Arizona State Sun Devils
Pac-12 (27-5, 15-3)
Arizona State has been one of the best stories in women’s college basketball this season as they have stepped up and done something that has been very difficult for years and that is beat Stanford. The Sun Devils ability to beat the Cardinal on multiple occasions was not only significant for the Arizona State program, but for the overall growth of west coast women’s basketball. This Sun Devil team has the right mix of quality guard play and mental toughness to make a deep run in the NCAA Tournament.
Big Wins: 1/3 Washington (62-48), 1/16 at California (67-52), 1/19 at Stanford (60-57)
Bad Losses: 11/29 vs Green Bay (57-63), 1/25 Oregon State (57-68), 2/8 California (49-50)
Coach: Charli Turner Thorne
Why They Can Surprise:
The ability to win on the road has been a significant reason as to why this Arizona State team is such a high seed and a sleeper to make a run to the Elite Eight and Final Four. In addition, the depth in the backcourt with the trio of Elisha Davis, Katie Hempen and Promise Amukamura provide the necessary mix of distribution of the ball, creating turnovers and shooting that you need in order to make a run to the Final Four. Finally, the ability to get over the hump and beat Stanford twice in the regular season should give the Sun Devils a ton of confidence when things get tough late in an NCAA Tournament game.
Why They Can Disappoint:
The inability to shoot consistently from the perimeter, like they did in the loss to California where the Sun Devils only shot just over 20 percent from behind the three point arc in the first half, is a concern. They also can disappoint if Kelsey Moos gets into early foul trouble as Arizona State does not have a ton of depth down in the low blocks to withstand significant foul trouble. It would then become critical for Quinn Dornstauder to step up big like she did in the 53-52 win over Stanford back on February 6th when she scored 22 points to lead Arizona State to the victory.
Probable Starters:
Katie Hempen, Redshirt Junior, Guard, 11.5 ppg, 2.5 apg
Promise Amukamura, Senior, Guard, 10.9 ppg, 2.0 apg
Elisha Davis, Junior, Guard, 7.7 ppg, 4.5 apg,
Sophie Brunner, Sophomore, Forward, 11.7 ppg, 7.5 rpg
Kelsey Moos, Sophomore, Center, 7.1 ppg, 5.5 rpg
Key Roleplayers:
Eliza Normen, Junior, Guard, 3.2 ppg
Arnecia Hawkins, Junior, Guard, 3.9 ppg
Peace Amukamura, Senior, Guard, 3.4 ppg, 2.0 apg
Quinn Dornstauder, Sophomore, Center, 7.7 ppg, 5.0 rpg, 1.0 bpg
By the Numbers:
Scoring Offense: 68.4 (98th in nation, 7th in conference)
Scoring Defense: 55.8 (24, 1)
Field-Goal Percentage: 44.1 (26, 3)
Field-Goal Defense: 41.7 (281, 9)
Three-Point Field Goals Per Game: 4.9 (190, 7)
Three-Point Field-Goal Percentage: 36.0 (26, 4)
Free-Throw Percentage: 70.3 (128, 6)
Rebound Margin: 4.8 (52, 3)
Assists Per Game: 14.8 (73, 4)
Turnovers Per Game: 13.9 (42, 4)
Recent Postseason Appearances:
2014 NCAA First Round win over Vanderbilt
2014 NCAA Second Round loss to Notre Dame
2012 NIT First Round loss to Pacific
2011 NCAA Round of 64 loss to Temple
2010 NIT Round of 64 win over New Mexico State
2010 NIT Round of 32 loss to BYU
2009 NCAA Round of 64 win over Georgia
2009 NCAA Round of 32 win over Florida State
2009 NCAA Regional Semifinal win over Texas A&M
2009 NCAA Regional Final loss to Connecticut
2008 NCAA Round of 64 win over Temple
2008 NCAA Round of 32 loss to Duke
2007 NCAA Round of 64 win over UC Riverside
2007 NCAA Round of 32 win over Louisville
2007 NCAA Regional Semifinal win over Bowling Green
2007 NCAA Regional Final loss to Rutgers
*all team stats through 3/5
See All Women’s Basketball Postseason Capsules
