ASU women's basketball will take on Southern Methodist University in Dallas Saturday as they look to rebound from an overtime loss to Kentucky in the season opener in Tempe.
Here are five things to watch for in the Sun Devils' first road contest.
Sophie Brunner's expanded range
The junior forward was 0 for 3 from behind the arc in her sophomore season, and in her freshman campaign she only attempted one shot from downtown. In last Sunday's game against Kentucky, Brunner went 3 for 3 from long range.
Brunner is already excellent in the low post and with her new found ability to stretch the floor, she could become one of the most well-rounded Pac-12 stretch-fours.
In the Kentucky game, Brunner had 19 points, seven rebounds and four assists.
ASU's ability to rebound
The Sun Devils have nine players returning from a team that went to the Sweet Sixteen, including four starters. ASU has enough experience and leadership to be able to put their tough loss to Kentucky behind them.
ASU only lost two straight games once last season and the deficit in those two games was a combined seven points. The Sun Devils ended last year's losing streak by blowing out Oregon 72-52.
Stopping Alicia Froling
Froling, a 6-foot-3 sophomore, was arguably SMU's best player in 2014 in just her first year with the program. Froling averaged a team high of 11.5 points per game and 7.2 rebounds per game in 2014. She was the first freshman to lead SMU in scoring since 2005.
In SMU's opening win of the season against Northwestern State, Froling finished with 13 points and 15 rebounds.
Elisha Davis will bounce back
Davis was a huge reason that ASU was able to win 29 games last season. The guard was second on the team in minutes behind Promise Amukamara. In the game against Kentucky, Davis went 4 for 14 from the field and 1 for 8 from three. She turned the ball over twice and only had one assist.
Davis will likely not repeat that performance often, if ever — she led the team in assists in each of the last two seasons.
Turning around the turnover margin
Last season, ASU averaged 8.2 steals per game and only averaged 14.3 turnovers per game. In last Sunday's game, ASU only had three steals and turned the ball over 20 times. The Sun Devils can't turn the ball over 20 times a game if they want to win the Pac-12.
Related Links:
ASU women's basketball falls 68-64 in overtime to No. 18 Kentucky in season opener
ASU women's basketball entering 2015-16 season with high expectations
Reach the reporter at Lucas.Taglienti@asu.edu or follow @ltaglientivevo on Twitter
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