Jan. 2, 2003
TEMPE, Ariz. - Freshman Jill Noe turned in a career-best 23 points and 11 rebounds to lead the Arizona State women's basketball team to a 70-58 victory over Oregon State Thursday night at Wells Fargo Arena.
Arizona State earned its first Pac-10 win and improved to 9-3 overall and 1-2 in the conference with the victory, while Oregon State is now 7-5 overall and 1-2 in the Pac-10.
Oregon State took the early lead in the ballgame, going up 7-2 with 16:32 to play after junior Hollye Chapman knocked down a three-pointer. Arizona State took its first lead of the game five minutes later at 12-11 with 11:29 when sophomore Kylan Loney connected on a three-pointer of her own, but the rest of the half continued to be a seesaw battle with seven ties and six lead changes and no team leading by more than four points.
Noe knocked down a three-pointer for the Sun Devils to tie the game at 29 with 30 seconds left in the half. She then grabbed a steal and hit fellow freshman Amy Denson for a layup to put ASU up 31-29 with 10 seconds to play, but OSU sophomore Juleen Smith drove the lane and knocked down a layup of her own at the buzzer to tie the game at 31 at halftime. Noe led all players with 10 points, six rebounds, four assists and two steals in the first 20 minutes.
In the second half, both squads continued to battle until ASU pulled ahead with a 5-0 run to give the Sun Devils a 45-40 advantage with 9:36 to play, a lead they would not relinquish. Oregon State cut the lead to three points on the next possession, but Loney and Noe answered with a pair of three-pointers to keep the Beavers at bay. The Sun Devils outrebounded the Beavers 22-12 in the second half and knocked down 77.3 percent (17-22) of their free throws en route to the 70-58 victory.
Noe turned in the second double-double of her young career with a career-best 23 points and 11 rebounds. The Tualatin, Ore., native went 7-of-12 from the field, knocking down 4-of-8 three-pointers, and added four assists and six steals. Freshman Kristen Kovesdy had 17 points and six rebounds, while Loney turned in 10 points, including a pair of treys, a team-best six assists and two blocks. Denson, a native of Central Point, Ore., finished with eight points and 10 rebounds.
Oregon State freshman Casey Bunn led three Beavers in double figures with 13 points and 5-of-8 shooting and grabbed a team-high five rebounds.
Arizona State dominated the boards 40-24 in the victory, including a 15-8 advantage on the offensive glass.
Arizona State continues its homestand on Saturday, Jan. 4, playing host to Oregon at 3 p.m. All of ASU's games can be heard locally on KUET 710 AM or via the internet at www.thesundevils.com, while Saturday's game with Oregon will be televised nationally by Fox Sports Net.