The Arizona State Sun Devils (3-1) suffered their first loss of the young season to Grambling State (2-2) by a score of 70-67.
The Devils fought back in the fourth quarter but the comeback fell short when sophomore shooting guard DeMya Young hit a go-ahead three-pointer with ten seconds left in the fourth quarter.
The Lady Tigers from Grambling could not be stopped from behind the arc, especially in the first half.
After an even first quarter, the Tigers got hot from behind the arc in the second quarter.
Specifically, sophomore shooting guard Jazmyne Jackson couldn’t miss. She made five threes in the first half, sparking a second-quarter run that gave the Tigers a large lead.
ASU went up 30-27, but Grambling State hit four straight threes, three by Jackson and one by Young.
During that run, the Sun Devils played sloppy with the ball, committing multiple turnovers leading to a Grambling State 39-30 lead. Sophomore forward Journey Thompson finally ended the run with a bucket, but Jackson responded once again with another three.
The first half ended with a score of 45-34, with Young making one more three before the half. Grambling State went 10 for 16 from beyond the arc in the first half.
The Sun Devils had trouble on the boards all game long and missed a number of uncontested layups.
ASU slowly started to come back in the second half, before it culminated late in the fourth quarter.
The Sun Devils got the game within five but struggled to get the bucket to make it a one-possession game.
Senior guard Jaddan Simmons finally hit a three for the Devils to cut the lead to two with two minutes left. Then, she later tied it at 67 on a three-pointer with 36 seconds left.
On the next possession, Young, with senior guard Treasure Hunt right in front of her, confidently pulled a three from the left wing and splashed it.
That made it 70-67 with ten seconds on the clock.
ASU got the ball to Hunt and she slipped, leading head coach Natasha Adair to call a quick-witted timeout.
With under two seconds left on the clock, the Sun Devils got the ball to sophomore guard Trayanna Crisp, who also slipped and fell without the ball in her possession as the final buzzer sounded.
This was the first loss of the season for the Sun Devils in what was also their first road game of the season. The Sun Devils will now head home for a matchup against the Idaho State Bengals on Sunday. Tip-off is set for 6 p.m. MST.
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