ASU Basketball: Sun Devils look to bounce back against Utah

ASU women’s basketball returns home after losing both games in Oregon to host Utah Friday morning after the Sun Devils won the first meeting 83-81.

ASU’s perfect 4-0 start to conference play ended after their 0-2 performance in the state of Oregon. But, the Devils look to stay unbeaten at home as they return to face Utah Friday.

This is the second time Arizona State will take on Utah this season. On New Year’s Eve, the Sun Devils won in Salt Lake City 83-81 led by Kianna Ibis’ 30-point outing.

Offensively, ASU shot well in that game at 47.8 percent from the floor and 46.2 percent from three. They moved the ball well as half of their scores were assisted and six different players scored nine points or higher.

ASU struggled to defend Utah though, especially late in the game. The Devils led by 17 at one point, but the Utes’ strong second half resulted in Utah taking the lead with 22 seconds remaining. The Utes scored 26 points in the final frame. Megan Huff and Daneesha Provo combined for 40 points for the game.

When asked about adjustments from the last time these two met, Head Coach Charli Turner Thorne stated that “we gave up a lot of layups…we can play harder and play a little better team defense.”

Unfortunately for ASU, the status of Jamie Ruden (concussion) is still unknown. She is the team’s second leading scorer with 10.3 points per game. She scored nine points, including the game winning layup with 11 seconds left, the last time the two faced off.

Ruden is a matchup nightmare as a big who can score from the outside. She shoots 53 percent from three and can open up the paint for bigs Kianna Ibis or Charnea Johnson-Chapman to score inside.

Utah comes into Tempe after losing two straight games at home to UCLA and USC. The offense failed to get going last Sunday against USC as the Utes failed to score more than 14 points in any quarter. They also shot just 3-of-17 from three.

Utah freshman guard Tori Williams did not play in the Dec. 31 matchup. She has the second most assists and steals on the team, along with the fourth most points with 8.7 per game. She will be available on Friday.

Next: ASU Basketball: Sun Devils fall to #8 Oregon in Eugene

Arizona State enters Friday’s matchup at 13-5 and 4-2 in Pac-12 play. The Devils are also 8-0 at home. Utah sits at 12-5 and is 3-3 against conference teams. The Utes have not beaten ASU since 2013.

All quotes in this article were obtained firsthand by Devils in Detail unless otherwise noted.