WBB in Arizona

[nwhoopfan]

Hope the team isn't looking ahead to Saturday's game against Montana State I know I am.

Montana St. is cruising against Northern Colorado, they should be fairly well rested for their next game. Looks like Montana is giving them all they can handle right now.

 

[azfan]

Montana St. is cruising against Northern Colorado, they should be fairly well rested for their next game. Looks like Montana is giving them all they can handle right now.

Montana State is loaded and the heavy favorite to win both the regular season and tournament titles - they're really great.

Midway through the third quarter of the Jacks are up by 7 over Montana as Audrey Taylor one of only two returning players for the Jacks has gone off with four threes. Her back court mate Naomi White former Grand Canyon Lope, the leading scorer in the Big Sky at slightly over 23 points per game got a buzzer beater as the half ended from just over midcourt

Interestingly former Lumberjack sharpshooter Leah Beatty is now an assistant coach for Montana.

 

[azfan]

81-72

The Jacks extend the winning streak to four games and move to 1-0 in Big Sky play with a big win at home over Montana. Red shirt freshman Naomi White leading scorer in the Big Sky leading freshman score in the nation and number 9 score in the country and her senior teammate Audrey Taylor lead the Jacks to an important victory as the program growth continues.

 

[nwhoopfan]

Montana State is loaded and the heavy favorite to win both the regular season and tournament titles - they're really great.

Midway through the third quarter of the Jacks are up by 7 over Montana as Audrey Taylor one of only two returning players for the Jacks has gone off with four threes. Her back court mate Naomi White former Grand Canyon Lope, the leading scorer in the Big Sky at slightly over 23 points per game got a buzzer beater as the half ended from just over midcourt

Interestingly former Lumberjack sharpshooter Leah Beatty is now an assistant coach for Montana.

Looks like Northern Colorado came back to make a game of it. Scored 50 in the 2nd half on MSU.

 

[azfan]

Looks like Northern Colorado came back to make a game of it. Scored 50 in the 2nd half on MSU.

Winning on the road is hard. You don't win a whole lot of games when you give up 79 points you usually win a game in when you score 86.

Saturday I would expect the Bobcats to get their second road win in Flagstaff by at least 15 points.

Montana State's Konig who was instrumental in upsetting the number two Lumberjacks in the conference tournament semi last year with 29 points scored 27 tonight so she really does have the Jack's number.

 

[azfan]

It's possible (likely?) that the Arizona schools go 0 for Saturday.

ASU

This is the most likely win has the devil's travel to Provo to take on BYU. The Devils emerged with a victory in Utah with leader Gabby Elliott on the bench most of the second half with four fouls. You and I'll transfer McKinna brackets was magnificent, she put the team on her back in the second half and carried Molly Miller's team to a thrilling one point victory.

Winning on the road is hard so it's a lot to expect to pick up a second road win against the quality of opponent.

NAU

Winning their first Big Sky game was huge for the Jacks in The Dome. Senior Aubrey Taylor was magnificent in the first half hitting four threes all from Caitlin Clark range. GCU transfer Naomi While showed why she's the leading scorer in the Big Sky and the leading freshman scorer in NCAA division 1. But Montana is not Montana State and I think the Bobcats are just going to be too much for the Jacks.

GCU

The Lopes travel to Boise State where Massey shows them a three-point favorite. I would definitely give the points as this looks to be a double-digit loss for the Lopes. I know Boise State is struggling but they certainly have a much stronger program at this point in the season and after the Rams revealed GCU as a pretender I certainly can understand the analytics that would favor Grand Canyon.

Uarizona at Texas Tech - Pity the Kitty

 

[nwhoopfan]

Looks like too much Taylee Chirrick for NAU to handle today. I like her game a lot. 27 points on 12-19 shooting, 8 reb, 5 steals.

 

[nwhoopfan]

What? Grand Canyon outscored in Q1 by San Diego St. 37-9. How do you give up almost 40 points in a quarter? Grand Canyon outscored SDSU in each of the following 3 quarters, by a total of 10, but the damage was done.

