No. 10 Arizona State stunned by Cal in Pac-12 women's tournament
SEATTLE --The resiliency Charli Turner Thorne saw from Arizona State most of the season was absent in the regular-season finale against UCLA.
And it was missing again on Friday.
"Some of the things that happened last Sunday happened again today. Just in terms of not having great, tough responses and being who we have been all year long," Turner Thorne said.
Pac-12 freshman of the year Kristine Anigwe, who attended Desert Vista High School in Phoenix, scored 24 points, Asha Thomas added all 16 of her points in the second half and California stunned No. 10 Arizona State 75-64 on Friday in the Pac-12 tournament quarterfinals.
Kelsey Brunner and Kianna Ibis led Arizona State (25-6) with 14 points each, but the Sun Devils will head into the NCAAs having lost consecutive games for the first time this season.
Arizona State had a chance at the outright regular season conference title and the top seed in the tournament but lost at UCLA on the final day of the regular season and fell into a tie with Oregon State. The Beavers earned the No. 1 seed as a result of their win over Arizona State in the only regular-season meeting.
Now the Sun Devils will have two weeks off before the NCAA Tournament.
"I don't know if it's fatigue," Turner Thorne said. "This team has been amazingly consistent all season long."
California, the No. 10 seed, knocked off Utah in overtime in the opening round on Thursday, then handed the Sun Devils their second straight loss. The only hope for the Golden Bears (15-16) to make the NCAAs for a fifth straight season is to win the conference tournament after a lackluster regular season that included four- and five-game losing streaks in conference play.
The Bears will face either No. 12 UCLA or Arizona in the semifinals on Saturday.
"We were a really good version of ourselves," Cal coach Lindsay Gottlieb said. "We weren't super human."
Penina Davidson added 17 points as the youthful Bears picked up their third win over a ranked team this season. California shot a tournament-record 69 percent led by Anigwe, who was 10-for-11 shooting and grabbed 11 rebounds.
California was successful lobbing passes into the paint and relying on Davidson, Anigwe and others to catch the ball in traffic and score around the rim.
"We just weren't very focused today. The things we tried to adjust we didn't do," Turner Thorne said.
Thomas was scoreless in the first half, but hit a trio of 3-pointers to open the second half as the Bears built a 43-33 lead. The Sun Devils pulled within 45-42, but Cal scored nine of the final 11 points in the third quarter and took a 10-point lead.
The lead reached 59-44 early in the fourth quarter after a basket inside by Anigwe and the fourth 3-pointer from Thomas. Cal's lead reached 17 before Arizona State began chipping away with Anigwe on the bench after picking up her fourth foul.
Five straight points from Sabrina Haines -- including just the second 3-pointer for the Sun Devils -- pulled Arizona State within 66-57 with 4:40 left. After Cal's 21st turnover, Davis' 3-pointer rimmed out and Davidson scored on the interior for the Bears to push the lead back to 11.
RECORD WIN
California became the first No. 10 seed to beat a No. 2 seed in tournament history. It was the second straight year the No. 1 or 2 seed was knocked out in the quarterfinals. Top-seed Oregon State lost to Colorado in the quarterfinals last year.
TIP-INS
California: Thomas had scored in double figures in just two of the previous 10 games. ... Cal is now 5-1 against Arizona State in the Pac-12 tourney.
Arizona State: The Sun Devils allowed 70 points for just the third time this season. They are 1-2 in those games. ... Ibis was averaging 2.6 points.
UP NEXT
California: The Bears will play in the Pac-12 semifinals on Saturday.
Arizona State: The Sun Devils will play in the NCAA Tournament.
