TEMPE- The Arizona State Sun Devils won their fifth consecutive game of the Molly Miller era in the first of their six-game homestand in a thriller over the UNLV Lady Rebels, thanks to a heroic three-pointer.
Head coach Molly Miller drew up a play, intending for fifth-year guard Gabby Elliott to drill the game-winning shot by two or three points.
Everything changed when senior guard Gabby Washenitz came in clutch big time as she made her first shot of the game, drilling a no-look, buzzer-beating three-pointer to hand Arizona State the victory.
At this moment, she was shocked that the ball ultimately went in the basket, and the Sun Devils were huddling around, hugging her to celebrate a special moment at the final buzzer.
"Bank's probably a better word to explain that, but honestly, I was in disbelief," Washenitz said. "You couldn't tell from my reaction, but honestly, I couldn't have cared less or more who would have scored that 3 or 2 points, as long as we got on the board and put ourselves in a position to win the game, that's all that I really cared about. I knew the clock was ticking down, and I was like, someone needs to do. So I just grabbed the ball and just threw it up, obviously. But I mean, a win like this for McKinna [Brackens] is all I really wanted. It didn't matter how we got it, as long as we got it."
Although Washenitz had a rough shooting night and got in foul trouble on the court, she contributed on both ends of the court and helped Arizona State get the win.
"Here's the thing that sticks out to me in that moment is, Marley didn't have a great shooting night," Miller said. "She didn't fill up this box score, but she played 40 minutes for us, and she kept at it. That's her every single day. So that's like good Juju for her, because she puts it out into the universe every single day that she is a fighter. She's tough, she's not going to back down, she's going to keep on going.
"So, maybe what would have happened in that mind? Oh, there's a loose ball going out of bounds. We messed up the play, and we didn't get a shot off. No, she grabbed that thing, she threw it up. And what a fun moment for her, and that's just her, she's never going to give up on any play at any point in the game."
During a postgame conference, Miller handed the game ball to Phoenix mayor Kate Gallego, who was in attendance at the game on Saturday.
The city of Phoenix will host its first-ever Women's Final Four in April 2026, having hosted the 2024 WNBA All-Star game and 2025 WNBA Finals.
"We really feel like Phoenix is a great basketball city, but I have been very focused on women's basketball," Gallego said. "We recruited the WNBA All-Star game, and then we were able to successfully bid for the NCAA Women's Final Four. So we feel like women's basketball is having an incredible moment right now, but it's really taking it to the next level."
In the first quarter, the Sun Devils shot 3-for-16 from the field and were limited to just seven points by the Lady Rebels' defense, which also had two blocked shots.
Arizona State's performance on both offense and defense has stepped up in the second quarter after a rough showing in the opening quarter.
Despite the backcourt duo of Gabby Washenitz and Gabby Elliott being limited to just single digits in the first half, head coach Molly Miller and Arizona State found ways to step up.
Forwards McKinna Brackens and Heloisa Carrera both scored in double figures and recorded more than five rebounds for the Sun Devils in the first half.
"This team has been kind of by committee in that aspect," Miller said. "We don't just rely on one or two people out there to get the majority of our scoring. So, it was Gabby [Elliott] and [McKinna] Brackens last game. They [UNLV Lady Rebels] had a good game plan against Gabby.
"So I thought [Heloisa Carrera] really stepped up in that presence, and she's been great underneath the basket. She's had some games where they just haven't crawled in. But I thought she was really, really good today. She finished with eight for 12 [on the field]. That's wonderful. We just need to feed her."
Throughout the game, there were six lead changes and six times the game was tied between the Sun Devils and Lady Rebels.
In the fourth quarter, Brackens' scoring in crunch time and defense, and Carrera's scoring after grabbing an offensive rebound have made a difference.
Last-Tear Poa forced a crucial jump ball and drew an offensive foul to set the tone on the offense for the Sun Devils for the remainder of the game.
Elliott's three-pointer gave the lead back to the Sun Devils before the Lady Rebels responded with a three-pointer of their own.
With the game winding down, UNLV had a chance to win the game heading into the free-throw line, and forward Shelbee Brown ultimately missed both free throws, setting Arizona State up for a chance to win the game.
Washenitz's "Hail Marley," as Gallego described in the postgame, was the first dagger of the Molly Miller era. The Sun Devils women's basketball has a lot of players with competitive spirit, and this team is entertaining to watch.
"I'm thrilled we have one of the winningest coaches in women's college basketball," Gallego said of Miller. "It did really feel like a team effort. Everyone stepped up during the game, and that really is great when it's not relying on one superstar but a great coaching staff, as well as a great entire team. And it feels like Tempe and Phoenix are really coming together to support the Sun Devils, they get we have something special."
The Arizona State Sun Devils will return home to face Utah Tech on Tuesday night.