 

[azfan]

Arizona State takes care of their business against a UCF team that reminded me so much of the Natasha Adair years here. After a 25-21 first half the Devils found their footing and scored 43 in the second half which tells you a lot more about UCF than it does about the Devils. The 16-1 Sun Devils travel to TCU and I'm wondering if maybe Molly Miller's defense will be upsetting to Miles. Well Hope springs eternal I think that will be a second loss for the Devils.

Grand Canyon showed the gap between the bottom and top of the Mountain West as they were completely dismantled by the San Diego State team the won the conference tournament last year and danced. That team looks really good it may enter the tournament as the favorite.

The Jacks just ended against Weber State. Both teams are now 6 and 10 on the year. Both are at the bottom of the Big Sky but the news here was 37 points by red shirt freshman Naomi White leading scorer in the Big Sky and 8th leading scorer in division 1. The former Grand Canyon Lope who's absence was noticeable against San Diego nailed 9 threes as she let her team. With that sad I'm not sure how much better than the Wildcats the Jacks are but for the time being NAU is 3-1 in the Big Sky. Work to the Montana State game though and you'll see the same gap that the Lopes have with the top of the Mountain West.

At Montana State a huge upset is brewing as Eastern Washington is leading by seven points. It will indeed be interesting to see how that game ends up.

And in a game only peripherally related to Arizona basketball Santa Clara and San Francisco have a barn burner going on as the Broncos lead the host Don's by 3 as the third quarter winds down. This would be a great victory on the road if Loree Payne's squad can win the fourth quarter.

And down in the dirty t the kitties took care of GIBB and BYU by 3 ino what I think was a surprise for everybody. What struck me was how well they defended freshmen Benally who had a great game in the Coug victory over ASU.

 

[azfan]

This we will increase the clarity for Arizona schools in their respective conferences.

ASU - as expected TCU easily handled the Devils in Texas. After hanging with the horned frogs for one quarter the difference in talent and particularly on the offensive end became apparent. And she was not able to withstand the defensive pressure resulting in a 30-point loss.

There's a possibility the kitties could lose out in January.

 

[azfan]

Gut wrenching loss in Cincinnati. The Devils race to a 26-10 lead with 12 points off 6 TO at the end of the first. And then........total collapse as ASU falls 66-64. Kudos to Cincinnati for adjusting, hanging and ultimately prevailing.

At Global Arena the Lopes are trailing the Broncos by 9. Since losing to Grand Canyon in Boise the Broncos are on their way to a 6th consecutive victory.

The kitties are training the Cyclones by double digits in Ames.

And ...the Jacks are trailing Northern Colorado at the end of the first sooooo

This may be a 0-4 Saturday

 

[azfan]

5 minutes to tip the Desert Financial Arena. Molly Miller will have the team prepped after the gut wrenching loss at Cincinnati.

Bunch of kitties in the house ........Pity the kitties.

 

[azfan]

Very tough last week for the Arizona programs.

Arizona State University

After the disappointing loss to Kansas State a so-called Sun Devil fan posted on the Sun Devil board that Molly Miller should be fired. Ikr I did wait one day before unleashing on the ignorance inherent in that pose but it really got me to thinking, an activity my wife discourages.

There is a broad tent for women's basketball fans and the diversity within that tent is actually commendable. From the casual to the insane fan from the thoughtful to the incoherent from the positive to the negative we get to see everything in the discussion of our affection and admiration for woman's basketball.

The same fan who called for the firing of Molly Miller characterized the ASU program as in collapse. This after being upset at home in the midst of a 20 win season in which the Sun Devils will certainly play in the postseason.

I know I can't let it go. It's just inconceivable to me how someone could post calling for the firing of such a successful coach and characterizing what was a disappointing home loss as a collapse.

Well on to other more important issues. Tomorrow is the pink out game against Oklahoma State which I fear will be a second consecutive home loss.

The kitties get their chance against the Wildcats down in McHale and for some reason I'm thinking they might pull the upset and beat K-State.

Grand Canyon is hosting Mountain West leading San Diego State with a tip off at the same time as the Sun Devils tomorrow I'd really like to see San Diego State play but of course I'll be at Desert Financial Arena. I do have my tickets for the Mountain West tournament so I will get to see San Diego State who looks like they're on their way to both regular season and tournament title and repeat as Mountain West champs.

