On Friday at 7:00 PM PST on Pac-12 Networks, Cal women’s basketball will battle #24 Arizona State in Tempe. Cal comes in at 10-17 overall and 2-14 in the Pac-12 while Arizona State comes in at 19-9 overall and 9-7 in the Pac-12.

Last time out: On Sunday, Cal lost to #15 Oregon State on Senior Day by a final score of 76-63. Senior guard Mikayla Pivec led Oregon State with 24 points and 7 rebounds while senior forward Jaelyn Brown and freshman guard Cailyn Crocker each had 17 points for Cal.

RECAP: Cal falls to #15 Oregon State on Senior Day

On Arizona State: The Sun Devils are led by senior forward Ja’Tavia Tapley (11.8 points & 6.4 rebounds), senior guard Robbi Ryan (10.6 points), and senior guard Reili Richardson (9.8 points). Together, this senior trio has the Sun Devils on the verge of a 20 win season.

As a team, the Sun Devils average 65.8 points per game on 40.2% shooting from the field, 30.5% shooting from 3-point range, and 67.6% shooting from the foul line. They average a +6.9 rebound margin, 14.4 assists, 8.4 steals, 1.9 blocks, and 14.2 turnovers per game. Their opponents average 59.1 points per game on 40.4% shooting from the field, 30.7% shooting from 3-point range, and 72.4% shooting from the foul line.

The Sun Devils have had a bit of a streaky season in the Pac-12. They lost their first two games before winning five straight games. They also recently had a three game losing streak followed by a three game winning streak, so they’ve been very up and down. At the moment, they come into this game on a one game losing streak having lost their previous game at Utah 71-75.

Keys to the game: If Cal wants to win this game, the first thing they need to do is generate some offense. Arizona State likes to win by playing gritty defense, so putting up some points will be no easy task. That all said, Cal will have to find a way to put up some points and not allow Arizona State to win by playing better defense. If Cal is to find success in this area, it’s going to have to start with Jaelyn Brown. If she can get rolling, that should free things up for everyone else.

Secondly, Cal needs to take good care of the ball. Cal averages 15.6 turnovers per game, so they’ve struggled all year to keep the turnovers down. If Cal can play a clean game in this department and have some quality possessions on offense, they just might make this game interesting.

Finally, Cal needs to match Arizona State’s intensity on defense. If Arizona State is the team that plays better defense for the full 40 minutes, Cal will not win this game. However, if Cal can force some steals, force some tough shots, and play gritty defense of their own, maybe the ball goes their way a few times in a low scoring game.

Pac-12 Tournament Picture: If Arizona State wins this game, they’ll clinch the 5th seed in the Pac-12 tournament, which would mean a rematch with Cal next week in the Pac-12 tournament. As for Cal, considering that they lost to the 11th seed Washington State twice, that should mean they’re locked into the 12th seed regardless of what happens. Still, as Cal looks to next week’s Pac-12 tournament, it would be nice for them to get a win this week just to build some momentum.