WBB Rings in New Year with First Home Big 12 Contest

GAME NO. 14: Sun Devil WBB (6-7, 0-1 Big 12) vs. Texas Tech (12-2, 1-0 Big 12)
WHEN: Wednesday at 4 p.m. MST
WHERE: Desert Financial Arena • Tempe, Ariz.
WATCH: ESPN+
RADIO: KDUS AM 1060 
LIVE STATS: Click here
PURCHASE TICKETS: Click here
 
UP NEXT
Two days after playing a home game at Mullett Arena for the first time in program history, the Sun Devil women's basketball team (6-7, 0-1 Big 12) will experience another first on Wednesday (4 p.m. MST): Playing a home 'conference game' as part of a conference that is not the Pac-10/Pac-12 for the first time since the 1985-86 season. After Wednesday, the answer to 'Which school was ASU's opponent in its first home Big 12 Conference game?' will be Texas Tech (12-2, 1-0).   
 
WATCH/LISTEN
Wednesday's game vs. Texas Tech can be seen on ESPN+ / Gavin Schall (play-by-play) and former Sun Devil Arnecia Hawkins (color analyst). It can also be heard on KDUS AM 1060. Veteran broadcaster and the state of Arizona's 2010 & 2019 Broadcaster of the Year Jeff Munn is in his 21st season as the voice of Sun Devil Women's Basketball. He will be joined by former Sun Devil head coach Maura McHugh.
 
SERIES NOTES
• The all-time series is tied at 4-4. ASU's 85-77 win in Lubbock, Texas, in 2013 snapped TTU's two-game winning streak
• In 2006, ASU was victorious 61-45 in a game played outdoors at Chase Field, home of Major League Baseball's Arizona Diamondbacks. The game has the distinction of what is believed to be the first and only NCAA women's basketball contest that was called due to rain. With 4:18 remaining, rain started to fall and it was decided the game had to be called due to not being able to close the stadium's retractable roof in time to allow the two teams resume play in safe conditions.
 
RANKINGS OF NOTE
• Through games played Dec. 30, ASU is ranked among the top 60 teams in the nation in blocks per game (9th/4.8/5th in Big 12), free throw percentage (31st/76.7/3rd in Big 12) and defensive rebounds per game (50th/28.0/6th in Big 12). 
• ASU is also ranked in the top half of the Big 12 in rebounds per game(6th/39.2) and free throws made per game (6th/13.4).
• Individually, Kennedy Basham is 8th the in the nation in blocks per game (2.5/2nd in Big 12), Tyi Skinner is 38th in minutes per game (35.0/2nd in Big 12) and 60th in 3-pointers per game (2.46/8th in Big 12).
• ASU also has several players ranked among the Top 20 in the Big 12: Skinner is 8th in FT pct. (82.7), 9th in scoring (17.3 ppg), 12th in 3-point FG pct. (36.8), and 19th in assist-to-turnover ratio (1.2); Jalyn Brown is 11th in scoring (16.8 ppg) and blocks per game (1.1), 12th in FT pct. (79.1) and 19th in FG pct. (43.4), and Kennedy Fauntleroy is 9th in steals per game (2.0). Fauntleroy has had more than twice as many steals in her last 6 games (19) as she had in her first 7 games (7).
 
HAPPY NEW YEAR!
This will be ASU's fourth New Year's Day contest since 2010. The Sun Devils lost to USC 60-56 in 2010, defeated Cal 72-62 (2OT) in 2017 and once again came out on top against the Bears 63-56 in 2021. Like Wednesday's game vs. Texas Tech, ASU played at home in the previous three instances.
 
NOTES FROM LAST GAME - @ASU 73, PENN 67
• Nevaeh Parkinson's first double-double (22 points, career high-tying 13 rebounds) as a Sun Devil and a stingy defensive effort in the fourth quarter helped ASU team overcome a scrappy Penn squad 73-67 on Monday.
• Jyah LoVett (16 points) and Tyi Skinner (12 points) also had double-digit scoring performances for the Sun Devils (6-7), who snapped a three-game losing streak by ending Penn's five-game winning streak.
• Penn led by two after one quarter and had the same two-point advantage, 56-54, entering the final 10 minutes.
• Clutch scoring and an outstanding performance on the defensive end proved to be the biggest factors in the win. After Penn shot 47 percent through three quarters, it managed to make only 23 percent (3-13) of its shots in the fourth quarter. ASU came up big down the stretch as the Quakers missed their final seven shots of the game.
• After the Quakers scored 18 of their 41 points in the first half by knocking down 43 percent of their attempts from beyond the arc, ASU forced Penn to miss all 10 of its attempts from long range in the second half. 
• Penn's 26-point second matched the fewest points ASU has given up in the second half this season.
 
