After dropping its regular season opener at No. 7 North Carolina on Sunday, the ASU women's basketball team was back to work this week and trying to move on.
Coach Charli Turner Thorne said the No. 15 Sun Devils (0-1) had two great days of practice Tuesday and Wednesday to prepare for a stretch where they will play five games in eight days.
"We really try not to beat ourselves up (because of a loss), but obviously there's that pride," she said. "To lose a game, whether we were the underdog or not, is not acceptable by our standards. (The team) really came back ready to work hard and get better."
Turner Thorne added that Sunday's loss taught the Sun Devils they need to rebound the ball better, limit turnovers and play good defense without fouling in order to beat the other top programs in the country.
"We've got to learn about margin of error against top teams," she said. "If we missed a box out, they got a rebound. If we didn't set up a pass, it was a steal. If we weren't extremely disciplined and consistent in our fundamentals, then we were exposed."
The Sun Devils were out-rebounded, 50-39, in Sunday's game and had 29 turnovers.
Senior guard Jill Noe said the Sun Devils also learned an opposing team will pull away from them if they do not play up to their potential for the entire game.
After the Sun Devils cut North Carolina's lead to one point in the second half, the Tar Heels went on a 13-2 run to put the game out of reach.
"We stopped being the more aggressive team," Noe said. "We just kind of got away from what we know we're capable of doing. It's just a matter of putting it together for 40 minutes."
The Sun Devils still have two marquee players coming back from injuries.
Sophomore guard Dymond Simon played limited minutes after recovering from anterior cruciate ligament surgery, while junior center Sybil Dosty saw her first action of the season against North Carolina after suffering a knee injury and not practicing until last week.
"I was really proud of both of those kids just to even be out there battling," Turner Thorne said. "I know how good they are and where they're going to be in a few weeks."
Junior guard Kate Engelbrecht is still out with a hand injury, while junior guard Danielle Orsillo played Sunday's game on a sprained ankle but scored a career-high 21 points.
Turner Thorne expects the Sun Devils to be at full strength by mid-December.
ASU will play one last exhibition game tonight against the Chinese National Team at Wells Fargo Arena before continuing its regular season against UC Santa Barbara in Saturday's home opener.
The Sun Devils plan to use the game against Team China as an opportunity to make final adjustments.
"It's going to be another test for us without huge repercussions, so it's nice to have that," Orsillo said. "But we still want to win."
Turner Thorne said she will use the game as a chance to get Simon and Dosty back into the mix.
"Ideally, I'd probably like to play these two exhibition games first," she said. "But then again, we're not at full strength, so to get that practice game for Sybil and another game for Dymond, it probably worked out pretty well for us."
Reach the reporter at: gina.mizell@asu.edu.
