Sun Devils fall short of sweet 16
<p>Chante Black scored a career-high 26 points and had 13 rebounds, and third-seeded Duke never trailed in a 67-59 victory over Arizona State on Tuesday night. <a href="http://thesundevils.cstv.com/sports/w-baskbl/mtt/january_briann00.html"… January</a> scored 17 points and <a href="http://thesundevils.cstv.com/sports/w-baskbl/mtt/lacey_lauren01.html">L… Lacey</a> 13 for Arizona State (22-11). The Sun Devils were seeking to reach the round of 16 for the third time in four years.</p><separator></separator><p>After averaging only 10 turnovers over its previous two games, Arizona State had 10 at halftime and finished with 16.</p><separator></separator><p>Duke led 29-28 before a three-point play by Joy Cheek and a layup by Black sparked an 18-5 run that made it 47-34 with 11:19 to go.</p><separator></separator><p>But Arizona State made eight free throws in a 12-4 spurt that got the Sun Devils to 56-53. It was 59-57 before Black made two foul shots, and she added two more free throws with 29 seconds remaining to give Duke a six-point cushion.</p><separator></separator><p>Lacey, who often had the task of guarding Black, said, "She is an amazing post and all-around player who works extremely hard on both ends of the court."</p><separator></separator><p>Black had 12 points and nine rebounds in the first half, but the Blue Devils staggered into halftime with a 27-24 lead after going up by 10 with 4 minutes elapsed.</p><separator></separator><p>Arizona State got off to a slow start. After Thomas scored off the opening tap, the Sun Devils committed two turnovers, missed all four field-goal tries and missed two free throws while falling in an 8-0 hole.</p><separator></separator><p>It was 10-4 before baskets by Wanisha Smith and Black gave Duke a double-digit lead. But the Blue Devils scored only four points over the next 7 minutes, allowing ASU to close to 18-16.</p>