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ASU women's hoops defense dismantles transition-based offense of Lehigh

Sophomore forward Sophie Brunner drives to the basket in a game against Middle Tennessee, Friday. Nov. 14, 2014 at Wells Fargo Arena in Tempe. The Sun Devils defeated the Blue Raiders 81-67. (Photo by Ben Moffat)
Sophomore forward Sophie Brunner drives to the basket in a game against Middle Tennessee, Friday. Nov. 14, 2014 at Wells Fargo Arena in Tempe. The Sun Devils defeated the Blue Raiders 81-67. (Photo by Ben Moffat)

Sophomore forward Sophie Brunner drives to the basket in a game against Middle Tennessee, Friday. Nov. 14, 2014 at Wells Fargo Arena in Tempe. The Sun Devils defeated the Blue Raiders 81-67. (Photo by Ben Moffat) Sophomore forward Sophie Brunner drives to the basket in a game against Middle Tennessee, Friday. Nov. 14, 2014 at Wells Fargo Arena in Tempe. The Sun Devils defeated the Blue Raiders 81-67. (Photo by Ben Moffat)

The undefeated are no more, as ASU (9-1) defeated previously undefeated Lehigh 81-61 Saturday afternoon at Wells Fargo Arena in Tempe.

The match began with an 8-1 team facing a 7-0 team. It ended with a dominant ASU victory against the previously undefeated Lehigh Mountain Hawks.

“We held them 20 points below their average and didn’t really allow them to run their offense,” head coach Charli Turner Thorne said.

ASU started on an 11-0 run in large part due five early turnovers by Lehigh. Redshirt junior guard Katie Hempen had seven points in that four-minute span and sophomore forward Kelsey Moos took two charges.

The game was in ASU’s favor from the beginning. Lehigh star sophomore forward Lexi Martins missed two shots on the opening possession and only had two points in the entire first half. Coming into the game, she led Lehigh in points (16.4) and rebounds (10.6), and was tied for second in assists (2.1).

Sophomore center Quinn Dornstauder said that a big part of their defensive scheme was not allowing her to get the ball from the high post.

“We just made sure that we kept lots of on-ball pressure and denied the ball, that was a big focus,” she said.

On ASU’s side, junior guard Elisha Davis started out hot despite not scoring herself for a long stretch. She had six assists in the first half, including a couple off crafty moves and no-look passes, and is continuing to provide solid ball movement to the team.

“I honestly was just doing what the defense gave me,” she said with a smile. “I tried to be more of a threat today by just attacking the seams and when the defense came to me I just dumped it off to my posts.”

As the floor general, Davis set the pace for ASU. Saturday's offensive tempo was faster than Lehigh’s, giving the Sun Devils a distinct advantage.

“It’s hard to play a team that does the exact same thing as you,” she said. “We both love transition, we both rely heavily on transition.”

ASU’s hard man-to-man defense halted Lehigh’s transition play and pressured them into 10 first half turnovers.

“Teams aren’t used to pressure and we pressured the whole full court,” Davis said.

The difference in transition play was a key difference between the teams, and ASU’s high-pressure success on offense was symbolized by the final basket of the first half.

With just under ten seconds remaining in the half, Davis received the inbound pass. She got up court in about two seconds and then turned on her fourth gear, driving past her defender on the right side of the elbow. Davis released a hook-like layup near the basket that looked like it had no chance. It went in.

ASU took a 44-29 lead into the half.

The second half was a much closer affair. ASU went up by 19, but in a span of about 1:30, Lehigh cut the deficit to 12. Martins came alive and attacked the basket more.

“They just kind of isolated her and we didn’t do a great job of denying her the ball,” Turner Thorne said.

She abandoned the three-point line after missing two in the first half and another in the second. She wasn’t the only Mountain Hawk struggling from outside: the team was 0-12 from beyond the three-point arc.

“We knew they wanted to drive,” Davis said. “They are a drive-first team and then shoot threes, so we tried our best to try to keep them out of the paint and just make them take contested shots.”

After the 7-0 run, ASU pushed back and eventually won 81-61. Five players had double-digit points, including Dornstauder, a backup.

At 6’4, Dornstauder was the tallest player on the floor and she took advantage of her height, particularly late in the game. She went 5-5 in the second half and finished with 12 points.

“It’s very good to see her want the ball,” Davis said. “She seems more comfortable, more aggressive, and just more understanding of what is needed from her during the offense.”

Turner Thorne said that though she was pleased with the victory and liked the discipline and lack of three-point attempts she saw from her team’s second-half offense, she saw room to improve.

“We have to have a better rebounding effort,” she said. “I think that’s the biggest thing going into tomorrow.”

The rebounding effort wasn’t terrible- they outrebounded Lehigh 36-31, including seven offensive rebounds in the first half. The problem is that their next opponent in the ASU Classic, either Northwestern or Eastern Illinois, averages 40.1 RPG and 37.4 RPG, respectively.

Today, no ASU player had more than seven rebounds.

The free throw discrepancy could be an issue. Lehigh draws an extraordinary amount of fouls, and today was no exception. The Mountain Hawks took 23 free throws and ASU only had 15.

“Our biggest goal was not to be in the bonus either half and not give them their free throw offense,” Turner Thorne said. “That was really the disappointing part of the game cause that was such a focus.”

ASU plays the winner of the game between Eastern Illinois and Northwestern Sunday in Tempe, with the time TBA.

Reach the reporter at logan.newman@asu.edu or follow him on Twitter @Logan_Newsman

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