The 2007-08 edition of the ASU women's basketball team will make its debut tonight when it plays an exhibition game against the USA Women's National Team at Wells Fargo Arena.
"It's going to be a real honor and a great challenge to play this team," ASU coach Charli Turner Thorne said. "To have a game of this magnitude to warm up to is really fun. (To say we're) excited is an understatement."
Team USA is currently on a tour across the country to play against some of the best women's college basketball programs in the nation to help prepare it for the 2008 Olympics in Beijing.
The USA National Team is 4-0 so far on the tour, with wins coming against perennial NCAA powerhouses Maryland, Connecticut, Tennessee and Baylor.
For the Sun Devils, playing against the USA National Team not only allows them to measure themselves against a team of professionals, but also gives them a rare chance to share the court with some of their idols.
"We're absolutely thrilled to be playing a team of that caliber, especially so early on," senior guard Reagan Pariseau said. "A lot of those players I grew up watching, so to actually play against them will be awesome."
Following tonight's exhibition game, the Sun Devils open their regular season when they travel to Chapel Hill, N.C., to face the No. 7 Tar Heels in the State Farm Classic on Sunday.