NAU - well what can I say. Beyond Naomi White leading freshman scorer in the nation and a top 10 scorer there's not a whole lot to cheer about in Flagstaff. Fingers crossed that in her second season next year Dinkins will get more pieces and be more successful in developing an identity for her team. I will drive up for their loss on Thursday to Idaho State and stay to see the rematch on Saturday against Weber State.

The kitties.... As they accelerate toward a 20 loss season I'm looking forward to traveling down to McHale for the second game in the territorial cup. I think ASY's going to find a much tougher going against the kitties in the dirty t on the 14th.

Community college bonus

Eastern Arizona community college has traditionally been very successful and they have another great season going. On a 20 game winning streak and ranked second in division 1.

I was surprised to see Mesa Community College with a dramatic improvement. My former employer seems to have found the right coach and there's clearly an improvement in recruiting. The Thunderbirds were 12 and 1 in their previous games against 11th ranked Pima a loss at home which dropped MCC to 13th in division 2.

Note on Santa Clara two point loss to Pepperdine. Sophie Glancey's injury in the first game against Washington State will seriously impact the Broncos' chances in the WCC. She suffered a shoulder injury and she's no longer in a sling but it appears that she's wearing some sort of compression on her right shoulder and arm. I've been unable to find any information on a timeline or even if she'll be back this season. A real shame as coach Payne has done a tremendous job with the Broncos.

 

[KnightBridgeAZ]

Very tough last week for the Arizona programs.

Arizona State University

After the disappointing loss to Kansas State a so-called Sun Devil fan posted on the Sun Devil board that Molly Miller should be fired. Ikr I did wait one day before unleashing on the ignorance inherent in that pose but it really got me to thinking, an activity my wife discourages.

There is a broad tent for women's basketball fans and the diversity within that tent is actually commendable. From the casual to the insane fan from the thoughtful to the incoherent from the positive to the negative we get to see everything in the discussion of our affection and admiration for woman's basketball.

The same fan who called for the firing of Molly Miller characterized the ASU program as in collapse. This after being upset at home in the midst of a 20 win season in which the Sun Devils will certainly play in the postseason.

I know I can't let it go. It's just inconceivable to me how someone could post calling for the firing of such a successful coach and characterizing what was a disappointing home loss as a collapse.

Well on to other more important issues. Tomorrow is the pink out game against Oklahoma State which I fear will be a second consecutive home loss.

The kitties get their chance against the Wildcats down in McHale and for some reason I'm thinking they might pull the upset and beat K-State.

Grand Canyon is hosting Mountain West leading San Diego State with a tip off at the same time as the Sun Devils tomorrow I'd really like to see San Diego State play but of course I'll be at Desert Financial Arena. I do have my tickets for the Mountain West tournament so I will get to see San Diego State who looks like they're on their way to both regular season and tournament title and repeat as Mountain West champs.

NAU - well what can I say. Beyond Naomi White leading freshman scorer in the nation and a top 10 scorer there's not a whole lot to cheer about in Flagstaff. Fingers crossed that in her second season next year Dinkins will get more pieces and be more successful in developing an identity for her team. I will drive up for their loss on Thursday to Idaho State and stay to see the rematch on Saturday against Weber State.

The kitties.... As they accelerate toward a 20 loss season I'm looking forward to traveling down to McHale for the second game in the territorial cup. I think ASY's going to find a much tougher going against the kitties in the dirty t on the 14th.

Community college bonus

Eastern Arizona community college has traditionally been very successful and they have another great season going. On a 20 game winning streak and ranked second in division 1.

I was surprised to see Mesa Community College with a dramatic improvement. My former employer seems to have found the right coach and there's clearly an improvement in recruiting. The Thunderbirds were 12 and 1 in their previous games against 11th ranked Pima a loss at home which dropped MCC to 13th in division 2.

Note on Santa Clara two point loss to Pepperdine. Sophie Glancey's injury in the first game against Washington State will seriously impact the Broncos' chances in the WCC. She suffered a shoulder injury and she's no longer in a sling but it appears that she's wearing some sort of compression on her right shoulder and arm. I've been unable to find any information on a timeline or even if she'll be back this season. A real shame as coach Payne has done a tremendous job with the Broncos.

