TEMPE — In a game that lacked offensive production, Arizona State got back to its bread and butter, defense and rebounding, to bounce back after suffering its first loss of the season in its last contest.
The Sun Devils defeated Central Florida 68-45 at Desert Financial Arena on Wednesday night. ASU was rolling on both sides of the ball, holding UCF to a staggeringly low total of 45 points — the second-lowest amount of points Arizona State has held a team to this season.
The Sun Devils started the season 15-0, the best in program history, before losing their last game against BYU.
Addressing glaring issues and making adjustments can be something certain teams can struggle with. For ASU, it answered the bell, responding to a loss in its first home game of 2026. Coach Molly Miller credited her team for its effort in practice leading up to Wednesday night.
“I was proud of our effort,” Miller said. “That is a testament to them and how they can come back and have some resolve and get to the next thing.”
Against BYU, the Sun Devils allowed 17 points off turnovers and struggled to guard the three, allowing BYU to shoot 39 times from downtown. While only allowing 10 to fall, it was an 18-point swing in that category.
ASU had its fair share of struggles inside the arc, surrendering 28 points in the paint and 10 fast-break points.
Still, the Sun Devils didn’t let those struggles derail their performance against Central Florida. The Maroon and Gold held the Knights to a 4-for-16 mark from three, four fast-break points and 18 points in the paint. ASU held UCF to one of its last seven and held the Knights scoreless for multiple long stretches throughout the game on Wednesday night.
“It was a good defensive game for us,” Miller said. “76% of their points are scored near the paint, so we really had to do a good job of clogging gaps. You know, holding a team in the 40s is always a win.”
Additionally, the rebounding for the Sun Devils was much improved from their prior two games, in which they were outrebounded by 10 on the road against Utah and then were outrebounded 53-to-25 against BYU.
In Provo, ASU also struggled to prevent BYU from coralling offensive rebounds, surrendering 26.
The adjustments leading into Wednesday’s game were evident from the opening tip. The Sun Devils outworked the Knights on the glass, out-rebounding UCF 37-to-28 and limiting UCF to only seven offensive rebounds.
“We were outworked by rebounds,” sophomore forward Heloisa Carrera said. “We worked really hard on that. We can never get outworked ever again.”
ASU will look to improve to 17-1 when they head back on the road to face the No. 9 TCU Horned Frogs Sunday, Jan 11, at 3 p.m. MST. The Horned Frogs will be the first ranked opponent that Miller and her squad will face this season.
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