Thanks to stellar play from junior center Quinn Dornstauder and key contributions across the board, No. 18 ASU women's basketball topped SMU 64-57 in a game that featured 43 combined turnovers between two talented offensive squads.
Dornstauder got going right away, scoring nine of her points in the first quarter of play on 4 of 5 shooting.
The Sun Devils (1-1)were led statistically by Dornstauder (21 points, eight rebounds, four blocks), senior guard Katie Hempen (13 points, four rebounds, three assists) and senior guard Elisha Davis (15 points, two assists, two steals).
The highlight of Dornstauder's outing came at the 2:32 mark in the first quarter when she hit her first career three-pointer, a shot that put the Sun Devils up 12-7 over the Mustangs (1-2). The three-pointer was another example of the continued effort by ASU post players to expand their range.
On the other side, 6-foot-5 SMU center Stephanie Collins notched five of her six total blocks in the first half. The Mustangs were led in scoring by sophomore guard McKenzie Adams with 16 points on four of 15 shooting.
Both teams played sloppy, combining for 26 turnovers in the first half and 43 total. As far as field goals were concerned, both teams shot a combined 40/110 in the game (36.4 percent).
The Sun Devils led the Mustangs 27-22 at the break.
Junior forward Sophie Brunner, who went scoreless in the first half, started the third quarter with a mid-range jumper to extend the ASU lead to 29-22.
Foul trouble plagued Brunner, however, as she committed her third of the game with 4:42 left in the third quarter.
A dry spell from the Sun Devils had them miss 10 consecutive shots before a midrange jumper by Davis broke the seal.
After yet another midrange jumper from Davis, a three-pointer by Hempen made it three consecutive makes for ASU after its abysmal 0-10 stretch in the third.
Dealing with some foul trouble of her own, Hempen took over in the fourth quarter and knocked down key jump shots throughout the second half.
But it was Dornstauder that dominated for the Sun Devils in this game, scoring key buckets in the post that proved to be the difference in a hotly contested matchup of two talented offensive teams.
It sure didn't appear like two teams who can score 70 on a consistent basis, and that showed in a fourth quarter stretch where SMU failed to convert on 11 consecutive shots.
The Sun Devils would pull away late in the fourth thanks to some clutch free throw shooting from a multitude of players, taking this game by its final margin of seven points.
ASU's next matchup is the Hawaii Tournament, where it will start off by facing No. 2 South Carolina. Tipoff for the matchup between the Sun Devils and Gamecocks is scheduled for 5:30 p.m. Arizona time on Friday, Nov. 27.
Reach the reporter at rclarke6@asu.edu or follow @RClarkeASU on Twitter.
Like State Press Sports on Facebook and follow @statepresssport on Twitter.