I think Molly Miller has done a darn good job with ASU, I would say they are outperforming expectations. And they are not an uber talented group, really. We were at Desert Financial Wednesday (we were in the front row behind the Arizona SID and radio dude).

Arizona is playing true to form, they are ultimately at a high mid major talent level. Thinking they are going to upset KState seems to me like the ultimate in being hopeful, but you never know.

We are going tonight to the Becky Burke radio show with our friends. Try to go once a year. I am not a huge fan of Becky, which may be less about her performance (we are exciting and always competing, which may be all you can ask, especially with the recent injury) than her perceived personality. We will get a chance to get another look tonight. We have been missing a lot of games, as my wife hasn't been feeling so well.

 

[nwhoopfan]

Hey it was a good night. Grand Canyon over San Diego St., Arizona over K State and Arizona St. over Oklahoma St.

 

[azfan]

The trifecta!

ASU rebounds from their loss to KSU with a nice victory over Oklahoma State at home with a super defense holding the cowgirls 18 points below their season average. The Devil's benefited from a career game by Deb Davenport who's been battling injuries all year and really spark the Devils both scoring rebounding and with defense.

Across town GCU gets their signature win of the season handing Mountain West leader San Diego State their first defeat of the season and really rather convincing fashion. Without a doubt the strongest effort by Grand Canyon and as I said in another thread a game that really will impact the standings and has UNLV looking forward to their rematch with the Aztecs.

And down in the dirty t the kitties pull off a victory over KSU and really convincing fashion as they really lead wire to wire.

The lone team in Arizona not playing The Lumberjacks face off against Idaho State tomorrow night in Flagstaff. An NAU win would be a monumental upset.

 

[cancontent]

The trifecta!

ASU rebounds from their loss to KSU with a nice victory over Oklahoma State at home with a super defense holding the cowgirls 18 points below their season average. The devil's benefited from a career game by devd Davenport who's been battling injuries all year and really spark the Devils both scoring rebounding and with defense.

Across town GCU gets their signature one of the season handy Mountain West leader San Diego State their first defeated the season and really rather convincing fashion. Without a doubt the strongest effort by Grand Canyon and as I said in another thread a game that really will impact the standings and has UNLV looking forward to their rematch with the Aztecs.

And down in the dirty tee the kitties pull off a victory over KSU and really convincing fashion as they really lead wire to wire.

The lone team in Arizona not playing The Lumberjacks face off against Idaho State tomorrow night in Flagstaff. An NAU win would be a monumental upset.

Not to mention, they had Taurasi and Taylor on hand watching. How cool is that?!?!

 

[GamecockFam]

Not to mention, they had Taurasi and Taylor on hand watching. How cool is that?!?!

I always wonder what is going through the minds of the greats as they watch these lower levels games. Are they just chilling and enjoying the game? Full of anxiety from the bad technique and missed opportunities? Daydreaming about how they would attack the defense if they were on the floor?

 

[KnightBridgeAZ]

Very good pick, @azfan - I wouldn't have bet on Arizona to beat KState.

We went (as I posted somewhere) to the Becky Burke radio show the prior evening (we go once a year) and she wasn't predicting a specific victory either. She said we would win some games before the year was over, but wasn't specific. Her thing is what I have been saying all along - Arizona lacks height and all, but they play hard. She obviously didn't admit there is some talent short-fall, but there is. Her main comment about KState was that they haven't figures out how to replace a tower inside and it has affected their season. Fair comment.

In response to a question about the portal the 2 interesting things were that she had 2 weeks to put together the Arizona roster (the 2 weeks has been typical time to work the portal) and the portal database is searchable. You pay a fairly expensive fee for software that does the job. But you can specify some of what you are looking for and get a "short list" out. Then you research from there.

 

[azfan]

Very good pick, @azfan - I wouldn't have bet on Arizona to beat KState.

We went (as I posted somewhere) to the Becky Burke radio show the prior evening (we go once a year) and she wasn't predicting a specific victory either. She said we would win some games before the year was over, but wasn't specific. Her thing is what I have been saying all along - Arizona lacks height and all, but they play hard. She obviously didn't admit there is some talent short-fall, but there is. Her main comment about KState was that they haven't figures out how to replace a tower inside and it has affected their season. Fair comment.

