On senior day, Arizona (18-12, 9-8 Big 12) came into Tempe and unleashed 15 3-pointers on Arizona State (9-21, 3-15 Big 12) to grab a 71-59 win over ASU.
Freshman guard Lauryn Swann drained six 3-pointers to lead the way for the Wildcats. Swann shot 75% from behind the arc and nailed a deep three with only a second left on the clock to swing the momentum in favor of Arizona heading into the halftime break.
She finished the night with 18 points, five rebounds and two assists.
For the Sun Devils, senior center Nevaeh Parkinson shined on her senior day. Parkinson finished with her third double-double of the season. Parkinson had 17 points while shooting over 60% from the field and pulled down 19 rebounds.
Parkinson’s 19 boards are the most by a Sun Devil in the last century. Her career night couldn’t have come on a better day as she had lots of family in attendance.
“I think it is always good to show out in front of family,” Parkinson said. “Especially on senior night and in my last game at DFA, it was great.”
Before the game, ASU honored Parkinson as well as guard Adison Novosel, forward Hanna Miller, guard Jazion Jackson, and guard Tyi Skinner for senior day. The seniors combined for 40 of the Sun Devils’ 60 points.
Skinner spearheaded the seniors’ efforts with a game-high 20 points. She knocked down two 3-pointers which included a buzzer-beater to end the third quarter. With the 20-point performance, Skinner notched her 10th 20-point game of the season.
Despite struggling to start strong all season during conference play, the Sun Devils led 17-16 after the first quarter. Head coach Natasha Adair credited the heightened intensity early on to a mix of the emotions from senior day and the rivalry aspect of Saturday’s affair.
“I think that extra energy and fight you saw tonight was because there was a lot of family in the building as well,” Adair said.
However, in the second quarter, the Wildcats began to find their groove from three. Swann and Arizona junior guard Paulina Paris went 5-5 from beyond the arc in the quarter.
Heading into the halftime break the Wildcats led 37-29.
Coming out of the half, Arizona’s hot hand from the 3-point line did not cool off. The visitors sank five more triples in the third to extend their lead to 15 heading into the fourth.
While the Wildcats’ shooting cooled down in the fourth, the Sun Devils were not able to muster enough production offensively to complete a comeback. Arizona held on to win 71-59.
Ahead of Saturday’s matchup, the Wildcats had only made 175 3-pointers on the season which ranked 13th in the Big 12. Their 15 3-pointers were a season high and a trend they hope to carry into postseason play.
On the other hand, the shorthanded Sun Devils will look to extend their season in the conference tournament.
“I think we can draw from this whole season about how close we have been and how close is not good enough,” Adair said. “We want to finish, and anything can happen in March. It’s March Madness.”
The Sun Devils now await the results of Sunday’s Big 12 slate, as the team will wait to see who they’ll match up against in the Big 12 tournament in Kansas City. The Devils will tip it off again on Wednesday in the first round of the Big 12 tournament.
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