WHAT TO LOOK FOR
• Prior to its 102-82 loss at Utah, the Sun Devils were starting to make strides on the defensive end of the floor. After giving up an average of 76.0 points in their first eight games, the Sun Devils gave up 16.0 fewer points per game (60.0) in their contests vs. UMES, at UC Davis and at San Francisco. In the contests vs. UMES and UC Davis, the Sun Devils allowed a season-low 57 points in back-to-back games. Adding its win on Monday over Penn, ASU has given up 67 or fewer points in 4 of its last 5 games.
• Skinner (6x) and Brown (5x) have combined to lead or tie for the team lead in scoring 11x this season. Also among the single-game scoring leaders have been Nevaeh Parkinson (2x) and Jyah LoVett (1x), who tied Skinner for the team lead with 13 points in ASU's win at UMES.
• Skinner (11 of 13 games) and Brown (9 of 11 games) have combined to score in double figures 20 times this season. Skinner has scored 20 or more points 5x, including a career-high 30 points in ASU's season opening win over Jacksonville State (Nov. 4). Brown has scored 20 or more points 4x. 
• Injuries have once again affected ASU's numbers from game to game. In Monday's win over Penn, the Sun Devils played seven players. Eight Sun Devils have started at least 3 games this season. On Monday, Makayla Moore became the ninth different Sun Devils to start this season. Skinner is the only player on ASU's roster who has played and started all 13 games this season. Brown, who did not play in ASU's loss at San Francisco and its win over Penn, has started all 11 games she has played in and Jazion Jackson has started 8 of the 9 games she has played in. Kennedy Basham has played in every game (12 starts) and Nevaeh Parkinson has started 9 of the 11 games she has played in. Other players who have started this season include Maggie Besselink (4 of 10 games), Jyah LoVett (4 of 13 games) and Kennedy Fauntleroy (3 of 13 games).
• Kennedy Basham has had multiple blocks in seven games this season, including a career-high seven rejections at San Francisco (Dec. 17).
 
NOTES ON THE SCHEDULE THUS FAR
• The Sun Devils did not have to leave the Grand Canyon State for their first five games of the season. Four contests were played at their usual home venue – Desert Financial Arena – and one was played at Footprint Center (officially a neutral site) when they faced Grand Canyon in the Hall of Fame Series Phoenix event on Nov. 14. 
• On three instances this season, the Sun Devils have had at least eight days between games. Most recently, ASU had nine games before its game vs. Penn (Dec. 30). After defeating Oregon State in its on Nov. 17, ASU did not compete for nine days leading up to its first road trip of the season: the Coast2Coast Music City Classic in Nashville where it met then-No. 14 Kentucky (Nov. 26) and South Dakota (Nov. 27). After returning from a road trip to the DMV, the Sun Devils were off for eight days for final exams prior to traveling to Northern California for games at UC Davis (Dec. 15) and at San Francisco (Dec. 17). 
• ASU will now transition from a period of relative inactivity – when it came to playing games – to a stretch in which it will play three contests in six days.  
 
PROGRESS NOT ALWAYS MEASURED IN WINS AND LOSSES
The Sun Devils, who have eight new players on this season's roster, have experienced the ups and downs that can sometimes go with combining the talents of several outstanding players early in the season. That factor alone could account for the Sun Devils' current 6-7 record. The fact of the matter is, the Sun Devils could just as easily be 11-2 right now...  
• Against Arkansas State, the Sun Devils trailed by 13 with 6:15 remaining. After a 19-5 run, ASU was suddenly up by one with 1:01 remaining. Arkansas State scored the last five points of the game to claim the win.
• After going into the half with a 42-33 win vs. Grand Canyon, the Sun Devils were outscored 37-17 in the second half.
• At Coppin State, ASU was unable to score in the final 53 seconds to break a 61-61 tie. The Eagles would go on to win in OT.
• Despite a stout defensive effort and a plus-12 advantage on the boards, the Sun Devils came up on the short end of a 57-50 decision at UC Davis. For the second straight game the Sun Devils held the opposition to the fewest points they have given up this season and allowed the Aggies to shoot only 37 percent. Unfortunately for ASU, it struggled to put the ball in the basket as it made just 28 percent of its shots and knocked down one of its 14 attempts from long range. Down by eight entering the fourth quarter, the Sun Devils did not show any letup, methodically trimming the Aggies' advantage. Besselink's layup got the Sun Devils within two points, 44-42, with 5:36 remaining. ASU was within one possession three more times but did not come away with points in each instance. After Besselink's earlier field goal got ASU within two, the Sun Devils were only able to connect on three of their 14 shot attempts in the final five minutes of the game.
• At San Francisco, the Sun Devils were unable to take advantage of a 27-point performance from Skinner and a career-high and a tremendous all-around performance from Basham, who scored 12 points, grabbed seven rebounds and had a career-high seven blocks. The difference in the game was at the free throw line, not in accuracy – ASU made 82 percent of its attempts and San Francisco made 83 percent – but in the number of opportunities. By game's end, the Dons had more than three times as many attempts (29-35) as the Sun Devils (9-11). Still the Sun Devils were tied at 57-57 with 1:09 remaining. After the Dons took a six-point lead, Skinner knocked down a pair of 3-pointers and missed on a third that would have tied the game and sent it to overtime.
 
