WHAT: No. 18 Sun Devil WBB (13-4, 4-2 Pac-12) at California (14-4, 2-4 Pac-12)
WHEN: Friday at 8 p.m. PT/9 p.m. MT
WHERE: Haas Pavilion • Berkeley, California
TELEVISION: Pac-12 Arizona/Pac-12 Bay Area
RADIO: NBC Sports Radio AM 1060 and SDA TuneIn Channel
UP NEXT
The No. 18 Arizona State women's basketball team continues its current stretch of playing six of eight games on the road this weekend when it travels to the Bay Area to take on Cal (Friday at 8 p.m. PT/9 p.m. MT) and No. 10 Stanford (Sunday at 3 p.m. PT/4 p.m. MT).
The Sun Devils (13-4, 4-2 Pac-12) come into this week's games tied for fourth place in the Pac-12 with No. 13 UCLA (13-4, 4-2). Both teams trail Stanford (15-3, 5-1) and No. 11 Oregon State (16-2, 5-1), who are both tied for second place, by one game and first-place and current eighth-ranked Washington by 1.5 games.
The Sun Devils split their two contests at home last week, defeating Washington State 68-49 on Friday before falling short of upsetting Washington in a 65-54 decision on Sunday. Sophie Brunner (14.0 ppg, 12.0 rpg, ) and Reili Richardson (13.0 ppg, 5.5 rpg, 5.0 apg) led the Sun Devils in the two games. In the win over the Cougars Brunner recorded her fourth double-double of the season (20 points and a career-high 15 rebounds) while Richardson added 15 points. Against the Huskies Richardson led ASU with 11 points to go with a career-high seven rebounds and a career-high-tying seven assists while Brunner just missed her second consecutive double-double with eight points and nine rebounds. Washington closed the game with a 17-6 run over the final seven-plus minutes of the game to separate itself from the Sun Devils who tied the game at 48-48 after a jumper by Kianna Ibis. The start of Washington's final scoring burst coincided with the loss of Richardson, who was forced to leave the game with an ankle injury with 7:37 remaining. By the time Richardson returned after being treated on the bench the Sun Devils were down 59-50 with 2:54 left.
Friday's game will be a rematch of a New Year's Day, double-overtime thriller that saw the Sun Devils outlast Cal, 72-62. Brunner (game highs of 21 points and 12 rebounds) and Quinn Dornstauder (19 points, 10 rebounds) each posted double-doubles for the Sun Devils, who were coming off a loss to Stanford in their Pac-12 opener. Brunner, Dornstauder and fellow senior Kelsey Moos, who nearly had a double-double of her own with 11 points and eight rebounds, combined to grab 30 rebounds for the Sun Devils, who outrebounded Cal 51-36. Moos suffered a foot injury near the end of the second overtime and has not played since (missed last four games and is expected to return next month).
Friday's game is the second of a four-game stretch in which the aggregate record of the four opponents – vs. Washington (18-2), at Cal (14-4), at Stanford (15-3), at UCLA (13-4) – is 60-13 (.822).
This season represented the first time since 2002 that the Sun Devils opened the conference slate with the label of 'defending champions,' after tying with Oregon State last season for the league's top spot in the regular season standings (16-2). Prior to tying for the conference title last season the Sun Devils were in the runner-up spot in 2015 after finishing 15-3, one game behind Oregon State (16-2). One of the keys to ASU's Pac-12 success the last two seasons has been its ability to get out to fast starts. In 2015 the Sun Devils won their first seven Pac-12 games, which at the time was their best league start ever. They would surpass that mark last season after winning their first nine league games. In 2015 they did not lose their second Pac-12 game until the 12th conference game. Last season their second Pac-12 loss occurred the final day of the regular season.
COVERAGE
Friday's game at California can be seen live on Pac-12 Arizona/Bay Area (Krista Blunk/Tammy Blackburn) and heard on NBC Sports Radio AM 1060 and on the Sun Devil Athletics TuneIn Channel. Pregame radio coverage will begin at 8:30 p.m. in the Valley. Veteran broadcaster and the state of Arizona's 2010 Broadcaster of the Year Jeff Munn is in his 13th season as the voice of ASU women's basketball.
