In its 64-37 victory over Colorado on Friday, No. 10 ASU women's basketball showed exactly why it's ranked 13th in the country in scoring defense.
It was field trip day at Wells Fargo Arena, an annual tradition, with more than 2800 kids filling the seats and cheering (loudly) for the Sun Devils (14-3, 5-0 Pac-12).
ASU brought the pressure in the half court from the very beginning, shutting down any effort by the Buffaloes (5-11, 0-5 Pac-12) to score effectively. Colorado shot 25 percent in the game, 2-of-13 from three.
On the offensive side, junior center Quinn Dornstauder notched her first double-double of the season with 15 points and 10 rebounds. Senior guard Elisha Davis scored 11 of her own to go along with five assists and four steals.
"Everybody focuses on scoring all the time, but to have other aspects like rebounding is super important," Dornstauder said. "That's honestly a bigger focus for me – I'm more excited about the rebounds than the points."
Turner Thorne opted to play small ball for defensive purposes with her starting lineup, plugging senior guard Arnecia Hawkins into Dornstauder's starting spot.
Davis set the tempo on the defensive side early, locking down every Colorado player that came her way and scoring five early points.
On inbounds passes, Davis uniquely swings one arm rapidly and jumps up and down in an effort to pressure the passer. Davis said that she developed this strategy in her junior year of high school.
"For two seconds they're thinking 'What is she doing?', so they only have three seconds to pass the ball," Davis said. "Plus I'm not tall so I figured jumping doesn't really do much to disrupt."
Multiple shot clock violations by the Buffaloes and a myriad of turnovers became their undoing, and ASU led 15-6 after the first quarter of play.
The pace slowed in the second quarter, with neither team able to find its groove on the offensive end — especially Colorado.
The Buffaloes only scored four points in the second quarter, entering the half down 24-10 after shooting 21 percent from the field and 0-of-8 from three-point range.
In the second half, the Sun Devils came out firing on all cylinders and hit their first five field goals attempts and jump out to a 38-15 lead.
Turner Thorne said her team loves the third quarter, but they have to avoid only playing one half of quality offense.
"We had a great team win — I thought our team defense continued to be formidable," Turner Thorne said. "I feel like our defensive identity is a little ahead of our offensive identity right now."
ASU scored 25 points in the third, more than it did in the entire first half and just as many as Colorado did through three quarters. Entering the final frame, the Sun Devils led 49-25.
The fourth quarter provided an opportunity for Turner Thorne to test out lineups sprinkled with starters and players from the end of the bench. Among this group was freshman center Charnea Johnson-Chapman, who displayed excellent footwork in the post and effort on the glass.
After a back-and-forth final quarter of play, ASU prevailed 64-37 to win its 11th consecutive game.
Next up for the Sun Devils will be a matchup with the Utah Utes (11-4, 3-1 Pac-12). Tip is scheduled for 12 p.m. on Sunday, Jan. 17th in Tempe.
Reach the reporter at rclarke6@asu.edu or follow @RClarkeASU on Twitter.
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