TUCSON – Facing Arizona in the formidable environment of McKale Center demands leadership. That’s exactly what the Arizona State women’s basketball team received from McKinna Brackens.
With six seconds left in regulation against Arizona Saturday, the Sun Devils trailed by two points and had missed their last seven shot attempts from the field. As buzzers and whistles rang to break up the huddles, ASU coach Molly Miller and the Sun Devils knew their playmakers had to step up.
Junior forward Brackens received the inbound pass. Moments earlier, with 47 seconds left, Brackens committed a turnover that gifted the possession to Arizona, which the Wildcats used to take a two-possession lead.
“She had that (moment) where she drove baseline and it went off her knee, so you could tuck your tail and feel sorry for yourself,” Miller said after the 75-69 overtime victory over Arizona. “Or you could rise up and make a bucket to send us into overtime and she picked the latter.”
With a chance for redemption, Brackens, who led ASU with 24 points, confidently drove while blanketed by the defense and nailed a midrange jumper to send the game to overtime.
Interestingly, the inbound play was not intended for Brackens as the main or secondary option.
“She was actually the third option in that event,” Miller said. “That’s a testament to them – that they were calm enough not to panic if the first option wasn’t open and Brackens at that elbow – that’s her money shot.”
In overtime, Brackens once again had a crucial situation in front of her as the Sun Devils led 74-67 with 18 seconds left. Brackens stood at the free throw line and buried two shots to put the game out of reach as the Sun Devils secured an important victory as they sit on the NCAA Tournament bubble.
Previous misses before the game-ending free throws did not affect her at the line as she chose to focus on her fundamentals and what she has learned from practices, Brackens said.
Forward Heloisa Carrera and guard Gabby Elliott also aided ASU in the win. Carrera notched a double-double for the third time this season as she finished with 10 points and 11 rebounds.
Despite leaving the game in the early moments to have her right leg taped, Elliott finished with 22 points in 36 minutes of action.
“It’s crazy. She falls down all the time and I don’t know how she gets back up,” Brackens said. “How much tape she had on – it’s crazy and she’s so clutch … she’s unreal.”
At the end of regulation, Elliott who went down at the start of the game with an injury, had a scary incidental collision with a Wildcats player. Elliott once again powered through the pain and played in overtime to secure the win.
“If you were to know what she goes through on a daily basis in her pain management, she is as tough as they come,” Miller said. “When she gets to the game, she’s hurting, but you would never know that. She’s just a tough kid and that trickles down to our whole team.”
This win is the first time since the 2017-18 that the Sun Devils have won at McKale Center and swept their instate rivals.
McKale Center has a reputation as one of the toughest places to play in women’s basketball, especially in the Big 12. It ranks second in attendance this season with an average of 5,930 fans.
Saturday’s matchup was no exception and the Sun Devils faced a crowd of 8,766, including some ASU fans who made the trek to Tucson to cheer on their team.
“Just a fantastic environment and I know we won on the scoreboard, but women’s basketball won today,” Miller said. “We had an amazing fan base today come up from Tempe. … They were maybe outnumbered, but had a lot of heart and it was amazing to see our fans make the trip.”
The game’s result made Molly Miller the winningest first-year coach in program history with 21 victories.
With the win at McKale Center, ASU also clinches at least a .500 record on the road. ASU is 7-5 with road games left at Iowa State and Texas Tech.
This is significant as the Sun Devils transition from surprising upstarts to a team primed for a push to make the NCAA Women’s Basketball Tournament.
Although history has been made, the Sun Devils have larger aspirations and four crucial games ahead.
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