SERIES NOTES VERSUS CAL
ASU has faced Cal more times than any other team since the 2005-06 season (26x - both teams have won 13 games). That series includes five meetings in the Pac-12 Tournament, most recently last season's quarterfinal matchup won by Cal, 75-64. The Sun Devils won the front end of the series in 2014 and 2015 (68-59 win in Tempe/ 67-52 win in Berkeley) while Cal won the rematch each of those seasons (74-63 in Berkeley/50-49 in Tempe. The Sun Devils swept the two regular season contests last season (57-49 in Tempe and 67-49 in Berkeley) before Cal upset ASU in the aforementioned Pac-12 Tournament contest. Sophie Brunner averaged 13.7 points and 8.3 rebounds in the three meetings last season. ASU held Cal to 39 percent shooting in the first two meetings, but the Bears came back to connect on 69 percent of their shots in the Pac-12 Tournament game.
WHAT TO LOOK FOR
• This year ASU returned three senior starters – posts Sophie Brunner, Quinn Dornstauder and Kelsey Moos – from the 2015-16 team that captured a share of the Pac-12 regular season title, won 26 games (tied for third-highest in program history) and went on to earn a No. 2 seed in the NCAA Tournament (highest placement in program history). In addition, 2016 Pac-12 Coach of the Year Charli Turner Thorne welcomed a five-member freshman class – Sydney Goodson, Reili Richardson, Jamie Ruden, Kiara Russell and Robbi Ryan – that was ranked among the nation's top 10 signing classes when it was announced last fall, and Sara Hattis, a graduate post who will be eligible to play this season after transferring to ASU from the University of Texas in May.
• One of the biggest factors in ASU's recent Pac-12 success has been its ability to win on the road where they are a combined 17-3 in conference road games since 2015.
• ASU has held each of its first six Pac-12 opponents 12 or more points below their respective scoring average coming into the game: Stanford (76.4/64/-12.4), Cal (80.8/62/-18.8 - in double OT), Utah (72.1/44/-28.1), Colorado (78.3/51/27.3), Washington State (73.5/49/24.5), Washington (88.5 ppg/65/-23.1).
• ASU had held the opposition to 10 or fewer points in a quarter 17x this season.
• As of January 19, ASU is ranked among the top third in the Pac-12 in scoring defense (1st/54.2 ppg/12th in the nation), 3-point FG percentage defense (1st/23.7/2nd in the nation), rebounding defense (1st/29.6 rpg), offensive rebounds (2nd/15.9 rpg) and rebounding margin (2nd/+11.1/9th in the nation). Individually, Brunner is 4th in offensive rebounds (3.5 rpg), 7th in FG pct. (53.4), 9th in rebounds (7.7 rpg) and 17th in scoring (12.5 ppg); Dornstauder is 12th in shot blocks (1.3 bpg), 14th in rebounds (5.9 rpg) and 15th in offensive rebounds(2.1 rpg); Richardson is 3rd in assist-to-turnover ratio (2.3), 5th in FT pct. (81.4), 12th in assists (4.2 apg) and 30th in scoring (9.7 ppg); and Moos is 10th in steals (1.8 spg), 13th in offensive rebounds (2.2 rpg) and 15th in rebounds (5.8).
• Currently with 1,169 points/14th, Brunner needs 61 points to break into ASU's Top 10 for career points. She needs 15 rebounds (currently has 809 career boards) to pass Monique Ambers for second place on ASU's all-time rebounds list. Brunner, who collected the 19th double-double of her career (20 points, career-high 15 rebounds) vs. WSU on Jan. 13, is averaging 14.5 points and 9.9 rebounds and shooting 82.6 pct (19-23) from the line in ASU's last eight games.
• Quinn Dornstauder is averaging 12.8 points and 7.8 rebounds in ASU's last five games. She had double-doubles in ASU's wins over Cal (19 points, 10 rebounds) and Colorado (13 points, career-high 12 rebounds) and just missed a double-double in ASU's win over Utah (15 points, nine rebounds).