In response to a question about the portal the 2 interesting things were that she had 2 weeks to put together the Arizona roster (the 2 weeks has been typical time to work the portal) and the portal database is searchable. You pay a fairly expensive fee for software that does the job. But you can specify some of what you are looking for and get a "short list" out. Then you research from there.

This was Burke's first big win. Very impressive. This game also shows how tough the Big 12 is top to bottom with the exception I think of Houston. The kitties are to be congratulated on this victory..... I'm now feeling a little nervous about the 14th. I think I have a very good ticket via one of my daughters friends and I always am impressed with McKale

 

[azfan]

Getting ready to drive down to the dirty t for the rematch against the kitties in their newly named Arena. I guess some Arizona alumni paid to stick their company's name on The Arena.

In any event I guess Game Day will be at the arena formerly known as McKale from 8:00 to 10:00 am and Jeff Munn ASU announcer recommended we get to the dirty t as traffic and parking will be a challenge.

Assuming that the kitty coach Burke will relax discipline and start her former Buffalo point guard Cornfield who was mysteriously absent from the floor in their last game.

 

[KnightBridgeAZ]

Getting ready to drive down to the dirty t for the rematch against the kitties in their newly named Arena. I guess some Arizona alumni paid to stick their company's name on The Arena.

In any event I guess Game Day will be at the arena formerly known as McKale from 8:00 to 10:00 am and Jeff Munn ASU announcer recommended we get to the dirty t as traffic and parking will be a challenge.

Assuming that the kitty coach Burke will relax discipline and start her former Buffalo point guard Cornfield who was mysteriously absent from the floor in their last game.

Hope you enjoyed your visit.

It's still McKale - The McKale Center at Alkeme Arena. Reminds me of Ohio State's Value City Arena at the Schottenstein Center. Plus, the floor is the Lute and Bobbi Olsen Court. All very wordy.

Some ASU folk were brought over and seated in the new seats between mine and the TV booth. I don't know who they were, but someone from the bench brought over ASU gear. To seat them, the security folks made Becky Burke's wife move.

The game was fine. Arizona continues to fight hard but doesn't really have the talent to win many games. ASU is a well coached, solid team, happy we could take them to overtime.

 

[JellyBean]

I greatly appreciate you keeping us informed of Arizona basketball. Not just the Wildcats but all of Arizona teams. Much appreciated.

 

[azfan]

An amazing trip down to the dirty t. Coach Miller runs her record to 2-0 in Mckale. Last year she led her Grand Canyon squad to a three-point victory in the building in the midst of the 30 game winning streak that culminated in a WAC title and a trip to the dance.

With a couple of breaks down the stretch the Devils may get to replicate Lopes of last year and dance!

Today's game in front of over 8,000 fans was a real battle. Very entertaining game. Shorthanded the Sun Devils left point guard Last Tear Poa in Tempe and survived a scare as Gabby Elliott was off the court for 6 minutes in the first quarter. The kitties brought Cornfield out of the dog house and she along with Sugapong were unstoppable offensively.

The Devils survived a shaky 4th quarter and dominated overtime for the win.

The seats I had were amazing two rows behind the Sun Devils bench and after the game I was able to high-five all the players. Really a special game and a special moment. Over on the Sun Devil thread somebody posted that coach Miller gets it. The best description so far of this outstanding young coach.

 

[azfan]

In other Arizona results today NAU and GCU split. Both teams were on the road and NAU matched up against a fairly equal Sac State squad as both of these teams are in the lower third of the Big Sky. After dominating the 2nd and 3rd quarters the Jacks did attempt to hand the game over to Sac State by adopting the Natasha Adair 3-point defense in the last 2 minutes. They survived and leave the capital of the Golden Gate State (as do an increasing number of Californians) with a 60 to 55 victory.

GCU played a tremendous first half against the running Rebs in Grift City. Unfortunately like in a number of their Mountain West games they were not able to sustain the effort in part due to the foul trouble and lose 74 to 65.

Meadow Roland had a double-double (27/15), played all 40 minutes and was dominant in the game.

After the surprising lost to Wyoming I'm not certain that this victory fully reassures Lindy as she's preparing for the tournament. The Rebs continue to be very inconsistent from three land and played down to the level of competition against the Lopes at least in the first half.

