up per game, the Sun Devils have a chance to set the school record for rebounding defense in a season. The school record for rebounding defense in a season is 33.1 rebounds per game allowed in 2001-02.
On the offensive glass, the team is averaging 13.6 rebounds per game, including a season-high 28 against Western Michigan on Dec. 5. Defensively, ASU has held its opponents to just 10.8 offensive rebounds per game, including a season-low six by California on Jan. 10 and seven by both Oregon and OSU on Feb. 19 and 21, respectively. ASU outrebounded Cal 19-6 on the offensive glass on Jan. 10, including a 12-4 margin in the second half.
Individually, sophomore Kristen Kovesdy is first on the team and 18th in the Pac-10 at 5.0 rebounds per game (139 rebounds), while sophomore Amy Denson is second on the team at 4.8 rebounds per game (133). Denson paced the team in rebounding in Pac-10 play this season, averaging 4.7 rebounds per league contest. The pair waged a dogfight for the team rebounding lead in 2002-03 as well with Kovesdy winning the battle at 6.1 rebounds per game (T10th in the Pac-10, 183 rbs.) and Denson second on the team and 15th in the league at 6.0 rpg (179 rbs.). In fact, the race was so close that ASU's coaches gave both players the rebounding award at the 2003 year-end banquet.
Lauding Loney Junior Kylan Loney ranks second on the team and 18th in the Pac-10 in scoring at 10.3 points per game. She paces the Sun Devil squad in assists (3.0), three-point shooting (39.3 percent) and free throw shooting (80.5 percent). She also finished second on the team in scoring for Pac-10 games at 10.8 points per contest. Loney has scored in double figures in four of the last six games, leading the team in scoring in three games. In that six-game stretch, she has averaged 11.5 points and 3.2 assists. Loney has also knocked down 41.2 percent of three-pointers in those six games (14-34) and 81.8 percent of her free throws (9-11), including her last nine FT attempts.
Keeping Up With Kovesdy Sophomore forward Kristen Kovesdy led the Sun Devils in scoring and field goal percentage in Pac-10 play this season. She finished first in the Pac-10 in field goal percentage in conference games, knocking down 58.9 percent of her attempts (73-124), and finished 17th in scoring in league games with 11.0 points per game.
Kovesdy has paced the team in scoring seven times this year, including 14 points on 5-of-6 shooting March 6 vs. UCLA. She turned in a career outing in ASU's overtime victory over then No. 24 Washington on Dec. 27. She scored a career-high 29 points on 12-of-14 shooting (also both career bests) and grabbed nine rebounds, just missing the fifth double-double of her career. She had her third 20-point game of the season with 24 points to lead ASU to its win over UCLA on Jan. 15. She knocked down 10-of-14 attempts from the field and all four of her attempts from the free throw line and added six rebounds, three blocked shots (tying her career high) and one steal.
Kovesdy is third on the squad and 20th in the Pac-10 in scoring at 10.0 points per game. She turned in the fourth double-double of her career and her first of the season with a then career-high 20 points on 9-of-12 shooting and 12 rebounds in ASU's Dec. 10 win over Texas A&M-Corpus Christi. She was also just one rebound shy of tying her career best in the category.
After starting the season shooting just 19.0 percent in the first four games (4-21), Kovesdy has made 61.3 percent of her field goals in the last 24 (98-160). Kovesdy ranks second in the Pac-10 in field goal percentage at 56.4 percent (102-181). She also leads the team and ranks 18th in the Pac-10 at 5.0 rebounds per game.
Notes From Beyond the Arc Arizona State has continued to shoot the ball well from beyond the arc, knocking down a season-best 50.0 percent of its three-pointers (6-12) Jan. 31 against Arizona. The Sun Devils rank third in the Pac-10 in three-point shooting, knocking down 34.7 percent of their attempts this year. With 120 three-pointers made in 28 games this season, the team has surpassed its total from all of last year (105 in 30 games). The Sun Devils tied the school record with nine treys (9-22) in their Dec. 27 win over Washington State, a feat that has been accomplished four other times in school history.
After knocking down 4-of-6 three-pointers Feb. 14 at UCLA and 3-of-5 Feb. 26 at Washington, junior Kylan Loney leads the team and is fifth in the Pac-10 at 39.3 percent (42-105). Loney has 44 three-pointers this year, while junior Betsy Boardman made 39. Loney is already tied for seventh on the ASU single-season chart for three-pointers made with 44, while Boardman's 39 treys tie her for 10th on that list.
Boardman knocked down a career-best 5-of-6 attempts Feb. 28 at Washington State, while Loney tied her career highs with five treys and nine three-point attempts Dec. 27 vs. Washington State and matched the feat with five three-pointers made Jan. 31 against Arizona. After starting the season shooting just 15.4 percent from the three-point line (2-13) in the first five games, Loney has shot 43.0 percent in the last 22 tilts (40-93). In Pac-10 play, Loney finished fifth in the league at 42.5 percent (31-73).
Boardman and Loney both already rank on the ASU career lists for three-pointers made and are just the fourth and fifth Sun Devils to knock down at least 100 treys in their careers. Boardman ranks fourth on that list with 112, while Loney is fifth with 102 (see page 3 for the career list). Boardman knocked down two or more treys in nine games and had at least one trey in all but four games this season. Loney has had more than one three-pointer fall in 11 contests this year.
