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ASU Basketball: Brunner’s Incredible Shot Gives ASU Momentum and the Win

ByJordan Kaye|
Mar 23, 2015; Tempe, AZ, USA; Arizona State Sun Devils forward Sophie Brunner (21) shoots over UALR Trojans forward Kaitlyn Pratt (40) during the second half in the second round of the women's NCAA Tournament at Wells Fargo Arena. The Sun Devils won 57-54. Mandatory Credit: Casey Sapio-USA TODAY Sports
Mar 23, 2015; Tempe, AZ, USA; Arizona State Sun Devils forward Sophie Brunner (21) shoots over UALR Trojans forward Kaitlyn Pratt (40) during the second half in the second round of the women's NCAA Tournament at Wells Fargo Arena. The Sun Devils won 57-54. Mandatory Credit: Casey Sapio-USA TODAY Sports

The ASU basketball women’s team (18-10, 9-8) got an exciting 69-62 win over USC after a fourth quarter explosion.

In their first meeting of the season, ASU basketball lead by one at half, but USC outscored the Devils 40-24 in the second half, winning by 16.

It looked like it could be heading for the same type second half, as USC lead by three with a minute left in the third

Kelsey Moos then tied the game with a corner three; and as time was expiring, Sophie Brunner heaved up a 75-foot shot from the other free throw line and banked it in as the buzzer sounded.

“I have no idea how that went in,” Brunner said of her amazing shot, “I thought I was going to air ball it . . . and somehow it went in.”

“She’s a beast, the kid does chin-ups with a 45 pound plate between her legs,” head coach Charli Turner Thorne said of Sophie Brunner’s ability to even get the ball to the rim.

The ASU bench mobbed Brunner tackling her to the ground as USC looked stunned. Her shot gave the Sun Devils the lead and the momentum heading into a forth quarter in which they fell apart in their last meeting with USC.

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The Devils flipped the script on USC from last game, exploding in the fourth, outscoring the Trojans 18-6 to start the quarter after Brunner’s shot.

“We felt the momentum shift,” Turner Thorne said, “I thought we just cranked it up in the fourth quarter”

ASU made it key to get the ball down low early and often. At half, the Devils had only made one basket that didn’t come in the paint.

“The difference was just our energy, I just thought we stepped up, we scored,” Turner Thorne said of the difference in ASU’s two games vs. USC, “We missed shots last time, we didn’t execute as well . . . we were just really tired.”

Brunner and center Quinn Dornstauder were the main factors of ASU’s dominance down low.   Dornstauder finished with 19 points and 6 rebounds, only to be topped by the star of the night Sophie Brunner who finished with a game high 20 points and 8 rebounds.

The Sun Devils also implemented a zone defense against the Trojans, forcing USC to take 21 three pointers. The zone allowed ASU to cover more space while not allowing too many points in the paint.

“The goal was to cover,” Turner Thorne said of the zone defense, “ We had more time to prepare, so it was good, because I think they believed.

The guards looked much more poised this game than most, not when it came to the stat sheet, but in their decision making. It was most noticeable with the shot clock winding down. Instead of panicking and chucking up a three, the guards behind the 942 Crew’s countdown, still tried to get the ball down low as the shot clock got below 10.

“I think finally the younger players are starting to realize its go time,” Brunner said, “You know March is right around the corner and after this weekend no game is guaranteed.

Next: ASU WBB: Los Angeles Women's Roundtable

The Sun Devils will finish out their regular season Sunday, as they face No.15 UCLA, who they lost to 69-60 back in January. Also with an Oregon loss Friday night ASU locked up the number five seed in the PAC-12 tournament.