Despite star forward Sophie Brunner being sidelined due to an ankle sprain, No. 17 ASU women's basketball isn't limping into a weekend slate of games on its home court.
Thanks to depth at every position and a crop of freshmen providing meaningful contributions, head coach Charli Turner Thorne and the 3-2 Sun Devils don't expect any drop off in the "ASU Classic" tournament despite the absence of their most valuable player.
Senior point guard Elisha Davis said the Hawaii tournament gave the team an opportunity to play together as a unit and have fun again, rather than being nervous and feeling the pressure to win.
Davis also said she was impressed with the play of the Sun Devil bench in the absence of Brunner and junior forward Kelsey Moos.
"When (Brunner and Moos) got hurt, we all had to step up," Davis said. "Everybody's game elevated, not just those who had to step in for Kelsey and Sophie."
Senior forward Katie Hempen, who was a key cog in the offensive machine in ASU's two wins in the tournament, echoed Davis's sentiments and said she saw toughness from her team despite adversity.
"I saw people that hadn't started before kill their starting position," Hempen said. "Everybody did a great job just playing relentless and not having any fear in them."
According to Turner Thorne, the prognosis on Brunner is a severe ankle sprain that will be evaluated on a day-by-day basis. Brunner was taken off the court in a wheelchair when the injury occurred in a two-point loss to No. 2 South Carolina last Friday. She will not play at all this weekend, according to Turner Thorne.
On the docket for the Sun Devils in the first game of the ASU Classic will be VCU, who comes into the game with a record of 5-1 after a win over UNC Wilmington on Wednesday.
VCU is led statistically by junior guards Isis Thorpe and Camille Calhoun, who combine for 24.5 points per game. Thorpe is the Rams' primary weapon from beyond the arc, shooting just under 38 percent on the season so far.
Lacking size much like the Sun Devils, the Rams are a team that likes to get out on the break, scoring 67 or more in four of its six games.
Full court pressure, trapping and switching up looks on the defensive side of the ball are all ways VCU tries to bother its opponents, but Turner Thorne said the pressure and volatility isn't something that she's worried about.
"When you're trapping, we're just gonna jam it down your throat," Turner Thorne said. "Making the extra pass and playing vertical will be important against this team because they do like to mix up their defenses."
In the second game, ASU will either face Columbia (5-1) or Toledo (0-6). Based on the records of these two teams, conventional wisdom would suggest that the Sun Devils will face Columbia on Sunday in the championship game, but Turner Thorne said she's not so sure.
"Toledo is probably the best 0-6 team in the country," Turner Thorne said. "They haven't played one bad team.
"Columbia's coming in with a much better record," Turner Thorne said. "But just look at the team's they've played."
Columbia is another team that plays ASU's style of rapid-fire, fast break basketball, but Turner Thorne's squad relishes a shootout with an inferior opponent. As long as their defense is solid throughout, the Sun Devils thrive in games that are played at a breakneck pace.
Toledo, despite Turner Thorne's sentiment about the quality of its losses, is still only averaging 57 points per game and doesn't have an individual player with a double digit point average.
ASU vs. VCU tips off at 2 p.m. on Saturday, Dec. 5. The full tournament schedule can be found on Sun Devil Athletics' website.
Reach the reporter at rclarke6@asu.edu or follow @RClarkeASU on Twitter.
Like State Press Sports on Facebook and follow @statepresssport on Twitter.
