ASU WBB: ASU Sweeps Cal
After trailing the majority of the game, ASU basketball came back in the final minutes to win and sweep the Bears this year in conference play.
Arizona State improved to 15-4 and 5-2 in Pac-12 play defeating the Golden Bears 54-45.
Cal was able to maintain a small lead for the majority of the first half, and shut down the ASU offense, leaving them shooting a mere 28.6 percent from the field. The Bears worked a full-court press that left the Devils flustered trying to regain composure ultimately leading to numerous turnovers.
The Sun Devils also struggled in the paint as Cal was able to box them out. Center Kristin Anigwe had 10 rebounds in the first half alone which shut down a lot of offensive momentum for ASU.
Entering into the second half, huge performances from center Quinn Dornstauder, forward Sophie Brunner, and guard Robbi Ryan contributed to the turnaround for the Sun Devils late in the game.
Dornstauder had been shut down early in the game, constantly being shut-down in the paint and unable to get the easy layups. In the second half she was able to put 10 points on the board, sinking five out of eight shots to strengthen ASU’s lead.
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Ryan and Brunner led the team in points with 14 for the night. As always, Brunner’s presence on the court was a major boost for the team, but Ryan’s performance brought up the tempo for the Sun Devil’s and pushed them to gain the lead in the last quarter.
Anigwe led the Bears with 8 points and 15 rebounds despite ending the game a little early after being fouled out. The loss of this 6’4″ center allowed more presence in the paint for the Devils and ultimately stretch out their lead.
This huge win will hopefully carry-over to the next match-up for ASU against Stanford. Stanford (6-1) is currently ranked first in the Pac-12, tied with Oregon State.
Stanford will host ASU Sunday with tip-off at 4 p.m. MST. The game will be televised on Pac-12 Network.