Arizona St. takes advantage of late turnover to eliminate UM women and earn Sweet 16 berth

Miami couldn’t in-bound the ball.

When the host Hurricanes’ women’s basketball team looks back at Sunday night’s heartbreaking 57-55 loss to 22nd-ranked and fifth-seeded Arizona State in the second round of the NCAA Tournament, their failure to make a clean pass will likely haunt them the most.

With the score tied 55-55 and 10 seconds left, Miami’s Endia Banks tried to throw the ball in to set up a final play. Best-case scenario for Miami at that moment was a bucket and a win. Worst-case scenario appeared to be a missed shot at the buzzer and overtime.

But Banks’ pass was deflected and fell to Arizona State’s Robbi Ryan near midcourt. Ryan raced downcourt and missed a layup but drew a foul from Emese Hof.

“My player (I was guarding) was open at first,” Ryan said. “(The two Miami players) were really close to each other. I got my hand in there, and I tipped it.”

Ryan made both her free throws with five seconds left, but Miami still had one more chance.

On that last opportunity, Hof caught the ball in the low post, spun toward the basket … but missed her shot as the ball danced around the rim, ending the game.

“You could’ve blown on that ball, and it would’ve gone in,” Ryan said. “That was a really scary moment.”

The Canes had an option on that play for a Laura Cornelius three-pointer or Hof in the post.

“I got denied,” Cornelius said of Arizona State’s over-play defense. “We still got a shot. We played a heck of a game. It’s really tough.”

Her voice cracked just then, and who could blame her? The Hurricanes came just that close to overtime and a chance at reaching the Sweet 16 for the first time in 27 years.

“It came down to three plays at the end,” Miami coach. Katie Meier said. “We made one mistake.”

Cornelius scored a game-high 15 points. Mykea Gray had 13 points but none in the second half.

Miami’s two best players – posts Beatrice Mompremier and Emese Hof – were held to six points each. Mompremier made just 3-of-12 shots from the floor but grabbed a game-high 22 rebounds and had two blocks. Hof didn’t get many touches and made 2-of-5 shots.

Meier credited the Sun Devils.

“What a gritty effort by their interior defense,” Meier said. “I thought we had great maturity. Our guards said, ‘We’re pretty good, too. We’ll take this game on.’”

They did, but it was the Arizona State shooters who made the difference. After going 2-for-10 on three-pointers in the first half, the Sun Devils made 6-of-12 from deep after intermission.

Miami, meanwhile, shot just 3-of-17 on three-pointers. With Mompremier and Hoff – who entered the game averaging a combined 31.5 points – shut down … and three-pointers not falling from the guards … the Canes were in trouble.

Add to that, 15 Miami turnovers – eight more than Arizona State, and it was a recipe for a defeat.

And just like that, a season that featured two monumental upset wins over top-five powers Notre Dame and Louisville was over.

It was also the last collegiate game for Hof and fellow senior Khaila Prather.

Things might have been different if not for that costly turnover or if Hof hit that last shot in the low post, the one that came sooo close.

“I’ve seen her make that shot 50 times in all my film watching (Saturday) night,” said Arizona State coach Charli Turner Thorne, gracious in victory. “It was halfway down.”

But it didn’t go down, and that was the final shot of Miami’s season.