WELCOME HOME  
After home wins over SMU (80-73 on Nov. 16) and former Pac-12 foe Oregon State (79-60 on Nov. 17) in the annual Briann January Classic, the Sun Devils started a stretch in which it did not play a home game for 43 days. A summary of what happened while they were away from Tempe: 
• The Sun Devils split their contests at the Music City Classic in Nashville, Tenn., falling to then-No. 14 Kentucky 77-61 (Nov. 26) and beating South Dakota 95-88 (Nov. 27) . Nevaeh Parkinson was named to the Music City Classic All-Tournament Team. Against South Dakota, Parkinson scored a team- and career-high 26 points. Parkinson's single-game field goal percentage of 92.3 percent on 12 of 13 shooting vs. South Dakota, was the best individual performance for a Sun Devil attempting 10 or more shots in a game since Betsy Boardman made all 10 of her shots (1.000) vs. UCLA on February 17, 2001. Parkinson was also ASU's top rebounder in the two contests (6.5 rebounds per game).
• Next it was off to the DMV where the Sun Devils once again split their two contests, falling at Coppin State 74-68 in OT (Dec. 5) before coming back to defeat UMES 64-57 (Dec. 7) in the Coaches vs. Racism Roundball Classic played in Washington DC. The game at Coppin State was ASU's first true 'road game' of the season. Brown (14.5 ppg) and Skinner (13.5 ppg) both averaged double figures in the two games. At Coppin State, ASU came back from nine points down to take a 59-55 lead with 3:33 remaining. The Sun Devils led 68-67 with 1:28 remaining in OT before the Eagles closed the game with a 9-0 run to claim the win. Against UMES, ASU was phenomenal on the defensive end where it allowed the fewest points in a game this season and had season bests in steals (15) and blocked shots (9) and forced 32 turnovers, 13 more than the previous opponent high of 19 by Oregon State in last month's Briann January Classic.
• After time off for final exams, ASU was back on a plane, this time to Northern California for games at UC Davis (Dec. 15) and at San Francisco (Dec. 17). Despite a stout defensive effort and a plus-12 advantage on the boards, ASU came up on the short end of a 57-50 decision at UC Davis. For the second straight game ASU held the opposition to the fewest points its given up this season (57). It also allowed the Aggies to shoot only 37 percent. Unfortunately for ASU, it struggled to put the ball in the basket as it made just 28 percent of its shots and knocked down one of its 14 attempts from long range. Brown led all scorers with 21 points to go with three steals. Leading ASU's effort on the boards was Maggie Besselink, who had game highs in rebounds (12) and offensive rebounds (7). For Besselink, who also scored four points, her 12 boards were one short of matching her career high of 13 vs. USC on Mar. 3, 2021. 
• Despite a game-high 27 points from Skinner, ASU lost at San Francisco, 67-64. For the second time this season, Skinner came within one triple of tying the single-game school record after knocking down six vs. the Dons. The difference in the game was at the free throw line, not in accuracy – ASU made 82 pct of its attempts and San Francisco made 83 pct – but in the number of opportunities. By game's end, the Dons had more than three times as many attempts (29-35) ASU (9-11). 
• In the Big 12 conference opener at Utah, the Sun Devils posted their highest point total and best field goal percentage since Nov. 27. Despite its strong offensive performance, ASU was not able to come through with the win, falling at Utah 102-82. The Sun Devils scored more than 80 points for the fourth time this season and had their highest final point total since a 95-88 win vs. South Dakota at the Music City Classic on Nov. 27. ASU's shooting percentage of 48.4 percent was also its highest since the win over South Dakota (52.2 percent).