ASU Single-Season Three-pointers Made 1. 60 Amanda Levens, 2000-01 2. 57 Amanda Levens, 2001-02 3. 56 Crystal Cobb, 1990-91 4. 52 Ryneldi Becenti, 1992-93 5. 49 Crystal Cobb, 1991-92 6. 47 Molly Tuter, 1996-97 7. 44 Kylan Loney, 2003-04 44 Kylan Loney, 2002-03 44 Stephanie Freeman, 1997-98 10. 39 Betsy Boardman, 2003-04 39 Jill Noe, 2002-03
On Board with Boardman Junior Betsy Boardman continues to lead the team and is ranked 16th in the Pac-10 in scoring at 10.6 points per game, including a game-high 19 points Feb. 28 at Washington State. She knocked down 7-of-10 attempts from the field, including a career-best 5-of-6 from beyond the arc against the Cougars.
Boardman will miss the rest of the 2003-04 season after tearing her second ACL in two seasons (left knee this year, right knee last year). In her career, Boardman, a two-time team captain, has played in and started 91 games and averaged 9.9 points, 4.1 rebounds and 1.7 steals per game.
Boardman led the team in scoring seven times and scored in double figures 15 times in 26 games this season, including a career-best 20 points against Western Michigan on Dec. 5.
Notes from the Road After turning in a 1-8 mark in Pac-10 road games last season, the Sun Devils finished with a 3-6 in league road contests this year with victories at California, Oregon State and Oregon. Overall, ASU is 4-7 in road games this year and played five of its last seven games away from Wells Fargo Arena. The Sun Devils head to Las Vegas this week looking to snap a five-game losing streak in contests away from Wells Fargo Arena (0-4 away, 0-1 neutral) with their last road win coming on Jan. 24 at Oregon.
Quick Notes
- This year's 17-11 overall record marks the fourth straight winning season for Arizona State and makes Charli Turner Thorne just the second coach in school history to lead her team to four consecutive winning seasons. The last time ASU had four straight winning seasons was from 1980-81 to 1983-84 under coach Juliene Simpson. During that stretch, ASU made two postseason appearances, advancing to the NCAA Tournament in 1982 and 1983.
- Arizona State leads the Pac-10 and is ranked 23rd in the country with an average of 16.6 assists per game, including 20 Feb. 19 against Oregon State and a season-high 27 in its Dec. 20 win at Holy Cross. Junior Kylan Loney leads the team and ranks 10th in the Pac-10 at 3.0 assists per game (84 assists), while juniors Carrie Buckner (74) and Betsy Boardman (69) trail right behind. For Buckner, her 74 assists are more than she had in her first two seasons combined (58), while Loney is already ranked ninth on the ASU career list with 292 assists in her three seasons.
- With 464 assists this season, Arizona State needs just 12 more assists to tie the school single-season of 476 dished out by the 2001-02 team.
- Junior Carrie Buckner would rank third in the Pac-10 in assist-to-turnover ratio at 1.72 but falls just short of league minimum of 3.0 assists per game to be listed in the league statistics.
- ASU's bench continues to produce in every game and has been outscored just nine times in 28 games this season. The Sun Devil bench players are turning in an average of 25.7 points per game this year, while a Sun Devil has led the team in scoring off the bench five times this season. Freshman Emily Westerberg (6.4 points per game) is leading the scoring off the bench, while sophomore Amy Denson (5.6), freshman Alisha Godette (4.5) and sophomores Jenny Thigpin (4.0) and YoVanna Rosenthal (3.5) are all turning solid scoring efforts in relief.
- The Sun Devils have averaged 13.5 steals per game in the last two games. ASU ranks third in the Pac-10 in steals with 9.9 thefts per contest. Junior Carrie Buckner paces the Sun Devils and is ninth in the Pac-10 at 1.75 thefts per game (49), while junior Betsy Boardman is 10th in the league at 1.69 (44).
- Junior Betsy Boardman has been named to the 2004 Academic All-America District VIII second team. It is the first academic all-district honor for Boardman who was a 2002 second-team Pac-10 All-Academic honoree. Boardman is a Maroon and Gold Scholar-Athlete who carries a 3.26 GPA in communication.
- With an 11-7 Pac-10 mark (tied for third), the Sun Devils turned in the third-best Pac-10 record in school history. In 2000-01 and 2001-02, ASU turned in a school-record 12-6 league mark, tying for first in 2001 and tying for second in 2002. In 2001, ASU earned a share of the team's first ever Pac-10 title, while in 2002, the team won the inaugural Pac-10 Tournament.
- ASU's five-game Pac-10 winning streak earlier this year was the first since since the team won a school-record seven consecutive league games in 2000-01. The Sun Devils turned in a school-record 12-6 Pac-10 mark in both 2000-01 and 2001-02, advancing to the NCAA Tournament in each of those years.
- After starting three true freshmen and two sophomores last year, the 2003-04 Sun Devil active roster is still a very young one featuring just four juniors, three sophomores and three freshmen. ASU's only senior, Jen Albert, and junior Betsy Boardman, a four-year player, are both out for the rest of the season with ACL tears. Sophomore Jill Noe, a Pac-10 All-Freshman selection and ASU's leading scorer last year, has been out all season after suffering an ACL tear in early October.