KANSAS CITY, Mo. — With less than three minutes on the clock, Molly Miller and the Arizona State Sun Devils found themselves in a familiar position.
More than 1,000 miles from home, they trailed in-state rival Arizona by one point in the first round of the Big 12 Tournament. It was the third matchup between the two teams this year and the third decided by single digits, too, as it turned out.
Though the Wildcats hung with the Sun Devils until that final minute, Arizona State did prevail 54-51 to advance to the second round. And it was Heloisa Carrera with the hot hand who put Arizona State up one with a jumper in the paint. Last-Tear Poa scored the final basket.
“I love that my coach trusts me, my teammates trust me to have the ball and score for them,” Carrera said. “Being in that position is a lot of pressure, but I love the pressure.”
Arizona State and first-year coach Molly Miller captured the nation’s attention with a blistering 15-0 start to the 2025-26 season. Along the way to the program’s best start, the Sun Devils also set a record for most consecutive wins and completed their first undefeated nonconference season.
The Sun Devils ran into trouble in Big 12 play, where they faced and lost to four ranked teams. They finished the regular season with a 22-9 record (9-9, Big 12), and as Miller is quick to point out, they beat eighth-seeded Utah, then stayed within double digits of Baylor and Texas Tech. The latter two were ranked No. 15 and No. 21 when they played.
“We’ve been prepared for this moment,” Miller said after the game. “That’s why I’m excited for this team and the momentum that they’re getting at the end of the year. I think we can hang with anyone.”
Carrera led Arizona State with a game-high 16 points, shooting 8-for-15 from the field. It was her 18th time scoring in double figures and sixth time either leading or tying to lead the team.
Arizona State will now face seventh-seeded Iowa State, which won the last matchup handily, 90-64 on Feb. 18. The Cyclones have the nation’s 12th-best scoring average and boast two members of the All-Big 12 First Team in junior center Audi Crooks and junior guard Jada Williams. Those two combined for 54 points when the teams last played.
The winner of that game will advance to face the No. 2 seed West Virginia on Friday. With 16 teams, the top four seeds earn a double-bye in the Big 12.
Kansas 56, UCF 35
Even though it led the Big 12 Conference in shooting percentage this season, Kansas wasn’t particularly effective on offense in the first half of its tournament opener. Luckily, defense carried the Jayhawks through, holding UCF to just a season-low 17 points before the break.
In the end, the Jayhawks defeated the Knights 56-35. They advance to play Colorado on Thursday.
“It probably wasn’t what the fans paid for from an offensive perspective, but I thought the two teams competed really hard,” Kansas coach Brandon Schneider said.
Big 12 Freshman of the Year Jaliya Davis continued her season-long streak of double-digit performances, scoring 10 points. She also pulled down a team-high 11 rebounds for her third double-double of the season.
The Jayhawks were particularly effective from beyond the arc, where they shot 6-for-19. In comparison, the Knights went 2-for-19. Kansas also outrebounded UCF 48-27, which included 14 offensive rebounds. They turned those into 20 second-chance points.
Kansas will face Colorado on Thursday in the second round of the tournament. In the last matchup, the Jayhawks pushed the Buffaloes into overtime and lost by three.
The IX Daily: Six different women’s sports in your inbox every week!
Subscribe now and join us, just $6 a month or $60 a year. It’s the women’s sports media network we all wished for, and now it’s here! Soccer Monday, Tennis Tuesday, Basketball Wednesday, Golf Thursday, Hockey Friday – powered by The Ice Garden — and Gymnastics Saturday.
BYU 76, Houston 66
The ninth-seeded BYU Cougars earned their first Big 12 Tournament victory in a 76-66 tilt against Houston. BYU joined the conference ahead of the 2023-24 season and compiled a 10-26 record in its first two campaigns. The Cougars nearly matched that win total this year, recording nine in regular-season conference play.
BYU struggled offensively in the first half, giving up 15 turnovers, but went into the break tied with Houston. Once they calmed down, BYU built a double-digit lead by the end of the third quarter.
“In the first half, they did a good job of speeding us up, and, in the second half, I thought we did a good job of just kind of settling in and getting catches,” coach Lee Cummard said.
Houston mounted a fierce counter and cut the lead back to three points but gave up an 8-0 run, which let BYU slip away. BYU had three players finish in double figures, including sophomore guard Delaney Gibb (15), senior forward Lara Rohkohl (15) and freshman guard Sydney Benally (14).
Houston sophomore Shun’teria Anumele led all scorers with 17 points. BYU advances to face in-state rival Utah on Thursday.
Kansas State 91, Cincinnati 66
With a Big 12 Tournament record 17 three-pointers, Kansas State cruised past Cincinnati in the first game of the day.
Freshman guard Jordan Speiser led the attack with six, while shooting 6-for-8 from distance. That mark set a new program record for 3-pointers in a game. Junior guard Taryn Sides and junior forward Nastja Claessens each poured in five and freshman guard Aniya’ Foy added one. As a team, the Wildcats shot 17-for-32 from beyond the arc.
“I think that when the ball moves like that, it’s more like a shooting drill,” Kansas State coach Jeff Mittie said. “When we got it going, we had players turn down good shots to get somebody else a great shot and that was a lot of fun to watch.”
Kansas State recorded 24 assists on 33 made field goals, and 10 of those came from Gina Garcia. It was a career high for the freshman guard from Montgat, Spain.
Cincinnati senior guard Mya Perry led all scorers with 23 points. Kansas State advances to face Texas Tech at 11 a.m. CT on Thursday.
Colorado extends JR Payne
Before taking the court in Kansas City, Colorado announced a contract extension for head coach JR Payne, which keeps its 10th-year leader in Boulder through 2031. Colorado enters the Big 12 Tournament with a 20-10 (11-7, Big 12) record, which includes three victories against ranked opponents.
The Buffaloes have won 20 or more games in five consecutive seasons and have earned a postseason bid in each of those campaigns.
Listen now to The IX Sports Podcast and Women’s Sports Daily
We are excited to announce the launch of TWO new podcasts for all the women’s sports fans out there looking for a daily dose of women’s sports news and analysis. Stream on Spotify, Apple Podcasts or anywhere you listen to podcasts, and make sure to subscribe!
