Feb. 17, 2003
LOS ANGELES, Calif. - Sophomore Carrie Buckner scored a career-high 16 points as Arizona State fell to the UCLA Bruins 71-62 Sunday afternoon at Pauley Pavilion.
With the loss, Arizona State, which lost its fourth straight road game, fell to 14-10 overall and 6-9 in the Pac-10. UCLA improved to 14-9 overall and 9-5 in league action.
In the first half, Arizona State took control early, opening the game with an 8-0 run over the first 3:37 of the game. Freshman Amy Denson scored the team's first five points and sophomore Kylan Loney knocked down her first three-pointer of the game during that run. ASU took a 15-4 lead with 12:33 to play, but UCLA turned in a 17-2 run over the next 4:19 to take a 21-17 lead with 6:40 to play. The Sun Devils tied the game at 21 with 4:48 to play and UCLA went up 23-22, but ASU closed the half on an 8-2 run, including a three-pointer by freshman Jill Noe, to take a 30-25 edge into the locker room. Buckner led the team with eight points in the first half, while Denson had seven points on 3-of-3 shooting from the field.
UCLA opened the second half with a 15-2 run to erase the Sun Devil advantage and take a 42-33 lead with 13:43 to play. ASU narrowed the gap to just one point at 54-53 with 3:43 remaining in the contest. UCLA's Nikki Blue then connected on what turned out to be the final Bruin basket of the game to put the Bruins up 56-53. ASU never pulled closer than four points in the final two minutes as the Bruins knocked down 15-of-18 attempts from the free throw line to secure the 71-62 victory.
For Arizona State, Buckner led the team with 16 points. For Buckner, it marked the fourth straight game that she has had 12 points or more. Denson finished with 12 points, knocking down all five of her field goal attempts, while Loney chipped in with 10 points, including 2-of-3 three-point attempts. Freshman Kristen Kovesdy paced the team with six rebounds.
UCLA's Blue led all scorers with 20 points, while senior Michelle Greco had 18.
Arizona State returns to action next Saturday, Feb. 22, traveling to Tucson to take on the No. 23/24 Arizona Wildcats at the McKale Center. Next week's game will tip off at 1 p.m. Mountain and can be heard on ASU's new radio flagship station, NBC 1190 AM, or via the internet at www.thesundevils.com.