• Kelsey Moos, who has established new single-game career highs this season for assists (8) and steals (6) and tied a career high with three 3-pointers, is currently out (missed last four games) after suffering a foot injury in ASU's 2OT win over Cal (Jan. 1). She is expected to return next month.
• ASU's five member freshman class – Sydney Goodson, Reili Richardson, Jamie Ruden, Kiara Russell and Robbi Ryan – combined for 60 points and 19 assists the first two games of the season. Richardson was named the Pac-12's Freshman of the Week after averaging 9.0 points and 5.5 assists while connecting on 58 percent of her shots in the two wins. Richardson, who had seven points and seven assists in her Sun Devil debut, tied fellow freshman Robbi Ryan with a game-high 11 points (4-7 FGs) to go along with four assists in ASU's 82-37 win over San Jose State. Ryan scored 19 points in ASU's loss at Marquette (Nov. 19). Ryan also led ASU in scoring (13 points) in its win at Middle Tennessee (Dec. 13). She has started ASU's last four games (8.3 ppg/50.0 FG pct.) in place of Kelsey Moos, who is currently out due to injury.
• Russell started the first seven games at point guard before getting injured during the week of preparation for ASU's game at Kentucky (Dec. 11). She missed six games before returning for ASU's game at Utah (Jan. 6). Richardson has started the last 10 games at point guard and has averaged 11.3 points and 4.6 assists while shooting 89 pct (32-36) from the line during that stretch. In her first career start against Kentucky Richardson accounted for 12 points, six assists and four rebounds while playing 40-plus minutes. Last week she scored a career-high 15 points vs. WSU and followed that by scoring 11 points to go with a career-best seven rebounds and a career-high-tying seven assists vs. Washington. Richardson needs 34 assists to break ASU's freshman assists record.
SUN DEVILS CONTINUE TO BE AMONG THE PAC-12'S BEST
In what has arguably been the most competitive era in the history of Pac-12 women's basketball, Arizona State has established itself as one of the conference's most successful programs. Since 2015 ASU's 35 wins in Pac-12 play trail only Oregon State's 37. In 2015 the Sun Devils just missed tying for a share of the Pac-12 regular season title, a feat they would accomplish last season after tying Oregon State in the league standings (16-2).
ASU's win over Holy Cross on Dec. 21 was its 40th regular-season, non-conference win in the last four seasons. Going back to the 1986-87 season – the first season of Pac-10/Pac-12 play – ASU's 40 regular-season, non-conference wins are by far the most in a four-season stretch in program history (the next highest total is 33 games done three times: 2003-06/2004-07/2005-08). In addition, ASU's 40 wins leading up to the start of the conference season are more than any other team in the Pac-12 the last four seasons. This was the fourth straight season that ASU brought a winning streak of six or more games into Pac-12 play. The 2013-14 team won 10 straight, the 2014-15 team won seven straight, the 2015-16 team won six straight and this year's team will brought a seven-game winning streak into league play.
SUN DEVIL WBB JUST AS SUCCESSFUL IN THE CLASSROOM AS IT IS ON THE COURT
For the Fall 2016 semester the Sun Devil WBB team turned in an extraordinary effort in the classroom that resulted in a 3.63 team GPA. Every player on the roster has a cumulative GPA about 3.0, including nine players with a cumulative GPA of 3.4 or higher.
Since the 1996-97 season, Turner Thorne's first season at ASU, the Sun Devils lead the Pac-12 in the number of first-team All-Academic conference awards (19) and the combined number of first- and second-team All-Academic conference awards (40). In 2014-15 ASU's team GPA (3.558) was No. 7 on the Women's Basketball Coaches Association's (WBCA) 2015 Academic Honor Roll.
