January's 20 Points Steer Arizona State Past Aggies

Arizona State 84, Texas A&M 69

TRENTON, N.J. -- Texas A&M coach Gary Blair is jumping on the Arizona State bandwagon -- to some extent.

If the Sun Devils play as well as they did in knocking off the Aggies 84-69 on Sunday in the Trenton regional semifinal, they have a shot to beat top-seeded and undefeated Connecticut and earn a berth in the Final Four.

"They were the better basketball team today," Blair said after Arizona State (26-8) scorched his defensive-minded team for the most points in almost three years. "If they can play at that level, they can give Connecticut a good run, and Connecticut is one of the greatest teams I have ever seen."

Arizona State played a near perfect game in upsetting the second-seeded Aggies (27-8). It shot a season-high 62 percent, got points from nine players, including 22 by Briann January, and did all the little things, winning the hustle plays, making the smart plays and even frustrating its opponents with four or five baskets at the shot clock.

"We're a program with a team that doesn't have a lot of swag but has a quiet confidence," Arizona State coach Charli Turner Thorne said. "We believe in ourselves. We can outwork teams. We're a great basketball team. We choose to do the things we're capable of doing. I felt like at the beginning of the year we can win championships."

The current run by the Sun Devils might seem surprising since they lost leading scorer Dymond Simon to a knee injury earlier this month.

However, January has moved from the shooting guard to the point and everyone has stepped up.

"With us losing Dymond, it's made us come together and be more cohesive on the court," January said.

Arizona State will have to be at its best on Tuesday night against Connecticut (36-0), which rallied from an eight-point first-half deficit to beat California 77-53, advancing to their 14th regional final in 16 years.

Turner Thorne admitted she looked at the bracket after the tournament was announced and wasn't concerned about being in the same regional as the Huskies.

"What I said, it is an incredible opportunity to play the team to beat," she said. "The unbeaten team, the team that everyone's picked to win the national championship. I'm so excited. It's going to take an unbelievable effort to advance."

Danielle Orsillo added 15 points and Lauren Lacey had 14 for the Sun Devils, whose point total came against a team that allowed only 87 points in its two tournament games.