Dec. 18, 2002
KENT, Ohio - Freshmen Jill Noe and Amy Denson each scored 17 points as the Arizona State women's basketball team downed Kent State 64-48 Wednesday night at KSU's Memorial Athletic and Convocation Center.
The victory in ASU's first road game of the year improved the Sun Devils to 7-1 on the season, while Kent State fell to 3-5. With its 7-1 record, Arizona State has turned in its best start since the 1999-00 turned in the same record through eight games.
The game stayed close in the first half with ASU holding a slim lead through the first 7:27. Kent State took a 14-10 lead with 6:11 to play, but Arizona State went on a 13-0 run, fueled by three-pointers by Noe and sophomore Kylan Loney, to go up 23-14 with 2:53 left in the half and went into the locker room with a 24-19 halftime lead.
Arizona State held Kent State to just 11.8 percent shooting and just two field goals in the first half, but the Golden Flashes stayed in the game by knocking down 15-of-16 free throws in the period. Denson led the team with seven points in the first half, while freshman Kristen Kovesdy has six points and six rebounds.
The game stayed close in the first part of the second half as well with Arizona State taking a 37-31 lead with 11:17 to play on a three-pointer by Noe. Kent State erased that lead two minutes later with a 6-0 run which tied the game at 37 with 9:31 to play. The Sun Devils, however, ended the game on a 27-9 run, a stretch that started with three straight baskets from Denson. Loney knocked down 5-of-6 free throws over the final minute to secure the 64-48 victory.
Noe and Denson led all scorers with 17 points each, while Loney added 15 points. Kovesdy finished the game with her second double-double of the year, turning in 12 points, on 5-of-8 shooting, and 12 rebounds.
After shooting just 26.7 percent in the first half (8-30), Arizona State knocked down 51.9 percent of its shots in the second half (14-27) to finish the game at 38.6 percent. The Sun Devils also dominated the boards in the victory, outrebounding the Golden Flashes 43-20 and holding an 18-0 advantage on second-chance points.
Arizona State continues its road trip on Friday night, taking on the Akron Zips at 7 p.m. Eastern/5 p.m. Mountain. ASU's game at Akron will be broadcast locally on KUET 710 AM and via the internet at www.thesundevils.com.