(Photo Credit: Steve Rodriguez/Sun Devil Athletics)
SEATTLE – Another slow start to the second half proved to be the difference for Arizona State (22-9, 11-7) as the Sun Devils fell to USC (20-12, 11-7) 59-57 Friday afternoon in a Pac-12 Tournament quarterfinal in Seattle.
With the teams tied at 23-23 coming out of halftime, USC scored the first points of the second half on a Brianna Barrett layup, and proceeded to never relinquish the lead.
The Women of Troy opened up a lead as large as nine points with 8:48 to go, before the Sun Devils clawed their way back, tying the game on a Katie Hempen three-pointer with 2:22 left. That proved to be the last shot ASU would make.
After sitting for the majority of the first half with two fouls, USC junior guard Ariya Crook scored 11 of her 13 points in the second half, including a critical three-pointer with just over 5:00 left, bringing a 7-2 ASU run to a halt.
The Sun Devils recent offensive woes continued, as they shot just 36 percent for the game, and 67 percent from the line.
Hempen, Joy Burke, Deja Mann and Kelsey Moos combined for 42 of ASU’s 57 points, but both Hempen and Mann missed three-point attempts in the final 1:15 that could have given the Sun Devils the win. Mann’s three-pointer at the buzzer came up well short.
Down nine with under 9:00 to go, the Sun Devils went to the full court press the rest of the game, and forced a few USC miscues, but turned the ball right back over on a couple occasions without even getting a shot up. Senior guard Adrianne Thomas struggled all game long, with five turnovers.
“The turnovers [18 total] really hurt us today,” Arizona State head coach Charli Turner Thorne said. “And, making your free throws, just little things that added up for us that we’ve done through most of the season.”
USC senior forward Cassie Harberts rebounded from a tough game Thursday against Arizona, tallying 14 points and three rebounds.
With a semifinal berth now locked up, USC can feel a little better about their NCAA Tournament chances, as they entered the Pac-12 Tournament squarely on the bubble.
“Before this game I thought our resume was pretty strong,” USC head coach Cynthia Cooper said. “Playing in the Pac-12 is equally as tough as playing in the ACC or SEC, Big 12 included. We have some really strong teams in the Pac-12. So I really feel like this win has added to that resume and built a case for us. If we don’t win the Pac-12 championship, then we at least are in a position to get an at-large bid. So I think we’ve done all that we can do.”
Arizona State will anxiously have a 10-day wait until Selection Monday, March 17, riding a three-game losing streak.
“I think our (résumé) is very strong,” Turner Thorne said. “I do think that we should be in the tournament. I’m probably not totally objective, but I’ve been doing this for 27 years and I’ve had teams with lesser resumes get in, so I think overall we have done enough.”
USC will take on top-seeded Stanford on Saturday night in the first semifinal from KeyArena.
“The thing that I love about this team is they’re doing what we need in order for us to be successful,” Cooper said. “We’ve won four straight. We’re looking forward to our next opponent, and we know that that’s Stanford. They’re a very, very strong team, and we’re going to have to play our best in order to win against them. We’re building our case. We’re looking for a Pac-12 championship, and then we’re looking for an NCAA bid. So we’re trying to put ourselves in the perfect position to get that.”
You can reach Alex Gallant on Twitter @AlexJGallant or via email at Alex.Gallant@asu.edu