BRUNNER NOMINATED FOR WBCA/ALLSTATE GOOD WORKS TEAM AND SENIOR CLASS AWARD
In December Sophie Brunner was one of 97 women's basketball student-athletes named as nominees for the 2017 Allstate WBCA Good Works Team®. The esteemed award honors an outstanding group of student-athletes who represent the sport's finest in the areas of community service and leadership among their peers. The Allstate WBCA Good Works Team® recognizes players at all levels of college basketball whose charitable involvement and altruistic acts stand out amongst all other student-athletes participating in the sport. Brunner's selfless and giving attitude has been on display since her freshman year when she volunteered to be a frequent participant in the Sun Devil women's basketball team's Character Code program. Since that time Brunner, who was also a nominee for the Good Works Team in 2015, has led assemblies in more than 30 schools across the Valley where she encourages youth to practice good character at home, at school and with friends. In 2014 Brunner joined a group of Sun Devil student-athletes who traveled with ASU American Indian students to Hopi and Navajo lands as part of the ASU Tribal Nations Tour. Sophie joined her peers in the endeavor to interact with tribal members, encourage higher education and wellness, and work on community service projects. Brunner's community service efforts have also included being a leader in the Interact Program, where she performed service projects for the underserved, made holiday baskets and kits for Haiti and organized food drives. She also took part in DAWG, a drug and alcohol awareness group promoting sobriety and mentoring her peers.
On January 5 it was announced Brunner was one of 30 student-athletes named as candidates for the 2016-17 Senior CLASS Award® in women's basketball. An acronym for Celebrating Loyalty and Achievement for Staying in School ®, the Senior CLASS Award focuses on the total student-athlete and encourages students to use their platform in athletics to make a positive impact as leaders in their communities. To be eligible for the award, a student-athlete must be classified as an NCAA Division I senior and have notable achievements in four areas of excellence: community, classroom, character and competition.
FREE THROWS
• ASU was picked to finish in fourth place in the Pac-12 by both the league's coaches and media who cover the conference. The Sun Devils received one first-place vote in the media poll.
• Over the last three seasons ASU is 40-7 (.851) in regular-season non-conference games and 52-8 (.867) at home.
• ASU is 35-7 in regular season Pac-12 games going back to 2015. Prior to its loss at Oregon State last season, ASU's 9-0 record in Pac-12 play was its best conference start in program history (surpassed last 7-0 start in 2015).
• The Sun Devils are 25-4 in road games since the start of the 2014-15 season (includes a 17-3 mark in Pac-12 play). Last season the Sun Devils set a program record with 11 road wins.
• ASU has allowed an average of only 55.1 points per game since the start of the 2014-15 season (85 games). ASU has held the opposition to 50 or fewer points 31 times during that stretch. They are 30-1 in those contests. The only loss came at home to Cal (50-49) on Feb. 8, 2015. On average, opposing teams scored more than 15.0 points under their scoring average when facing ASU last season. In fact, only two opponents (Marquette and Tennessee), scored more points than what they averaged coming into their respective games vs. ASU.
• In the last three-plus seasons the Sun Devils are 27-6 in games decided by five points or less and/or overtime, including a 2-0 record this season: ASU's 73-71 overtime win at No. 15 Kentucky on Dec. 11 and its 72-62, double-OT win vs. No. 21 Cal on Jan. 1.
CHARLI TURNER THORNE HAS SUN DEVIL WBB AMONG NATION'S ELITE
The all-time winningest coach in program history and No. 2 in the Pac-12 in career wins (393), Charli Turner Thorne has turned Sun Devil women's basketball into one of the nation's premiere programs since taking over in 1996-97. Included in ASU's earlier run of 13 consecutive postseason appearances (2000-12) were a school record five-consecutive NCAA Tournament bids from 2005-09. During that time the Sun Devils qualified for the Elite Eight on a pair of occasions, making ASU one of only 15 programs in the country to have qualified for the Elite Eight at least two times between 2007-12.
Last season Turner Thorne was named the 2016 Pac-12 Coach of the Year (coaches and media), the second time she has been recognized with the honor (2001), after leading the Sun Devils to their second regular season Pac-12 championship. ASU would go on to earn its highest NCAA Tournament seed (No. 2) in program history. In 2016 ASU has also tied the program records for most conference wins (16) and consecutive wins (15) and set the program record for most road wins (11). Turner Thorne would go on to also be named the WBCA Region 5 Co-Coach of the Year.
