Sports
ASU Downs Ohio in NCAA Tournament
< < Back toThe historic run of the Ohio women’s basketball team came to an end Saturday night in Tempe, Ariz. The Sun Devils forced the issues defensively, forcing 18 turnovers on the way to 74-55 victory over the ‘Cats.
Arizona State came out of the gate in a full court press and kept that level of intensity throughout the game. The fast pace of play didn’t hurt the Bobcats initially, but once the Sun Devils began hitting their shots consistently, Ohio quickly fell behind. Arizona State was able to bury Ohio with 20 points off of turnovers as well as finishing the game shooting over 55 percent from the field.
On top of the high-pressure defense, the Sun Devils got the ‘Cats into foul trouble early as both Kiyanna Black and Lexie Baldwin picked up three fouls before they were even able to head into the locker room. Baldwin didn’t hang around long after that picking up her fifth personal with over nine minutes to play in regulation.
Kiyanna Black finished the game with 12 points after hitting two three pointers in the second half. Those two buckets tied a Mid-American Conference record for three-pointers made in a season (100). Offensively, Ohio was led by Quiera Lampkins who finished with 17 points, but the team as a whole was only able to knock down 37 percent of their shots.
Katie Hempen did a majority of the damage offensively for the Devils as she scored a game-high 23 points after hitting five of nine shots from beyond-the-arc. She wasn’t alone as Sophie Brunner dropped 14 points and pulled down six boards of her own.
The Sun Devils used their length, size and depth to overwhelm the Bobcats, as they were able to spread the ‘Cats out on defense. Once the Devils found their spots it was bombs away as seemingly every Ohio bucket was answered at the other end.
Arizona State stretched the lead to 29 points midway through the second half, but to Ohio’s credit they were able to cut it back to 12 before the Devils pulled away again.
Ohio finished the year with a 27-5 overall record and will lose their lone senior, Mariah Byard, to graduation. However, with talent and youth this team has, don’t be shocked if the ‘Cats find themselves dancing again at the end of next season.