TEMPE — Nearly everyone in Desert Financial Arena had their hands on their head — no one could believe the miracle shot they had just witnessed.
Tied against UNLV with seconds ticking down on both the shot clock and game clock, Arizona State graduate guard Gabby Elliott mishandled the ball. And, with it squirming away, it seemed ASU was headed toward an empty possession. Then, in came senior guard Marley Washenitz.
Washenitz collected the loose ball and had just enough space to heave a desperation 3-pointer.
She banked it home.
MARLEY CALLED GAME!!! @mwashenitz @MarchMadnessWBB @Big12Conference @SportsCenter pic.twitter.com/BdnVFxKwGp
— Sun Devil WBB (@SunDevilWBB) November 22, 2025
Washenitz’s late heroics helped ASU (5-0) secure a fifth-straight win to start the season for the first time since 2022 after a dramatic 56-53 win against UNLV (2-3).
The shot even left Phoenix Mayor Kate Gallego, who was in attendance, in shock.
“I was right there for the ‘Hail Marley’, which was an incredible experience,” Gallego said.
Entering Saturday afternoon’s clash, coach Molly Miller said the Lady Rebels would be the toughest team her side has faced so far. Fresh off four consecutive Mountain West championships, the program has cemented itself as a dominant mid-major under coach Lindy La Rocque.
The high energy the Sun Devils carried from pregame quickly cooled down in the first quarter. Miller’s side turned the ball over five times and shot just 19% from the field. Missed layups costed Sparky early, as UNLV led 12-7 by the end of the first quarter.
But a new version of the Sun Devils emerged in the second quarter. ASU cleaned up its offense by scoring 10 points in the opening five minutes. Led by junior forward McKinna Brackens and sophomore forward Heloisa Carrera — who combined for 17 points in the quarter — ASU shot 62.5% from the field and scored 14 points in the paint.
It marked a stark contrast to the four points made around the rim in the first quarter.
“It was a back-and-forth game,” Miller said. “Sometimes, if you can ride that to the end instead of getting discouraged, that shows the maturity of a team.”
Brackens, playing against her former team, finished the game with a double-double. She tied her career-high points with 23 and notched 10 rebounds. Carrera also tallied eight rebounds while netting a season-high 16 points.
Additionally, the Maroon and Gold limited themselves to just two turnovers in the second quarter and entered halftime on an 11-4 run in the final four minutes. For the fifth time this season, the Sun Devils led at the break, this time by a four-point advantage.
Brackens continued to be a force on offense as the junior netted seven more points. However, the Sun Devils went scoreless in the final three minutes. Despite leading by as many as nine, UNLV finished the quarter with back-to-back 3-pointers to make it a one-possession game entering the final 10 minutes.
The fourth quarter proved to be the tightest yet; both sides traded scores, and neither led by more than three points. And with less than 10 seconds left, and the game tied at 53-53, ASU had the opportunity to score the go-ahead point.
Enter Washnetiz, who, from an improbable angle, angled in a looping 3-pointer off the backboard.
“Any basket would have helped,” Washenitz said on the final play. “A foul free throw, anything. And (Elliott) lost it, and I’m very familiar with loose balls. So I went and grabbed it and threw it up.”
The senior, with her head buried in her hands, ran away in disbelief — It was her first bucket of the night.
“Here’s the thing that sticks out to me in that moment: Marley didn’t have a great shooting night,” Miller said. “She didn’t fill up this box score, but she played 40 minutes for us. And she kept at it. That’s her every single day. So that’s like good juju for her.”
With the win, the Sun Devils managed to stay perfect in 2025, as they earned their first statement victory under Miller. ASU returns to the court on Tuesday night at home against Utah Tech at 6:30 MST.
Miller, however, still thinks there’s room for improvement.
“We’ve got to learn from this,” she said. “I’d rather learn from a win, no doubt, but we can’t just take this and say, ‘Oh, good job, we beat a really good team.’ We’ve got to get better, we’ve got to get in-game film, we’ve got to practice some of our weaknesses, and sometimes that’s hard to (do) as winning.
“Sustained winning, there’s an approach with that as well, and they’ve got to stay hungry.”
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