In 2014-15 Turner Thorne was named one of 10 semifinalists for the Naismith Women's College Coach of the Year for a season in which she led the Sun Devils to their best start in school history (18-1), their best conference start in school history (7-0), a second-place finish in the Pac-12 and 29 wins, the second-highest number of wins in school history.
In 2013-14 Turner Thorne, who recorded both the 400th win of her coaching career and her 200th Pac-12 win last season, raised the curtain on the team's current era of success as she helped the Sun Devils post one of the best turnarounds in the country as they went from a 13-18 record and a ninth-place Pac-12 finish (5-13) in 2012-13 to a 23-10 record and fourth-place Pac-12 finish (11-7). Included among ASU's 23 wins in 2013-14 were three triumphs over Top 25 teams.
The outstanding success Sun Devil women's basketball has enjoyed under Turner Thorne is a 180-degree difference from the program that had an aggregate record of 20-60 in the three years prior to her arrival and only two NCAA Tournament wins in its history.
CELEBRATING ELITE ACCOMPLISHMENT
This season will be the 10th anniversary of ASU's first ever appearance in the NCAA Elite Eight. Led by senior forwards Aubree Johnson and Emily Westerberg who were both named to the All-Pac-10 Team, ASU set school records for overall wins (31), most Pac-10 wins (16 - tied in 2016) and most road wins (10 - broken in 2016) With the honor, Westerberg became the first Sun Devil to be named to the All-Pac-10 Team three times. In addition to Johnson and Westerberg's accolades, sophomore guard Briann January was named All-Pac-10 Honorable Mention and guard Dymond Simon was named to the Pac-10 All-Freshman Team.
INJURY REPORT
Kelsey Moos suffered a foot injury late in the second overtime of ASU's win over Cal on Jan. 1 and has missed ASU's last four games. She is expected to return next month. Freshman guard Kiara Russell started the first seven games of the season at point guard before sustaining an injury (quad) in practice on Dec. 5. She missed six games and returned to action at Utah on Jan. 6. Freshman post Jamie Ruden suffered a foot injury in practice on Dec. 28 and is likely to miss the remainder of the season.
SUN DEVIL WBB ANNOUNCES THE SIGNING OF EVA RUBIN AND BRE'YANNA SANDERS
On Nov. 9, 2016, Arizona State University head women's basketball coach Charli Turner Thorne announced that student-athletes Eva Rubin and Bre'yanna Sanders signed national letters of intent to join the Sun Devil women's basketball program.
"We are excited to announce that Eva and Bre will be joining our Sun Devil women's basketball family," Turner Thorne said. "Both of these young women come from great families and will not only excel on the court but in the classroom and our community."
A 6-5 post, Rubin will be coming to ASU from Homewood-Flossmoor High School in Flossmoor, Illinois, where she averaged 15 points, eight rebounds and four blocks as a junior in 2016. Ranked No. 14 at her position by ESPN.com, Rubin earned Class 3A/4A All-State recognition from the Illinois Basketball Coaches Association last season in addition to also being named to the All-Area and All-Conference teams. As a sophomore in 2015, Rubin helped lead her squad to a fourth-place finish in the IHSA 4A state tournament. During Homewood-Flossmoor's run in the tournament, Rubin tied a Class 4A single-game record with five blocked shots.
A 6-0 forward, Sanders will be joining the Sun Devils from Clovis West High School in Fresno, California, where she has earned first-team All-Valley recognition in addition to being named the team's defensive player of the year each of the last two seasons. In 2016 Sanders averaged 11.0 points, 6.4 rebounds, 2.9 steals and 2.2 blocks in helping lead her team to 30-4 record and the semifinals of the Southern California Regional Open Division. She would go on to be named the league co-player of the year. In 2015 Sanders had a big role on a team that posted a 26-5 record, its third straight Central Section Division I title and reached the second round of the Southern California Open Division regional.