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Sun Devils can’t finish comeback against Cal

(Photo courtesy of Steve Rodriguez)
(Photo courtesy of Steve Rodriguez)

The luck finally ran out for the ASU women’s basketball team.

After failing to pull away and making their last three contests far closer than they needed to be, the physical, energetic California team made the Sun Devils pay with a 48-43 upset victory in Los Angeles on Thursday.

“I think the hard thing is with this team, I’m really proud of what they’ve accomplished this season, and I love them, and it’s just hard,” ASU coach Charli Turner Thorne said. “I know how hard they’ve worked and what they’ve done to get to this point.”

The loss knocks the Sun Devils (20-10, 11-7 Pac-10) out of the Pac-10 Tournament, but ASU still has a good shot at making the NCAA Tournament.

Neither team played very well in an ugly contest, but the Golden Bears (17-14, 7-11) benefited from a monster game from sophomore guard Layisha Clarendon, who finished with 22 points and gave the Sun Devils problems all over the floor that could have been avoided, ASU senior forward Becca Tobin said.

“We knew she was one of their key players, and we had to shut her down,” Tobin said. “We just didn’t have help on defense. We let them go one on one when we should have had team defense.”

Apart from Clarendon, however, ASU played solid defense all game. Cal shot just 40 percent from the field and only had four points in the last 4 minutes, all on free throws.

Turnovers and missed shots are what really killed the Sun Devils. ASU turned the ball over 21 times, 12 of which were Cal steals, and that was the difference in the game, Turner Thorne said.

“They were essential, kind of unforced at times,” Turner Thorne said. “When we don’t do that, I think we can beat anybody in the country. I think we are a very good basketball team. When we do that, we are really bad. And we did that today.”

To compound their problems, the Sun Devils shot 36.1 percent from the field, and their 43 points were more than 18 points below their season average.

Tobin was the only ASU player in double digits with 10 points. Senior guard Tenaya Watson added eight with two steals for the Sun Devils.

Despite the offensive woes, ASU got off to a decent start and had a 14-11 lead nine minutes into the game. But a burst of energy from Cal would lead to a 9-0 run for the Golden Bears, and they would keep the lead for the rest of the game.

The second half was a long series of missed offensive opportunities for the Sun Devils, followed by strong defense on the other end of the court. A Clarendon jumper gave the Golden Bears a seven-point lead with 4:28 left, but ASU would fight back. Free throws by Watson brought the score to 44-43 with 47.8 seconds left.

Two missed ASU opportunities and four Clarendon free throws later, the Sun Devils were down by five with 6.5 seconds left.

A last-second comeback just wasn’t in the cards.

ASU will now prepare for the NCAA Tournament. While the Sun Devils’ resume looks good, they are not assured of a spot, and it will be an anxious wait leading up to selection Sunday, senior guard Dymond Simon said.

“You’re kind of nervous,” she said. “You want to get into the tournament, you’re hoping to get into the tournament, and that’s what I’m pretty sure all three of us seniors, me, Becca (Tobin) and Tenaya (Watson), are going to be dreaming about for the next three days. And hopefully our dreams come true.”

Reach the reporter at egrasser@asu.edu


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