Barring a miracle this will be the first time in 4 years the Rebs don't win the Mountain West regular season. While home court will provide some help in the upcoming tournament Wendy is going to have to find a few more answers if she expects to prevail and take this team to the dance.

 

[JellyBean]

View attachment 117067
An amazing trip down to the dirty t. Coach Miller runs her record to 2-0 in Mckale. Last year she led her Grand Canyon squad to a three-point victory in the building in the midst of the 30 game winning streak that culminated in a WAC title had a trip to the dance.

With a couple of breaks down the stretch the Devils may get to replicate Lopes of last year and danced!

Today's game in front of over 8,000 fans was a real battle. Very entertaining game. Shorthanded the Sun Devils left point guard Last Tear Poa in Tempe and survived a scare as Gabby Elliott was off the court for 6 minutes in the first quarter. The kitties brought Cornfield out of the dog house and she along with Sugapong were unstoppable offensively.

The Devils survived a shaky 4th quarter and dominated overtime for the win.

The seats I had were amazing two rows behind the Sun Devils and after the game I was able to high-five all the players. Really a special game and a special moment. Over on the Sun Devil thread somebody posted that coach Miller gets it. The best description so far of this outstanding young coach.

Year One! I can't wait to see what Coach Miller does in Year 2! Coach Miller is the REAL DEAL!! ASU is going to be a problem as long as Coach Miller is there.

 

[KnightBridgeAZ]

The last prediction I saw had ASU as a last 4 in, playing in the "First Four". Arizona did it a couple years back, and advanced.

It seems quite possible to me, as long as they keep playing well. The out of conference was fairly weak but they won all of them, which is a positive. Results in the Big 12 seem to vary, with a couple meh losses and good, not great victories. But yes, as of now, I would think they should get into the dance.

 

[azfan]

The last prediction I saw had ASU as a last 4 in, playing in the "First Four". Arizona did it a couple years back, and advanced.

It seems quite possible to me, as long as they keep playing well. The out of conference was fairly weak but they won all of them, which is a positive. Results in the Big 12 seem to vary, with a couple meh losses and good, not great victories. But yes, as of now, I would think they should get into the dance.

Kitties could help the Devil's cause by beating Colorado.

 

[azfan]

A fun double header yesterday with a noon tip off at Grand Canyon followed by a 2:00 p.m. tip to watch The Devils really take apart Houston.

Grand Canyon played down to the competition (Utah State) for three quarters before finally finding their stride and pulling ahead in the fourth. The Lopes may face Utah State in the first round up in Vegas but will certainly exit the tournament in the second round.

So yesterday by 1:00 p.m. ASu put 47 points up on the board. So for fans of the Sun Devils accustomed to a very low scoring grind it out offense there was reason to be delighted but then again it was Houston.

More importantly was the announcement that came out about next season and Miller's recruiting

Molly Miller just announced

Former Tennessee guard Ruby Whitehorn will join Arizona State women’s basketball next season after announcing her landing spot on Feb. 20.

Arizona State WBB Adds Key Impact Transfer Ahead of Next Season

Molly Miller's squad is set to add a high-level player to the roster for the 2026-27 season.

www.si.com

I'm a huge believer in second chances and a change in scenery I'd actually do this young lady some good but I wonder if anyone has any insight?

The second problem she had dealing with marijuana is less concerning than the first issue which evidently involved domestic assault.

If anyone can help this young lady find a sense of balance I think it's Molly Miller are but again it's going to be an interesting year next year. Is she a point guard?

I had a chance to briefly speak with Reili Richardson former point guard for the Sun Devils under CTT and current graduate assistant for Molly Miller and when I mentioned the need for a point guard Riley smiled and said that's the plan.

I wonder if she was referring to this young lady?

 

[azfan]

20 minutes tip at Desert Financial Arena and the house is filling up. So pleased to see a great turnout for senior night.

Cougars have been on fire in shoot around.....nothing but net! Man BYU can stroke it. I worry about early foul trouble for ASU

Liberal sprinkling of Blue in the arena.

We will need help from the bench tonight...Deb Davenport and J Lovett.